Season 5, Episode 5 — 31 August 2021 About this episode The YES! Center’s Dale Verstegen, Sean Roy and Laura Owens fan out across the Partnerships in Employment states for a five year retrospective on the PIE state projects. We put four questions to each team: Why did your state apply for a PIE Grant?…
Season 5, Episode 4 — 31 August 2021 About this episode The YES! Center’s Dale Verstegen, Sean Roy and Laura Owens fan out across the Partnerships in Employment states for a five year retrospective on the PIE state projects. We put four questions to each team: Why did your state apply for a PIE Grant?…
The YES! Center’s Dale Verstegen talks with Nathan Piper, the Business, Legislative and Community Relations Manager for the Vermont Division of Vocational Rehabilitation. They discuss what a thoroughgoing employer engagement actually consists of.
Season 5, Episode 2 — 31 August 2021 About this episode Dale Verstegen, state liaison for the YES! Center, talks with Keith Banner, Katie Blumhorst, Stacy Collins, Alex Corwin and Kelly Schuck, part of the team behind Ohio’s multi-agency Employment First Provider Transformation Initiative. They discuss how they have created an integrated approach for transformation…
Over the course of the past five years, the Youth Employment Services (YES!) Center has provided high-impact technical assistance with Partnerships in Employment (PIE) state grantees funded by the Administration on Disabilities (AoD) to support systems-change efforts focused on improving competitive, integrated employment (CIE) outcomes for transition-aged youth and young adults with intellectual and developmental…
“I feel the job interview process may be a barrier because I’m not neurotypical and may not pick up on certain social cues. But [seeing this as a weakness] would be a mistake because my disability allows me to catch things others might miss.” Asha At 21 years old, Asha has been an advocate for…
My name is Josh, and I am 25 years old. I graduated from the Life Design program in the Jordan School district in West Jordan, Utah. I graduated in 2019 when I was 22 years old. All through school, I had two jobs! When I was 16, I got a job retrieving carts, bagging groceries,…
Prior research tells us that young adults (ages 16–25) with serious mental health conditions (SMHC) struggle to persist in their education, training, and employment pursuits. Common reasons for why they struggle are often based on mistaken and harmful stereotypes that young adults in general are lazy, or that young adults with SMHC are not as…
Do You Want to Know? How have employers hired individuals with disabilities during COVID? What is a Disability:IN affiliate and how do they support these efforts? How can you leverage an affiliate to support your placement efforts? The Employer Engagement for the YES Center webinar on July 28th featured employers from Disability:IN DC Metro and…
“I never let my disability affect how I live life. My family supported my decision to go to college, get a driver’s license and drive with an adaptive van. I’m as independent as possible.” Alex Jackson works in the Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Office at the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), a…
Stay tuned for more information from the YES! Center!