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Building Employability Skills in Persons with ASD through Volunteerism
Much attention is paid to the educational needs of children with autism. Most of the media exposure on autism emphasizes the power of early intervention and the need for specialized instruction at school. While the media, parents and autism organizations have increased awareness, it remains...
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Kindling Studios: Igniting Passion. Actualizing Potential.
Picture an ember – a small glowing spark that with proper care and attention will grow into a warm, radiating fire. Now picture your spark – what gets you up in the morning, what motivates you to keep going, and how do you nurture that spark? For many of us that spark is our work, and it...
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Extraordinary Ventures Creates Extraordinary Opportunities
Government is an important employer in our economy, but by far the largest source of jobs is the private sector made up of hundreds of thousands of small, medium and large businesses. But neither government nor private enterprise has done a very good job incorporating the skills and talents of...
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Employment Boot Camp Prepares Job Seekers with ASD
Employment is a socially normative activity that is a key factor in adult life and successful community inclusion (Fussell & Furstenberg, 2005). Paid employment contributes greatly to quality of life outcomes including economic and social wellbeing, enhanced self-esteem, positive health...
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Employment Opportunities for People with disABILITIES
Sitting in the parking lot of Blue Star Recyclers, I watched as employees arrived by bus and on foot. They ran and skipped into work; each of them 10 – 15 minutes early for their shift. The words of Leigh Schilling, Recycling Technician echoed in my head: “I have the honor of...
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Different, Not Worse
What would you say are qualities that make someone a good friend? What are the qualities that make someone a great date? What qualities should a professional look for in a new colleague? When I draw up a list of the qualities my peers and I look for in others, here are some answers: a sense of...
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Green Goods and Services: A New Niche in the Economy for Individuals on the Autism Spectrum
What is the Green Goods and Services (GGS) Industry? If you guessed it has something to do with recycling you are partially correct. Green Goods and Services is a broad category of our economy defined by the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). “The BLS definition of green...
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SAP and Autism at Work
Autism has been very much in the news recently, especially since the report indicating that the level of autism has now been estimated at one in sixty-eight children. And Laura Princiotta, who serves as the CEO of SpArc Philadelphia, a family of organizations which deal with intellectual and...
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Creating a Win-Win When Hiring People with Autism: How One Small Company Made it Work
A wave of high school and college graduates with talent, ability, and a tremendous capacity to contribute are hitting the job market but they are not getting hired. Recent statistics show that 75% of people with autism spectrum disorders are either unemployed or under employed. Many of those that...
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The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation’s “NYC Overload Project” Creates Employment for Singer/Songwriters
Envisioning and then creating innovative employment opportunities for adults living with Autism has always been a hallmark of The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation’s mission. Last spring, while attending a performance by participants from The Miracle Project New York, the seeds of another new...
