They number only 23 amid a campus of thousands. 但太阳城网赌平台屡获殊荣的就业支持项目的参与者, 哪些公司为有发育障碍的成年人提供工作, 在这个项目的三十年里对大学社区产生了巨大的影响.
SEP employees have impressed with their zeal, spirit and dedication, 也愿意伸出手与他人接触——而且, in the process, 经常挑战对有特殊需要的人的假设和看法.
SEP – which formally celebrated its 30th anniversary on Nov. 在Yawkey体育中心Murray Room的2号房间-被马萨诸塞州的Arc授予荣誉, 这是一个非营利性组织，致力于改善马萨诸塞州智力和发育障碍公民的生活质量和服务.
For SEP participants, 在不列颠哥伦比亚省工作是培养职业技能和社交技能的关键一环, 建立关系，最大限度地发挥他们的潜力. Their success, and that of SEP, 这取决于一个小项目的工作人员与一些大学部门和办公室的合作.
“SEP has been a whole lot of help to me,” says Brendan Durkin, 为期两年的参与者将与当前和以前的计划参与者聚会, supervisors, 周年庆典的代理伙伴和职业教练. “It’s made me feel not just included, but also helpful.”
“像布兰登这样的SEP员工为我们其他人树立了一面镜子——他们为工作场所做出了一系列独特的贡献, and with that comes disability awareness and understanding,” says Julianne Ferro, who has been involved in SEP for 10 years, the last two as its coordinator. 参与者与他们的主管和同事之间形成了有益的关系, 为相互学习和欣赏差异创造经验. 这些人带来了各种各样的基本技能和丰富多彩的个性，为校园多样性做出了积极的贡献.
“With the right supports, 参与者能够努力发挥他们最大的潜力，而SEP和他们的BC合作部门继续促进包容和社会正义的环境.”
SEP participants, who typically work 18 to 28 hours a week, are currently employed in Dining Services, Facilities, University Libraries, the Flynn Recreation Complex, BC Bookstore, Human Resources, the BC School of Social Work, Connell School of Nursing, Woods College of Advancing Studies, and the Office of Institutional Research, Planning and Assessment. 每位SEP员工都有一名职业教练进行一对一的培训和评估，并根据需要提供持续的支持.
SEP的候选人由马萨诸塞州发展服务部推荐给大学, which provides funding to cover the cost of training and support for each participant; salaries are paid from the employing department’s budget.
SEP is starting to undergo a demographic transformation, 去年夏天，凯文·布朗和吉米·拉克鲁瓦宣布退役, among the first seven members of the program. Their departure leaves four of the original SEP cohort, 包括餐饮服务人员玛吉·理查森和乔安妮·安内洛, 谁从自雇计划提供的稳定性和连续性中获益.
理查森谈到了她在科克伦下议院的日常工作(“我打扫椅子和桌子——不仅仅是桌面, the whole table!她笑着说)以及她喜欢这份工作的地方, such as “the nice people” she meets.
“I like moving around every day,” she says. “Why not?”
安内洛对维持Corcoran沙拉吧感到自豪，并喜欢与顾客互动(“有时他们会问我他们想要的某种调味品”)。. Like Richardson, Durkin and most other SEP workers, 她通过大学的“最好的朋友”项目与一名BC大学的学生配对.
Durkin, at 22, is part of the new generation of SEP. Raised in a BC family – his parents met while undergraduates, 他的兄弟姐妹也是校友——在加入SEP之前，他在高中时曾在田径协会实习. 他把自己的时间分配给校园娱乐和圣. Clement’s. One of Durkin’s major achievements was getting a shift at the Flynn Recreation Complex front desk; he also is involved in training incoming student employees.
“我之所以能在前台工作，是因为我为自己辩护,” says the earnest Durkin, who often talks about striving for goals. “当学生工人第一次来到RecPlex时，我喜欢帮助他们，因为我是团队的一员. And teamwork means inclusion.”
杜尔金把他的工作情况看作是“学生变成老师”, “老师变成了学生”——对他的大多数同事来说, Durkin is their first co-worker or friend with a disability.
尽管杜尔金获得了新的技能，承担了更多的责任, 校园娱乐会员销售和服务经理桑迪·科西说, “他所给予的回报对专业人员和学生来说都是非常有价值的. 在我们都在努力做到包容的时候，布兰登让这一切变得容易. 他是一个了不起的人，和他一起工作的每个人都因此变得更好. I know that I am.”
Timothy Fonseca, executive pastry chef for the Dining Services Bakery, is similarly laudatory of SEP workers like Matthew McDonald, who is part of Fonseca’s bakery team.
“马修在面包店做了很多工作，这是我们日常成功的关键. While Matthew pushes to complete his responsibilities, 他还设法用他巨大的热情和个性来减轻我们的日子,” says Fonseca, 他引用了麦当劳的一句名言:“我将永远在这里工作——你和我永远在这里工作?.’”
Click here for more information on the BC Supported Employment Program.
-Sean Smith / University Communications