Job Seekers With Disabilities Get Taste of Jobs During Disability Mentoring Event

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

(Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) – Four local residents with developmental disabilities will get a taste of different jobs during the “Disability Mentoring Day” at Sam’s Club on 1189 Buchholzer Boulevard in Cuyahoga Falls. Sam’s Club is partnering with County of Summit Developmental Disabilities Board (Summit DD) in honor of Disability Employment Awareness Month for “Disability Mentoring Day” on October 19 to host job seekers with disabilities. The national program through Sam’s Club is the nation’s largest job-shadow and career exploration program for students and job seekers with disabilities.

The Summit DD participants will take part in tours and job shadowing to find out about the types of jobs that Sam’s Club offers. This type of opportunity helps give experience to the job seekers finding information about what types of jobs they may be interested in pursuing. After touring the Cuyahoga Falls store and working one-on-one with managers, the job seekers will be treated to lunch by Sam’s Club to discuss the variety of jobs they experienced.
Over 100 employers in Summit County employ people with disabilities through the County of Summit Developmental Disabilities (Summit DD) Community Employment program. Summit DD staff work closely with employers to ensure job seekers with disabilities are a good fit meeting the employer’s quality and quantity expectations. Trained staff assist in initial on-the-job training and follow up to ensure the success of the individual. Individuals with developmental disabilities that have found employment through Summit DD average 9.2 years on the same job compared with a less than 4.0 year average for their ‘typical’ co-workers.

The County of Summit Developmental Disabilities Board is an agency that provides services to more than 4,000 individuals with disabilities and their families in Summit County. It is the organization’s mission to be a primary community force that enables eligible individuals to work, live, learn, play and participate as equal citizens in their communities. The driving forces behind these efforts are the agency’s board members, as well as staff, families, affiliated agencies, advocates and the individuals served by the organization. The agency’s administrative offices are housed in the Weaver Learning Center, 89 East Howe Road in Tallmadge, Ohio. The Summit DD also operates ten community service centers including Akron Center, Barberton Center, Canal Place, Coventry Center, Cuyahoga Falls Center, Ellet Center, Tallmadge Center, Twinsburg Center, Southern Center, and Potomac Center. Services are also delivered through many Summit County employers and contract agencies. More information regarding the agency is available online at www.summitdd.org.

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