U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan will deliver the commencement address at the graduation ceremony for D.C. high-school students who have participated in Project Search, a program that gives high-school seniors with disabilities the opportunity to learn real world skills through local employment opportunities in federal government agencies.
The program is intended to give individuals with disabilities, learning opportunities that have not been available in the past.
The ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. Wednesday, June 15, in the Department’s Barnard Auditorium, 400 Maryland Ave., S.W., Washington, D.C. Senior officials from federal agencies also will speak at the ceremony, and Chancellor of D.C. Public Schools Kaya Henderson will present students with certificates.
According to the Department of Education, the 25 students in the program have spent their senior year as interns at the U.S. Departments of Education, Labor, and Health and Human Services. The program is a partnership among D.C. Public Schools, D.C. Department of Disability Services, D.C. Rehabilitation Services Administration, and the U.S. Departments of Education, Labor, and Health and Human Services.
During the past school year, the interns have divided their time between classroom study and office tasks, developing job-ready skills and learning workplace etiquette. A number of the students will transition to full-time employment in the federal government and local businesses.
A local program at the Bill J. Priest Center for Economic Development in Dallas, has a similar program called Next Step that works on helping people with developmental disabilities and learning disabilities develop skills to transition to employment after high school. While not an internship, the program focuses on helping students develop job-ready skills. For information contact Bill J. Priest institute (a campus of El Centro College).
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