Federal officials are investing millions of dollars in a new initiative to help young people with disabilities transition from school to work.
The United States Department of Labor announced this month that it will provide more than $69 million in grants to states to create new programs to assist marginalized teenagers and young adults with disabilities in entering the workforce.
“When it comes to finding and exploring opportunities for employment, youth and young adults with disabilities have historically faced systemic barriers related to their disabilities,” according to Taryn M. Williams, the agency’s assistant secretary for disability employment policy. “The funding opportunity announced today will help us identify policies and practices that enable these young people to transition to employment successfully and move us toward a more equitable and inclusive workforce.”
The Labor Department noted that state agencies focused on labor, employment, education, health and human services, vocational rehabilitation services, or workforce development are eligible to apply. According to officials, the funds would be used to develop “scalable strategies” to “improve the employment outcomes of multiply marginalized people with disabilities” ages 14 to 24.
Hopefully, initiatives such as this one will help employers see that disabled people can be valuable assets in the workplace.
Source
Heasley, Shaun. “Labor Department Earmarks Millions to Boost Disability Employment.” Disability Scoop, Disability Scoop, 18 Aug. 2023, http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2023/08/18/labor-department-earmarks-millions-to-boost-disability-employment/30502/.