TU: FSCJ program aims to launch those with intellectual disabilities into work world
Times-Union
“They thought I couldn't do pretty much anything. They thought I couldn’t get into college,” he recalled.
Perez has an intellectual disability that makes certain subjects such as reading difficult for him. However, at the age of 12, he decided to take those doubts and turn them into his own personal challenge.
“I told myself ‘You know what? Let’s prove these people wrong,’” he said.
Ten years later, Perez is a month away from completing a workforce program at Florida State College at Jacksonville. The Ed White High School graduate has been studying automotive collision and repair at FSCJ for the past two years.
He’s one of several dozen students who have gone through Project Achieve—a program at FSCJ that provides career training and certification for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The college program—the first of its kind in the state—was among four Florida institutions to recently be awarded part of a $2.5 million, five-year federal grant. All four institutions—FSCJ, the University of Central Florida, University of South Florida and Florida International University—are part of the Florida Consortium on Inclusive
Higher Education which works with other organizations to expand higher education opportunities for students with disabilities. FSCJ will receive about $307,000 of the grant over the next five years.
While the prospect of finding work is difficult for any new graduate, the outlook is particularly bleak for individuals with disabilities, who often lack the opportunity to get higher level education or training following high school. Nationwide, unemployment is twice as high among those with disabilities than the general population, according to a 2014 Gallup poll by the Center for Social Development and Education.
Under Florida statute, high school students with disabilities have the option of graduating with a special diploma, and while many colleges around the state will allow those with special diplomas to take classes, few dole out any credits for it. That’s where FSCJ’s program differs from most, said Project Achieve Coordinator Rachel Rippey.
“They get a certificate from the college…and it’s our job as a staff to communicate to the employer what he’s been trained to do,” she said.
Students pay tuition to enroll in classes, although FSCJ spokeswoman Jill Johnson said they often receive partial or full assistance through the dual-enrollment program with Duval or Nassau county public schools or through the federal-state vocational rehabilitation program.
Perez, who is part of the dual-enrollment partnership with Duval Schools, said once he completes his certification program he plans to work at an auto shop in his neighborhood.
On a recent afternoon, he demonstrated with ease how to repair a door handle to other classmates in his Automotive, Collision, Repair and Refinish class.
"He’s one of our main success stories,” said Kirk Altman, a special needs instructor and coordinator with Duval Schools. "A lot of these kids come from a self-contained ESE [Exceptional Student Education] background, but here–boom–they're back in a regular non-ESE environment and they have excelled."
Trevor Thomas–an animated 19-year-old–is just getting started in the program. He's begun plotting some career options, namely, a realistic pathway to his dream job of working for Disney someday.
"Drama is my life," he said. "I want to be on stage."
He's had a love of the Orlando theme park and a flare for theater since meeting his favorite Disney character Belle at the Epcot Center as a little boy. He said he'd like to work at the park or on the set of a Disney show as a stage hand or repairman.
If that doesn't pan out, right away–and he said he realizes it probably won't–he's working on some other local options, such as work at a local community theater or radio station.
"My other dream job is to work at a radio station," he said.
Along with career counseling, students in the program get lessons on how to conduct themselves during job interviews and how to advocate for their special needs. For many of them, this is their first taste of independence, Rippey said.
"Our program is kind of a stepping stone between high school where they're very sheltered and then, life, where we're able to at least semi-supervise and hand-hold when we need to until they're really able to really be on their own," Rippey said.
As of now, the program is still relatively small and its success is open to interpretation. Over the last four years, it’s grown from an inaugural class of about a half dozen students to 21 at the start of this year—although two have since dropped out, according to Rippey. Most leave with hands-on training, certification and a greater sense of confidence in their ability. However, only about half –roughly 45 percent–leave with actual jobs, according to Rippey.
"The employment piece is where we've struggled," Rippey said. "That's why this new grant is so important to us."
With the additional money, the program hopes to improve that number by hiring a full-time job placement specialist at about $46,000 a year, according to the school.
The remaining money from the grant will go towards replicating Project Achieve in other parts of the state.
The program's primary objective, Rippey said is to create a class of confident, fully-independent citizens.
For Perez, who finishes in a few weeks, the program has been about dispelling the doubts.
"It's all about proving the person wrong," he said. "You can do the things they say you can't."
Rhema Thompson: (904) 359-4693