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Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities supports students with various needs by way of a program that dedicates counselors to campuses across the state. BY RUTH CORRADI BEACH
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COLLEGE 101 • WINTER-SPRING 2022
portunities for Ohioans with Disabilities. “What’s unique about Ohio C2C is that they are immersed counselors at the colleges they serve.” In the first year, 15 Ohio colleges took part in College2Careers, and now there are 17 institutions of higher education with a dedicated Ohio College2Careers counselor. Two career specialists also support the program. One such person is Dustin Schwab, a career development specialist who serves nine schools in southern Ohio. “Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities has a business relations team in the Employer and Innovation Services department and partnerships with over 600 employers in Ohio,” Schwab explains. “[Ohio College2Careers] works closely with them to see what careers and internships they have available ... I
help with internship preparation, mock interview skills and help find leads we share with students, both at employer partners and sometimes not.” Ohio College2Careers counselors can also help students procure adaptive technology, including connecting a student with someone who can help them determine exactly what equipment might be needed. In some cases, financial assistance is available through the program to help students purchase the equipment. Sean McDonald, a senior history major at The Ohio State University’s Newark branch, asked Cyndi Mignone, senior vocational rehabilitation counselor with Ohio College2Careers, for help with “soft skills, like communicating with an employer, interview stuff … That was very helpful to me.”
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tudents with disabilities face additional hurdles when it comes to earning a degree and preparing to enter the workforce. Students with physical challenges may need adaptive equipment for work, while those on the autism spectrum may benefit from coaching to improve interviewing skills prior to their job search. In 2019, Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, a state agency with the mission of helping empower Ohioans who have mental and physical disabilities, launched the Ohio College2Careers program in order to address these kinds of needs. “The plan was that college students with a disability would have a vocational rehabilitation counselor dedicated to just students with disabilities,” says Kim Jump, communications chief for Op-
