The month of October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). NDEAM celebrates the value workers with disabilities add to workplaces while ensuring disabled workers have access to good jobs. This year’s theme for NDEAM is “Access to Good Jobs for All.”
A key element of celebrating NDEAM in workplaces is promoting inclusion and educating employees on how to effectively work with people with disabilities. This can be done through discussions, training programs and informatory displays placed throughout the workplace. Activities like these allow for a more diverse and inclusive working environment for many.
Owatonna High School has a special education department that gives special needs students the opportunity to possess workplace skills. The department head is Ms. Elizabeth Fink. However, Ms. Rhynda Dulas, who has worked in Owatonna for 25 years, is in charge of the workforce program for special needs students at OHS.
As the leader of the workforce program, Ms. Dulas attends seminars with special needs students. These seminars teach students skills such as communication, workplace safety, problem solving and working in a team environment. These skills are useful for everyday life as well as in the workplace. These seminars also prepare students for job-specific skills.
After learning these skills, students are then able to go to sites in the community to practice. Because of the variety of job sites, students typically work at one site for a quarter before rotating to a different location. This allows students to apply the skills learned in the classroom to multiple work environments. Although this is a solid start to recognizing the value people with disabilities have in the workforce, there is still more to be done.
Ms. Dulas said, “I think just having more opportunities for all students to just go out there and try and show their skills.” Ms. Dulas also emphasized the variety of interests students have beyond the commonly chosen, such as farming and working with animals. Many of the workplace opportunities for kids in the special education department focus on cleaning tasks. Ms. Dulas hopes that more chances for students to work in a field of interest open up in the future.
The work put in by these students is impactful towards both their class and community. Ms. Dulas said, “Our students are really good workers and just to have that opportunity would be wonderful.”
Although National Disability Employment Awareness Month takes place in October, people with disabilities add value to workplaces year-round.. Discussions, seminars and training programs that are held to inform people in the workforce about inclusivity are a big step to celebrate the diversity found in the workplace. In a school setting, special needs students are being taught workplace and life skills to be applied to jobs. However, a lack of job opportunities for special needs workers is still an issue for society going forward.
