Local businesses are collaborating with the Meridian and Boise school districts, the Idaho Department of Labor, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation and other organizations to give students with disabilities an opportunity to experience the everyday workplace.
Disability Mentoring Day on Oct. 28 will match 40 students from Rocky Mountain High School, Sawtooth Middle School, West Junior High School and Frank Church High School with employer mentors throughout the community for a day observing the activities of specific occupations. The students will be asking questions and in some instances get the chance for hands-on occupational experience. The mentors will be taking students to lunch to strengthen the mentoring relationship and give the student the opportunity for further career guidance.
The experience has been arranged by the school districts in conjunction with the Idaho Department of Labor, the Idaho Educational Services for the Deaf and the Blind, the Idaho Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, the Idaho Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Idaho State Independent Living Council, the Living Independence Network Corp., the Human Resource Association of the Treasure Valley, the ADA Task Force, the Idaho Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the Idaho Council for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
“Since the beginning of this school year – and for some students who were involved in a job readiness program since last spring – the students have been researching careers and writing summaries,” said Department of Labor Senior Workforce Consultant Bud Swanson. “The job sites were identified based on what students described as their dream jobs.”
In the week following Disability Mentoring Day the students will regroup to discuss their experiences and what they learned during the job shadowing in a forum that will provide insights to broaden the knowledge of all the students about various careers and occupations.