Students Gain Real-World Job Skills Through Community Partnership

Tinley Park, IL: St. Coletta's Kennedy School Transition Town has partnered with Savers in Orland Park and Thunder Bowl in Mokena to provide a real-world community experience. The Transition Town Program provides students, ages 14-22, with job readiness and life skills development to help prepare them as they enter into the community and look for employment.

Once a week for two hours, 50 Kennedy School students divide into work groups that rotate between the thrift shop and bowling alley. Students clean and wipe down the tables, chairs, and bowling monitors at Thunder Bowl. At Savers, students organize the sales racks by size and product line and clean up the aisles. By having two different community employers and industries, each student has the opportunity to practice different job skills and work in different environments.

"Nothing compares to the exposure and the experience of going out into the community," states Kennedy School teacher Leslie Chowaniec. "When students are in the classroom setting it is very structured and organized and the students are familiar with the routine. In the community, students are exposed to crowds and strangers, and not everything is structured or familiar."

Working in the community also helps to reinforce problem-solving skills, build independence through job tasks, working as a team, and following oral instructions from co-workers and managers. "Each experience is a little different, but it helps students realize what appropriate behavior in a work environment is. They also learn how to greet customers and how to engage with other employees," said Chowaniec.

With only 33% of adults with intellectual disabilities in the work-force compared to 74% of those without a disability, developing job-skills and work-related experiences is vital for gainful employment. Chowaniec notes, "The skills that the students are gaining, such as cleaning and folding clothes, can be utilized wherever they apply for a job. These are skills that can be used at a fast-food restaurant or in a retail setting. The more skills that they have, and the more exposure that they have in the community, the easier it will be to find outside employment."

Students are eligible for work within the St. Coletta’s Transition Town community employment program until age 22, when they are issued a certificate of completion. After completing the program, students often seek community employment within the retail or food-service industries through supported employment. Those who do not transition into community employment may transition to the Vocational Workshop Program offered at St. Coletta’s.

St. Coletta's of Illinois, celebrating its 70th year, provides services to over 250 adults and children with intellectual and developmental disabilities through residential care, educational programs, medical care, religious and pastoral care, vocational services, and specialized facilities. To learn more about St. Coletta’s, please contact us at 708-342-5200 or visit our website at www.stcil.org.