CAREER AND VOCATIONAL RESOURCES

Programs

Blind Field Services - summer work experiences for blind and visually impaired high school students

Blind Field Services - summer work experiences for blind and visually impaired high school students
Announcing: The Business Enterprises Program - Youth Employment Program "BEP-YEP"

In 2006, the Dept. of Rehabilitation's Blind Field Services division initiated the Business Enterprises Program - Youth Employment Program, "BEP-YEP", a summer job opportunity for blind and visually impaired high-school students ages 16 and older.  Partnering with our Business Enterprises Program (BEP) vendors, blind and visually impaired students were provided with an opportunity to apply, interview and work (with pay) alongside blind vendors who have been successfully managing various vending food locations.

With its tremendous success over the past two years in Sacramento, Los Angeles, Fresno and San Francisco, Blind Field Services will continue this work experience coordination and aims to expand to other locations in the summer of 2008.

If you are a blind or visually impaired student at least 16 years old who is interested in the BEP-YEP and/or other summer work experience opportunities, please contact one of the following community agency contacts nearest to you.

Career Research

  1. AFB CareerConnect:   A free resource for people who want to learn about the range and diversity of jobs performed by adults who are blind or visually impaired throughout the United States and Canada.

  2. Disability Benefits 101:  Explains how earned income affects Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.

  3. Vocational Training through the State of California:   This web site, hosted by the State Department of Education allows you to search vocational school options, both public and private, by county, school district or area of study.

  4. Regional Occupational Programs:  This site provides links to programs for every county in the State of California.  ROP programs are unique in that they offer not only classroom instruction, but hands-on internship opportunities to allow you to "try on" an occupation before committing to it. All programs are designed to meet the needs of employers, leading to excellent chances of employment.

  5. Intersection: Youth Newsletter:  NCWD/Youth (National Collaborative on Workforce Disability) is your source for information about employment and youth with disabilities.  Their partners — experts in disability, education, employment, and workforce development — strive to ensure you will be provided with the highest quality, most relevant information available.

  6. Employment Development Department Labor Market Information:  Which jobs are in demand?  What do they pay?  How many workers are unemployed?  If you have questions like these, this site has answers.

  7. California Labor Market Information:   Whether you are an employer or a job seeker, a student or an economic analyst, you can find economic information here to help you make informed decisions.

  8. Dictionary of Occupational Titles :  Search this site for thousands of job titles and occupational profiles.

  9. ONET:  Interactive and accessible job research information.

  10. U.S. Department of Labor:  This is the main Federal Department of Labor web site.  This site contains all of the latest information on jobs and employment as well as detailed descriptions of thousands of occupational titles.

  11. Diversity World:   Committed to reducing any barriers that prevent people from flourishing in their livelihoods, Denise Bissonette's web site is full of information as well as upcoming training opportunities.

  12. Institute for Community Inclusion:   ICI offers training, clinical, and employment services, conducts research, and provides assistance to organizations to promote inclusion of people with disabilities in school, work, and community activities.

  13. One-Stop Toolkit:  This website provides accessible and comprehensive tools and information to grantees who provide services that help individuals with disabilities find and keep good jobs.

  14. Work Incentive Grantee and Disability Program Navigator Resources:  These resources include websites and publications, as well as other information and tools that we hope will be useful as you work on systems change activities to help improve employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.

  15. America's Career Resources Network (ACRN)

  16. Occupational Outlook Handbook:   A publication of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics on all sorts of jobs and job titles.   Includes information on their expected growth within a ten year period and salary ranges. Currently in the 2010-2011 edition. Available in bookstores also -- ISBN-13 9781593577384, ISBN-13 9781593577377, and ISBN-13 9781602399914

Where Are The Jobs

  1. State of California:  This site gives you access to all currently available State jobs as well as information on State testing and how to apply for these jobs.

  2. United States Government:  This site gies you access to all currently available Federal jobs as well as information on testing and how to apply for them.

  3. Craig’s List:  Craig's List is an excellent way to connect with employers in your area.  It's a place to find jobs, housing, goods & services, social activities, advice, community information, and just about anything else—all for free, and in a relatively non-commercial environment.

  4. CalJobs:  Managed by California's Employment Development Department, CalJobs is California's most widely used job posting site for all kinds of jobs.

  5. Fastweb  This site gives you information regarding how to land an internship.

  6. Americorps:  Each year, AmeriCorps offers 75,000 opportunities for adults of all ages and backgrounds to serve through a network of partnerships with local and national nonprofit groups.

Youth Internships and Volunteer Opportunities

The Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired is currently seeking a few exceptional young adults to participate in our Youth Internship and Leadership Program for the Spring 2007 Semester.

General Description:

As part of our goal to provide solutions for living with vision loss, the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired promotes independence and self-reliance through social, recreational and rehabilitative services.   We believe it is imperative to start the planning process early on and involve youth and young adults in entry level positions in order to address the statistics indicative of the number of under-employed and unemployed working age population in the blind and visually impaired community.  With this in mind, our career development program offers young adults the opportunity to work along side a diverse array of professionals.


Each semester, the Youth Program seeks responsible young adults between the ages of 14 and 21 to support and learn from experts throughout a professional and friendly environment by doing the following:

Qualifications:

The minimum qualifications include:

Experience:

No experience necessary. However, we look for the following qualities from candidates interested in being considered for our Internship Program:

Benefits:

Positions:

Application:

Please contact Arlena Winn, Blind Leaders Coordinator by email or call (415) 694-7357 for more information or to apply.

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