(See Transcript Below)

State Services for the Blind, (SSB) presented an Opportunities Fair for Blind and Low Vision high school students and parents. The Opportunities Fair allowed students to talk to business leaders and organizations about who they were and what are their expectations. Students went from table to table one on one with directors and admins and learning about the opportunities they offer. Parents met up with other parents and shared experiences and strategies for successful outcomes. The students met others from the metropolitan area and shared their experiences and successes. Panels of parents of Blind children,

successfully employed people with vision loss and another panel consisting of transition age students who are working jobs and doing internships spoke to the entire group of participants

Blind Abilities was there talking to the students, counselors transition team from SSB and met with the business associates. Join Jeff Thompson of Blind Abilities and take a tour of the Opportunities Fair.

If you are interested in more opportunities and want to find out more about transitioning from high school to college and to the workplace, you can contact Sheila Koenig at 651-539-2361.

You can find out more about the Transition program on the web.

See Transcription below.

Thank you for listening.

You can follow us on Twitter @BlindAbilities

On the web at www.BlindAbilities.com

Send us an email

Get the Free Blind Abilities App on the App Store.

Transcription:

Opportunities Fair: Making Connections for Jobs, Education, Summer Activities, and More

Female Voice: If you’re looking for employment right now get out there, looking for a job is a full-time job.

Male Voice: What I’m seeing is there’s a lot of camaraderie here and there’s just a lot of resources and it’s just nice to make connections with folks who know what they’re doing and and help them realize their dreams.

Female Voice: So, it’s called Capti, and you can get like any PDF’s that you can’t see.

Male Voice: Well I am a senior right now and I wanted to look into jobs, I never really had any work experience. It’s kind of nice to see that I can find the job.

Female Voice: Experience experience experience, volunteer, it shows responsibility, it shows that you can commit to something and follow through. Know within yourself that your dreams are possible, that you can reach them. Don’t let others limited expectations hold you back.

Jeff Thompson: Welcome to Blind Abilities, Iím Jeff Thompson. State Services for the Blind’s transition team held an opportunities fair at a local community center giving transition age students an opportunity to meet with the Job Corps employers and talk with others about the tips and tricks that they’ll need as they transition from high school to college to the work place. The students were also able to collaborate with each other and share ideas, apps, and other tools for success. There are panels of different demographics sharing ideas and success stories that they had. Parents talking about their successes along the journey, talking about what it takes, what they’ve overcome, what experience can you share about being gainfully employed, and what it’s like to be a teenager transitioning that has a part-time job. And mostly the students had an opportunity to talk to the employers, the workforce, and meet and talk and ask questions about what it is, what they need to do to prepare for the workforce.