Rockwall, TX (May 15, 2024) – The Rockwall County Library offers programming and community events that support education and learning for children, adults, and senior citizens. While much of their programming may be well known, the latest programs for special needs adults are newly offered.
In partnership with Rockwall ISD and My Possibilities, a non-profit organization that specializes in job training for special needs adults, the library set out to develop a program to provide greater opportunities for students as they transition from high school to life after graduation. Working together, with My Possibilities providing a job coach, a job training program was born.
The school district offers a robust program for students of all needs. However, following graduation, many young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities lose that support system, which had provided critical resources for themselves and their families. This means that graduation, typically a time marked with hope, can be instead a tough transition for special needs students.
Seeing that challenge, this year, the library welcomed four interns each semester who, with a job coach provided by My Possibilities, learn job skills, and assist library staff. Working two days a week for three hours, interns shelve and sort books, organize materials, prepare reports, assist with crafts, and greet patrons, amongst a myriad of other responsibilities.
The program has provided these RISD students with relevant work skills and experience with additional opportunities for socialization. Speaking on the value and goal of the program, Tenille Miller, Children’s Library Manager said, “Our hope is that this program will help them continue to thrive as adults and provide them with more independence and a better quality of life.”
This student program complements another program offered to adults outside the district enrollment.
“We also have a once-a-month special needs adult program, open to any special needs adult, led by Amber Waggoner, the Director of Special Needs Education at Rockwall High School” says Miller. “It has really been a wonderful partnership and led us into new inclusive and accessible programming.”
Receiving rave reviews across the board, Miller enthusiastically states, “We hope the new job training program will continue to positively impact our special needs students as they transition into life after graduation” and anticipates their continued plans to offer the program in the 2024-2025 school year.
By Melanie Mayfield, Blue Ribbon News senior staff writer. Courtesy photos.
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