What is WorkAbility I
The vision of the California Department of Education (CDE), Special Education Division is that all individuals with disabilities will successfully participate in preparation for the workplace and independent living.
The mission of WorkAbility I is to promote the involvement of key stakeholders, including students, families, educators, employers and other agencies in planning and implementing an array of services that will culminate in successful student transition to employment, lifelong learning and quality adult life.
Through a designation as one of the ten best transition programs of its type in the United States, WorkAbility I has received national recognition of its success in matching young adults with disabilities with employers who need workers.
Qualifications for WorkAbility
In order to be considered for WorkAbility 1 a student must:
- have an active IEP
- be at least 16 years old
- maintain at least a 2.0 GPA
- maintain a 90% attendance record
- be able to work independently at work sites
What Happens in WorkAbility
All of the students that FUSD WorkAbility 1 serves are counseled to develop skills needed to find employment. Students are taught to use various websites such as monster.com, careerbuilder.com and indeed.com. They are also taught how to put together a resume and all of our seniors are provided with copies of their resume to hand out to potential employers.
Students are also given the opportunity to gain work experience through volunteer hours.
A number of students referred through our program have been hired directly by employers and/or have been able to obtain employment on their own after gaining experience from WorkAbility!
WorkAbility is available at all FUSD high schools as well as transitional and adult schools.
At both the high school and adult levels, WorkAbility 1 staff works closely with FUSD administrators, Special Education Class (SDC) and general education classroom teachers, Counselors and Career Center staff. The District continues to expand its Adult Transition Program (ATP) with locations at Fresno Community College, Fresno Adult School, and Central Valley Training Center (CVTC)
WorkAbility 1 staff organizes business tours and field trips to potential employers for our students. They also secure guest speakers from a wide array of careers to present in vocational classes. WorkAbility staff and teachers arrange volunteer work-based activities and job shadowing experiences for students.
Jobs
Students earn a subsidized salary during the program year as identified by California Department of Education Workability budget. Subsidized wage earners are employees of the school district who participate in community–based job training experiences.
Partnerships
We are partnered with:
- CVS
- Golden Living Center
- Walgreens
- Factory2-U
- Footlocker
- Fallas
- Rite Aid
- Fresno Ag
- Dollar Tree
- Goodwill
- Little Caesar’s
- Hancock Fabric
- Home Depot
- IHOP
- KFC
- And MANY more!
Who We Are
WorkAbility I is a nationally recognized school-to-work program that provides comprehensive pre-employment training, employment placement, and follow-up for high school students in special education who are making the transition from school to work.
WorkAbility I is funded by a grant from the California Department of Education Special Education Department.
Contact Us
1301 M. Street
Fresno CA, 93721
Phone: (559) 457-3220
Fax: (559) 457-3299
www.fresnounified.org