Careers for the Mentally Disabled
South Carolina is a state that is sensitive to the needs of people with mental and physical disabilities and within every county of the state there is a Special Needs and Disabilities Board that will help people become independent adults.
The small, and yet growing, city of Sumter is home to a variety of resources for the care of people with mental or physical disabilities. Included in this care is the understanding of a need for independence. In addition to teaching Average Daily Living skills (ADL’s) Sumter realizes that individuals cannot be fully independent unless they can be trained and provided job or career placement.
South Carolina law, section 44-20-20 recognizes the fact that people with mental retardation, head or spinal cord injuries and other related disabilities are people who benefit from the same experiences as non-disabled people. Family education, employment and community inclusion are vital to the happiness and success of all people.
Sumter County Disabilities and Special Needs Board (SCDSNB)
Contanct Info: 770 Electric Drive~Sumter, SC 29151~(803) 778-1669
http://www.scdsnb.com/
SCDSNB is a non-profit agency serving people in Sumter County with developmental disabilities, mental retardation, autism, head and spinal cord injuries and related lifelong disabilities. SCDSNB’s vision is to provide excellent supports and services to persons with disabilities and their families. Their mission is to: assist people with disabilities in meeting their needs, pursuing their individual possibilities and achieving their goals, and to minimize the occurrence and reduce the severity of disabilities through prevention.
Employment Opportunities
Supported Employment gives a variety of services at the SCDSNB. These services help individuals develop employment opportunities while providing assistance in sustaining employment and enabling individuals to earn wages as well as the opportunity to interact with non-disabled workers. Supported employment includes job coach, enclave and mobile work crew opportunities.
Job Coach-The Job coaches are a highly trained and friendly staff that develop employment opportunities and also work with participants on a one-to-one basis to teach them the skills necessary to perform and maintain a particular job. These skills might include such things as: proper conduct/etiquette in a job interview, resume writing, completing a job application and job-seeking skills. Assistance is also provided to help individuals develop job-related skills such as money management, use of transportation and interpersonal skill development. Transportation services are also provided either by the Job Coaches personally or they will arrange for Public Transportation services. After an individual has procured a job the job-coach services do not end, but job coaches will step in and advocate for the individual if a need arises. Currently there are individuals that work at local pizza places, department and grocery stores.
Enclave work is a service that provides work opportunities for groups of adults at a local industry or business. Participants work on-site. These jobs often lead to competitive employment. Currently, there is a group that works in the evenings at Shaw AFB stocking the shelves of the commissary.
Mobile work crews train teams of adults to work in their community and perform services such as lawn care, janitorial or landscaping services. Currently there is a group that goes out daily, weather permitting, and does lawn care for homes and businesses in the community. There is also a group that goes to a local apartment complex and cleans the apartments on an as-needed basis.
This year also opened up other opportunities with the Broad Street Thrift Mart. This is a thrift store owned by SCDSNB in which persons with mental and physical disabilities are trained in the areas of stocking, customer service and money managemnt.
The SCDSNB’s biggest source for employment is Sumter Work Enterprises. This is an adult vocational work center designed to maximize an individual’s functioning in activities of daily living, socialization and vocational skills. Participants may receive competitive wages for work. Contract work and mobile work crews offer training in specific areas. Also known as the “Day Program,” individuals from both residential group homes and community homes attend from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and are provided a variety of trainings including, but not limited to, pre-vocational skills. They are provided either minimum wage or piece-rate wages depending on the work that they are being trained on. Currently, Sumter Work Enterprises holds contracts with the following local companies/businesses:
1. Sumter Packaging: Individuals assemble a variety of boxes and receive a piece-rate for the number of boxes they complete. This contract provides steady work and teaches individuals the need for accuracy and speed because the boxes need to be assembled according to the company’s specifications and there is a deadline for when Sumter Packaging needs the assembled boxes returned. This is a favorite among many of the individuals at the Day Program.
2. Becton Dickinson: This company is a leading supplier of needles to medical institutions. Individuals work on a variety of tasks including: cleaning of needle racks, grinding and disposal of needle waste.
3. Uni-First: A company that services uniforms and dry-cleaning needs for Sumter, this is the newest contract to be procured by Sumter Work Enterprises. Individuals work on a variety of tasks involving the sorting and cleaning of clothes hangers.
