Summer Work Program Wraps Up Another Year of Success in 2024
Since its inaugural summer in 2021, the Sonoran Center’s Summer Work Program has given students with disabilities the opportunity to get on-the-job experience, earn money, and build connections.
The Summer Work Program is a program of the Sonoran Center in partnership with ARIZONA@WORK and Arizona Vocational Rehabilitation. The program connects high school students and young adults with local employers to provide work opportunities during the summer. In addition to direct job-related skills, students hone their skills in self-advocacy, goal setting, and teamwork. Employers can choose to offer the students a job after the program has ended as well.
The Summer Work Program offers over 50 employers for students to partner with, allowing students to explore their unique interests and strengths. In addition to the program’s biggest partnerships like Ace Hardware and Walgreens, students can work in a number of different positions in museums, auto shops, restaurants, recreation centers, and more.
“We partner with Elevate Trampoline Park and Uptown Jungle Fun Park, which are a trampoline park and indoor jungle gym. Ace Hardwares are common across the board. We have museums and Tractor Supply stores, food service - a good range of employment opportunities,” said Kelsey Montaño, the Sonoran Center’s Project Coordinator for Pre-Employment Transition Services.
In addition to the skills and experience the program offers the students themselves, its impact resonates across the community.
“If we can partner with a Community Rehabilitation Provider that’s already familiar with community needs and already has connections within the community, that’s a really successful thing for students because they’ll have a provider that will support them with other services after the Summer Work Program in their community. It's also a win for us: if there’s more support that can happen outside of summer, into the school year and after a student graduates, there’s a provider already connected,” said Loretta Alvarez, the Sonoran Center’s Program Manager for Pre-Employment Transition Services.
“It bridges that gap,” Montaño added. “Especially our partners with Vocational Rehabilitation and expanding potentially with these other Community Rehabilitation Providers. It shows them the students that we are serving, their strengths, their abilities - not overlooking students because they have specific diagnoses.”
Student worker Benyzia smiles in her uniform at Main Event Tucson.
Thinking back on the 2024 program year, Montaño and Alvarez agree that success looks different for every person, and for every student that participates in the program.
“I think success comes in different forms when you’re thinking about the work we do with these students,” Montaño said. “One student just got offered employment at Ace Hardware and he’s ecstatic. We have other students who are able to navigate an aisle by themselves. That’s a huge success for them.”
She continued, “If employment is not the next step yet, we’re getting employer feedback on a student’s strengths and skills that students can continue to build on, which is also great. They’re leaving with a good handful of new skills, new ideas and direction. So it’s definitely a win-win outcome.”
“I feel like the biggest success is the relationships our students have with the employees at the site. They are a part of that community, and that job site. The employees greet them, interact with them, have jobs ready for them, and ask them about their weekends. So seeing and experiencing firsthand the connection that happens when our students are in the community working with employer has been really impactful for me personally,” Alvarez said.
“This summer alone we’ve had a good handful of students who are limited verbal or nonverbal. They use talking devices, or sign, or gestures, and we’ve had a lot of success. Tons of growth, and it shows in the work and the abilities these guys have. That's a reward in itself,” Montaño said.
Student worker Nathaniel learns the tricks of the trade at Alex’s Tire Pros
The program has expanded considerably since its beginning.
“We had 159 total eligible students that participated in the program this summer,” said Montaño. Montaño noted an increase in the number of students being offered employment, and the number of students who are now interested in filling out applications. “That’s always such a scary thing for students in this age and there’s so many variables and uncertainties, but the fact that we have such a large handful of students who are willing to fill out an application is huge.”
Looking ahead, Montaño and Alvarez hope to bring in other Community Rehabilitation Providers to incorporate the model that the Summer Work Program has proved successful.
“Growth for us looks like helping other providers to participate in this model and equipping them and their staff to be able to come alongside us in the work we’re doing, and then being able to partner with those families and their communities to continue that work throughout the school year,” Alvarez said.
“I hope that parents can see the benefits of the program, and the students who have participated can tell their friends and peers about the program so that we can continue to grow and provide services. Because the ultimate goal is to bridge that gap and help students in that transition age have the skills under their belt as they reach graduation and show the community that inclusiveness is really important,” Montaño said.
To learn more about the Sonoran Center’s projects aimed at increasing competitive integrated employment for people with disabilities, visit our Advancing Employment web hub.