Students with disabilities get work experience from Rockville Centre businesses
The "Business in the Backyard" program created by Ellen White pairs students who have disabilities with local businesses.
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South Side High School students have been spending their Tuesdays out of the classroom, getting work experience from local businesses in Rockville Centre.
From stocking the shelves at Parmagianni to folding boxes at Polka Dot Pound Cake, the students with special needs have been getting experience to put on their resumes for when they transition out of school.
Ellen White founded the program she calls 'Business in the Backyard.' White said, "Eighty percent of them are unable to find employment, unable to find employment because there’s no training and this transition period from high school out into the work force is a very difficult transition for parents and so I feel like it's really a combination of what the families can bring, what the school districts can bring and what the community has to bring."
Marie Dalton, Rockville Center School District's assistant superintendent for Special Education and Pupil Personnel Services, said she was so pleased "to be part of a school district and a community that really lives the lifestyle of inclusivity. We don’t just talk about it. We live it."
There are about 10 businesses participating in the program and White hopes the number will increase come next school year.