4. Air Force Association: Shaw AFB is a wonderful supporter of the SCDSNB. Not only does the base support our employment methods through the NISH program (see information regarding NISH later in this article) but they also supply the agency with what are commonly referred to as “mail-outs.” This contract involves copying and mailing newsletters from the base to all military members. Individuals are involved in copying, folding, and sometimes sealing or labeling the newsletters. Individuals are required to have skills for neatness and completion of tasks in a timely manner.
5. Mail-Outs: In addition to the Air Force mail-outs other companies in Sumter also contract with SCDSNB for the mail-outs of flyers, brochures and newsletters. Currently SCDSNB holds contracts with: Sumter Chamber of Commerce, Readings, USC-Sumter and Ramada Inn.
6. Lawn Service/Grounds Maintenance: The lawn service crew works from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and leaves from the Day Program. Currently they manage the care of lawns for the Sumter County Library, Berner’s Circle Apartment Complex, and many private homes.
7. Utensil Packets: This is an in-house activity. Supplies are purchased at the agency’s expense and individuals are trained at placing a napkin, spoon, fork and knife into plastic sleeves and sealing them. These utensil packets provide the agency with the proper, and hygienic, utensils required for the daily lunch that is served to the individuals at the Day Program. Currently, the agency is trying to find outside buyers such as churches, community organizations or group activities so that a profit can be made on the supplies purchased and create a higher demand for work. Individuals are trained in the need for hygienic and sanitary measures.
8. Data Entry: The past year opened up a Data Entry Room for individuals. There are currently 7 computers and individuals track all the mileage of the SCDSNB’s fleet of vehicles. They are taught a variety of computer and data entry skills. The individuals also practice their computer skills by creating bookmarkers and printable transfers for T-shirts which the agency sells to the community at craft bazaars.
NISH
Contact Info: www.nish.org
The NISH program is a national non-profit agency whose mission is to create employment opportunities for people with severe disabilities by securing Federal contracts through the Javits-Wagner-O’Day (JWOD) Program for its network of community-based, nonprofit agencies. Currently, NISH provides employment opportunities to more than 45,000 people; making the JWOD Program the largest single source of employment for people who are blind or have other severe disabilities in the United States. More than 600 participating nonprofit organizations employ these individuals and provide quality goods and services to the Federal Government at a fair price.
The NISH program of Sumter operates out of Shaw AFB and works hand-in-hand with the SCDSNB. A lawn/ground maintenance crew works on the base daily (weather and federal holidays permitting) maintaining the lawns of the businesses and private homes of the base. They also work on litter control by picking up trash on base. NISH holds an annual awards event for its employees and honors one employee yearly with an “Employee of the Year” award.
South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department (SCVRD)
1760 North Main Street~Sumter, SC 29150~(803) 469-2960
http://www.scvrd.net/i_index.html
The South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department serves people who want to work but face difficulties in procuring decent and respectable employment because of a physical or mental disability. When a person with a disability applies for Vocational Rehab (VR) services, a team of vocational rehabilitation specialists helps determine their eligibility. If VR services could improve that person’s prospects of competitive employment, eligibility can be established.
South Carolinians who have a documented physical or mental impairment that substantially interferes with their ability to work can be eligible for vocational rehabilitation services. The VR team helps new clients understand the options that are available in setting and reaching a vocational goal. SCVRD’s informed choice policy makes each client a full partner in the vocational rehabilitation process with access to all the information he or she needs to make necessary decisions.
An eligible VR client works as a partner with their Career Planning and Employment team, their counselor and other staff to decide on a vocational goal. Clients then develop an Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE) with the help of their counselor, by themselves or with someone else’s assistance. The IPE details the services necessary to reach the vocational goal and becomes the roadmap for achievement.
SCVRD has a work center that aids in the training of skills necessary for outside employment. The Sumter Work Training Center is the best resource to satisfy an individual’s labor and outsourcing needs in Clarendon, Lee and Sumter counties.
Their staff specializes in customer service and the clients are eager to assist in business efforts, either as employees or as a reliable outsource for quality work. Currently the Training Center holds contracts with: Becton Dickinson, Bosch Braking Systems, Caterpillar, Eaton Electrical, EMS-Chemie (North America), Federal Mogul, Garnay Inc., International Paper, Kaydon Custom Bearings and Pocotaligo Products.
Individuals work on a variety of training skills and activities that will help them make an easier transition to outside employment and eventually, personal independence.
To seek assistance from any of these agencies use the contact information listed in this article.
