Celebrating and Educating About Employment of People with Disabilities

CAREER PATHWAYS

NEWSLETTER

The Division of Vocational Rehabilitation

November 2018

GREETINGS FROM OUR DIRECTOR,

ANDREA GUEST

My how time flies! We are approaching the end of the year with two major DVR events coming up in December. First, on December 10 ^th , we will host the Annual Workplace Inclusion Luncheon where we with the State Rehabilitation Council will honor employees and businesses who exemplify inclusion in the workplace.

Then, on December 12 ^th , we will present the Transition Conference with our partners at the Department of Education, Division for the Visually Impaired, and Division of Developmental Disabilities Services. We expect more than 800 attendees at the conference. The Transition Conference has grown over the past fifteen years as our focus on serving students with disabilities and developing their career pathways has intensified. We understand that helping young people make meaningful career choices and providing work -based learning experiences can be the key to successful employment as an adult.

More than 9,000 students in Delaware have been identified as potentially eligible for DVR services either by having an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Section 504 plan thus qualifying them for Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS). While DVR is not funded at a level to provide all students with a meaningful Pre-ETS experience, we continue to expand our reach and partnerships with the Department of Education and other entities. The DVR agency will attempt to do our part to reach as many students as possible through a variety of programs and services, but we can all do our part as parents, guardians, community partners, business partners, and caring citizens to mentor a student, give career advice, and open our doors to help young people wanting to learn about the world of work. It has been shown that if a student has one positive work-related experience in the community it can positively influence their career path as an adult.

The end of the year is also the time of many traditional holidays beginning with Thanksgiving. I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and a Happy Holiday season.

Andrea

Our National Disability Employment

Awareness Month Celebrations

October

is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), an initiative led

by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP).

The purpose of this national event is

to celebrate the many and varied contributions of America's workers with disabilities as well as educate about employment of people with disabilities.

Throughout October, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) shared NDEAM related stories and posts on our social media platforms. In addition, we created an interactive NDEAM display for our Wilmington, Delaware location office lobby.

Several staff from the Wilmington

DVR offices collaborated to create the display. The theme of the two-part display is “celebrities with disabilities.” One part

of the display features an interactive quiz asking participants to match the celebrity with their disability. The other part of the display featured information about DVR, the 2018 NDEAM “Empowering All” poster, and information about different types of disabilities with well-known celebrities who have the disability as examples. Celebrities were chosen because they are workers in the public eye who are often recognized, liked, and admired by many people.

The purpose of NDEAM is to celebrate the many and varied contributions of America's workers with disabilities as well as educate about employment of people

with disabilities.

DVR Participant Shares Employment Photos

Mikayla proudly showing her first paycheck from her job at the pizza restaurant.

Mikayla holding her employment acceptance letter.

Meet Mikayla B! Mikayla is holding her first paycheck from her job at a local pizza restaurant. Even before Mikayla received that coveted first paycheck, she was eager and ready to work from the day she learned she was hired (pictured happy

and proud holding her employment agreement). Mikayla works at a popular pizza restaurant performing duties such as filling condiments, cleaning, and hostessing. “I love making the boxes,” Mikayla beams.

Mikayla was so excited with her first pay that she had her picture taken with the check and sent it to Jen Pugh, her Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor at DVR. “This is why we do what we do! This picture absolutely made my day!” said Jen upon receipt of the picture.

“Mikayla has gone above and beyond in her job at the restaurant. The job was created for her and she has mastered all of the duties of her job as well as taken on some duties of another worker who left the company,” added Jen. Mikayla’s mother adds that “Everyone at the pizza restaurant loves Mikayla and she couldn’t be happier doing her job!” This is win-win for everyone. At DVR, sharing in the success of program participants like Mikayla fuels our motivation.

We know that Mikayla’s success can be contributed to her team of supporters, including her mother and family, the employees at the pizza restaurant,

DVR, as well as a few community vendors. National Disability Employment Awareness Month is the perfect time to share this story. October is also National Down Syndrome Awareness Month .

DVR Services at Select State Library Locations

In a partnership developed between the Delaware Department of Labor and

the Delaware Division of Libraries, DVR will begin offering limited

vocational rehabilitation services at select library locations.

The first opportunity will begin at the

Route 9 Library & Innovation Center in New Castle:

Beginning November 14th:

DVR Services Available

Second Wednesday of Each Month

10 am - 1 pm

Route 9 Library & Innovation Center

3022 New Castle Avenue, New Castle, DE 19720

Happy Thanksgiving from DVR

Happy Thanksgiving

from the

Delaware

Division of Vocational Rehabilitation

About Us

The Division of Vocational Rehabilitation

Linking Ability & Business

OUR MISSION

We provide individualized services to employers and people with disabilities,

developing career pathways that link qualified employees to jobs,

resulting in greater independence and a more inclusive workplace.

The Delaware Division of Vocational Rehabilitation

Administrative Office:

4425 N. Market Street

Wilmington, DE 19802