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Project SEARCH programs nationwide train students ages 18-22 to develop workplace skills that lead to competitive employment. The program is unique in that both the job experiences and the classroom activities take place in a business setting. Students spend their last year of high school at a work site and receive intense employment training and hands-on experience, while being guided by teachers and job coaches. This onsite presence helps students understand the employer's needs and trains them for specific jobs, allowing them to develop skills that will prepare them for a long-term and successful career. The ultimate goal of Project SEARCH is to train these young adults for competitive jobs that are not typically given to people with disabilities in growing fields like healthcare, making it one of the only programs of its kind. With the grant provided by Dr. Phillips Charities, Quest will launch a program that creates job opportunities for those with the most significant barriers to employment. The unemployment rate for people with disabilities is estimated by some reports to be around double the rate for the nondisabled population – with estimates as high as 70 percent when including both those that are unemployed and those who have given up looking. Project SEARCH will combat these challenges to bring new opportunities to the young people stepping into the workforce. “Dr. Phillips Charities focuses on funding programs to help people help themselves, making this grant a perfect fit, “ said Robert L. Mellen III, president and CEO of Dr. Phillips Charities. “Quest’s launch of Project SEARCH will give students with disabilities meaningful opportunities for lifelong employment, allowing them to support themselves.” In addition to being the first Project SEARCH program in Orlando, the grant award is enough to fund more than one work site, which will make Quest’s program the only one in the country to launch at least two work sites at the same time. Twelve students will be accepted at each site. The program is a strategic partnership between private employers, the Orange County Public School system, Vocational Rehabilitation and Quest. Quest’s Project SEARCH is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2010. Project SEARCH work sites and locations will be announced later this year.
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