[Ohio-talk] Opportunity for Greater Cincinnati area Youth

[Kaiti Shelton]

Hi all,

It's never too early to start looking ahead to summer plans,
especially for high school students who may be planning to go away to
camps, spend a week of vacation with family, attend a National NFB
Convention (hint hint), or find summer employment.  Below is the press
release from the 2014 Summer Youth Work Experience program at the
Clovernook Center for the Blind.  Emily and Lillie Pennington, myself,
and two other students from the area worked this summer in the program
and had a blast.  Unfortunately, it is no longer being offered to
college students due to a lack of support from OOD, but I'd highly
recommend it to anyone who is interested in having a great first job,
with plenty of support available if it is needed from job coaches and
employment specialists.  Please forward to those you think would
benefit from the information so they may have a few months to consider
this opportunity (and if you can throw in a blurb about the Ohio
Association of Blind Students, that would also be great).

"Skills to Pay the Bills" Pays Off For Visually Impaired Youth
Five local students who are blind or visually impaired are
participating in the 5 week Summer Youth Work Experience at Clovernook
Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired. They are earning a wage
and learning valuable skills through the educational component.
"Skills to Pay the Bills" is aimed at teaching independent living
skills such as budgeting, organizational skills, and time management.
Through the work experience component students are learning workplace
specific skills such as communication, teamwork, networking, and
professionalism. "Graduating without having prior work experience is
difficult for anyone, but it is even more difficult for those who are
blind or visually impaired. This program helps them build confidence,
while also developing the soft skills." says Chuck Geiger, an
Employment Specialist at Clovernook Center. When Zeshaan -a high
school sophomore- expressed his passion for technology and interest in
becoming a software engineer, Geiger placed him at Multistate Center
East -a division of Clovernook Center working with the National
Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS)-. "I
always thought that jobs wouldn't be available for me because of my
eyesight. I assumed my limitations would narrow my options - but
Clovernook Center has helped me realize that this isn't the case."
Over the past 4 years students have been placed in positions within
the community at country clubs, sports clubs, and garden centers. This
year they are working in reception and throughout the braille and
industrial operations departments at Clovernook Center. "This is a
great place for their work experience; we have supports and
accommodations already in place, which allows the students to gain
competitive work experience" says Geiger. Emily will be returning to
school as a junior this fall. She is studying to become an accountant,
and has been interning as a receptionist, "This is my first real work
experience and it is giving me a lot of confidence for my career. I am
able to develop real world experience in a blind-friendly
environment." Similarly, Kaiti, -also a junior- will be using the
skills she has developed as a collator to further her career
aspirations in music therapy. Chuck Geiger's goal is to expand the
summer youth work experience opportunities "We know that when youth
who are blind or visually impaired have similar experiences to friends
at school they engage on a deeper level and we see them grow," which
is why expanding these opportunities is so important. "A lot of people
want to work, but transportation is a challenge. Our goal moving
forward is to find transportation options, or funding for
transportation that will allow more interns to participate in this
experience, and develop skills that will allow them to confidently
pursue their career goals." Summer interns this year come from the
following communities: Fairfield, Monfort Heights, Newtown/Anderson
Township, and West Chester.





-- 
Kaiti Shelton
University of Dayton 2016.
Music Therapy, Psychology, Philosophy
President, Ohio Association of Blind Students
Sigma Alpha Iota-Delta Sigma