Success Stories
Welcome to the YES! Center Success Stories Series!
Success stories are an important way of demonstrating what’s possible. They speak to people in ways that are much more immediate than research, reports or statistics. Success stories is a series of ever-growing posts on the YES! Center blog. We are regularly posting new success stories, so check back often.
Success stories are made available to you under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, so you are free to share and reuse them, provided you attribute the YES! Center as the creator.
Preparing for employment through community engagement
My name is Grayson and I am a 16 year old autistic self-advocate in Lexington, Kentucky. I am a junior in high school, and my district has been in remote
Alex’s Employment Challenges
“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
Marvin’s Journey
My name is Marvin and I am 21 years old. I graduated from high school in June of 2020. When I was in high school, I had many work experiences
Alexa’s Mom Shares Her Perspective on Alexa’s Journey to Employment
A Mother’s thoughts on A Daughter’s Employment Journey My name is Dianne and I am the mother of a wonderful 24 year-old named Alexa. We always had high expectations for
YES! Center Stories in Employment: Alexa
My name is Alexa and I am 24 years old. I left my public school when I was 22 years old. When I was young my mom and dad always had me
Devon’s Story of Employment – “I love my job!”
I love my job. I started working at Universal Cells (UCells), an Astellas Pharma company located in Seattle, Washington, in February 2018 as an Office Lab Assistant. There have been
Katie’s Hurdles and Accomplishments
“People will always tell you, ‘You can’t do it.’ I learned that the hard way, but if you put your mind to it, you can do anything. I want my
Zachary Miller’s Experience Finding a Job During the Pandemic
Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, CalTASH chapter Vice President Zachary Miller was in his third year working part of the day in the California State House and part in the
Meet Kirstin and Learn About Her First Community-Based Job Experience
Kirstin Bradach enjoys the color pink, laughing, making food, and taking photos of her creations. Until last summer, Kirstin worked her entire adult life for Goodwill Industries of the Columbia
Meet Gabe! Husband, Advocate, and Employee of The Month
Gabe and his wife, Alex, moved to Washington, DC from Kansas City, MO in 2012. While Gabe has Down Syndrome and Alex has Cerebral Palsy, neither of them have ever
Utah’s School to Work Program Hosts Successful Community of Practice
Last week, the YES! Center staff attended a Community of Practice, hosted by our Utah PIE state partners. The YES! Center staff kicked off the day with a welcome and quick
Meet Kevin, a Future Mentor and Motivational Speaker!
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
