Kevin Wright is a 24-year old native Washingtonian with a Learning Disability and a Speech Impairment. Kevin does not consider them barriers; instead, he considers his quiet nature to be his only barrier. He attended two different schools for his kindergarten to high school years. He attended Accotink Academy in Springfield, VA from kindergarten to the 9th grade of high school, until he transferred to Kingsbury Day School in Washington, DC. There he completed his 10th through senior year of high school and graduated. While in school Kevin participated in the DC Summer Youth programs where he gained valuable work experience at various government agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service, the Office of the Chief Technology Officer, the Department of Transportation, and US Mint.
After high school, Kevin went to Mitchell College for four years where he studied in Communications with assistance from DC’s vocational rehabilitation services. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Communications with a minor in Graphic Design. Kevin’s consistent persistence and networking led him to a six-month internship at the Department on Disability Services (DDS) as part of the Aspiring Professionals Internship Program. This employment first focused program places qualified individuals with disabilities in paid positions at District government agencies.
Kevin is currently working as an intern for the DC Earners and Learner initiative where he is gaining valuable knowledge by going to different conference meetings, attending trainings, and acting as a mentor to others. He recently became a certified trainer for the People Planning Together trainings, a program that helps people with development disabilities create their own life plans and become more independent. He is also getting experience in public speaking by presenting his Employment Trajectory at different conference meetings.
Before starting his internship, Kevin was attending Community College Preparatory Academy to become certified in Microsoft Office. He now has certifications in both Microsoft Word and PowerPoint and looking to get certifications in Outlook, Excel, and Access. Kevin’s ultimate career job is to be a mentor to young adults and talk with them about the challenges and struggles he experienced, along with helping them develop their own career paths. Although Kevin can be a very quiet and introverted person, he is becoming an inspiring motivational speaker. Kevin concludes that he is very happy that he is able to intern at DDS and states it is the best experience he has so far.
