Delaware Disability Mentoring Day provides career-building experiences
Delaware’s Disability Mentoring Day continues to grow, this year with a record 56 students with disabilities receiving valuable career-building experiences Oct. 19 by visiting a record 39 employers in New Castle, Kent and Sussex counties. Disability Mentoring Day is held during National Disability Employment Awareness Month each October.
Sen. Chris Coons, whose Wilmington office is among the employers offering job-shadowing experiences, was the keynote speaker at the Courtyard Marriott-University of Delaware in Newark. In Newark, 26 students spent a portion of their day at 26 workplaces learning about the skills that are required for jobs in which they have expressed an interest. Keith Bosco of Community Integrated Services was the guest speaker at Dover Downs Hotel, where 15 students traveled to seven work sites for job-shadowing experiences. At Woodbridge High School, 15 students gained valuable exposure at six job sites.
“Disability Mentoring Day provides a valuable experience for young people with disabilities as they make the transition from school to the world of work,” said Gov. Jack Markell, who made advancing employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities his nationwide initiative while serving as chair of the National Governors Association for 2012-2013 and has championed continuing efforts in Delaware. “The students learn what is expected at a workplace and whether the work matches their interests. For employers, they get the opportunity to meet these enthusiastic young people with incredible abilities and willingness to work,” he said.
Disability Mentoring Day is a national program, and in Delaware, the collaboration involves several agencies, educational institutions, business groups and organizations, including the University of Delaware’s Center for Disabilities Studies, which started the first Disability Mentoring Day in Delaware seven years ago. Joining the collaboration are the Department of Health and Social Services, the Department of Labor’s Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, the Department of Education, Glasgow, Christiana, Smyrna, Dover and Woodbridge high schools, the Charlton School in Dover, the Better Business Bureau of Delaware, the Delaware Business Leadership Network and Easter Seals of Delaware and Maryland Eastern Shore. The group is co-chaired by two young people with disabilities – Alyssa Cowin, an operations support specialist with DHSS, and Julia Hensley, who is working through Easter Seals at Victory Fellowship Church.
“Disability Mentoring Day is another important career-exploration experience for young people with disabilities to have,” DHSS Secretary Rita Landgraf said. “We know that increasing the number of workplace experiences they have, gives them a greater chance of being hired by an employer who will harness their talents and skills. Employment is the path to financial security, independence and inclusion as a fully contributing member to society.”
“Career exploration is a critical component of high school and college programs for all students and, in particular, students with disabilities,” said Brian Freedman, associate director of the University of Delaware Center for Disabilities Studies. “Experiences like Disability Mentoring Day help students realize, and then advocate for, the types of jobs they want and don’t want. We have seen Disability Mentoring Day lead directly to long-term internships and paid employment for several participants.”
Students from Woodbridge High School and the Division for the Visually Impaired networked with employers there. Employers participating in Disability Mentoring Day in Sussex County were Woodbridge High School School Resource Office and Woodbridge School District’s Raiders Daycare, Cafeteria Crew, Transportation, Field/Turf/Facility Maintenance/Management Crew and Custodial Crew.
