This Nonprofit Helps Students with Disabilities Navigate Their First Real-World Jobs
One of the chronic challenges for young workers is: Employers want candidates to have job experience, but how are you supposed to get any if no one will hire you without it?
The Center for Vocational Rehabilitation (CVR) offers a paid internship program that matches qualifying students with local employers for 150 hours of paid work experience with a local business. Program leaders work to pair students with opportunities tailored to their abilities and interests, and recent interns have been placed at Amici Gelato & Caffé and 10th Ave Burrito Co.
The program is open to students with disabilities ages 14–21 who are eligible or potentially eligible for Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) in Monmouth, Ocean, Middlesex, and Mercer counties. Participants receive three weeks of workforce readiness training, support from CVR staff during the internship, and then three weeks of programming to wrap-up the experience and finalize a resume. Internships are available year-round, not just during the summer.
Participants leave with:
- Resume-building job experience
- Professional references
- Increased financial literacy
- Better understanding of their career interests and potential career paths
Meanwhile, CVR is always looking for community businesses interested in employing interns and mentoring the next generation of workers. Just as CVR supports the student interns, their staff also supports employers throughout the internship to ensure it is successful for everyone.
Schools, families, counselors, and employers interested in the Paid Internship Program should contact the Center for Vocational Rehabilitation and learn more at cvrus.org/programs/supported-employment.
