On May 31, the Department of Special Programs recognized seven Aiken County Public School District students who signed letters of commitment to intern within the school district for the 2023-24 school year. Internship opportunities are offered to students with disabilities through project SEARCH, an international program that pairs schools with businesses and helps to connect special education students with jobs similar to those held by their general education peers.
Students recognized were Chris Thompson, AJ Livingston and Terry Bellinger from Wagener-Salley High School; Maxwell Gerner and Sean Igoe from South Aiken High School; Josh Dunagan from Aiken High School; and Brandon Romero from Midland Valley High School.
Chera Richardson, a coordinator with Project SEARCH, spoke about the ability of these students to work independently.
“I actually work with each of our high schools, and we work on job readiness skills with our teachers and students, preparing them for work. All of these young men have actually worked on campus at their schools or in the community,” she said. “They have all proven that they are capable of doing that.”
This year marks the first time that internships have been offered directly through the school district. “When i brought this to our district, my proposition was, ‘Hey, can we actually have Aiken County public schools as our business partner?’” said Richardson. “I felt like there were many things that our students could do, to help fill some of our custodial positions, to fill some of our cafeteria placements, we have some people who are really good with technology, and they can actually help and assist in many of these departments. So that was what I proposed, and it was accepted.”
Interns will participate in three 10-week work rotations at Aiken High School.
“We may find skills that they’re really good at,” said Richardson. “We want to evaluate them and we want to place them in jobs and roles where they can actually gain those skills.”
The internships will be guided by instructor Kathy Griffin, as well as Dominique Simpkins who is a skills trainer hired by Vocational Rehab. At the conclusion of their internships, these students will be evaluated and instructors will work closely with HR to aid in finding them jobs within or outside of the school district.
This program is open to any students with disabilities in all seven of the Aiken County Public School District high schools. Candidates must have completed four years of high school and be between the ages of 18-21.
“I’ve worked with a lot of these young guys just in the community and stuff,” said Richardson. “It’s kind of directing them and guiding them to work independently and be adults, that’s the biggest thing.”
This content was originally published here.
