Exciting Opportunities for Young Adults with Disabilities in Texas This fall a record 21.8 million students will be attending classes at colleges and universities across the US. Students are working towards earning degrees so that they can find better job opportunities upon graduation. For some young men and women with disabilities attending a traditional college is not a viable option, but they want job opportunities and means to achieve greater independence as well. Fortunately, at Providence Place’s Center for Higher Independence in San Antonio, Texas opportunity awaits. Since 1974 the professionals at the Center for Higher Independence have been working with adults with disabilities to help them achieve their goals and become more self-reliant. Students at CHI live in a campus setting where they learn vocational skills, social skills and other vital life skills to help them lead independent lives. Students are taught to ride busses to wherever they need to go, to shop and cook for themselves, to manage their finances and to clean and maintain their own apartments. CHI also works with each individual student to determine what support is needed in order for them to achieve success. In addition to important every day life skills, students at CHI are also able to take a variety of job-focused classes in areas such as horticulture, housekeeping and maintenance, clerical work and more. Upon graduating from CHI, students with disabilities will receive jobplacement assistance and can expect to hold paying jobs that allow them to become more self-reliant. CHI maintains a relationship with the employers of CHI students and works closely with them to ensure that the students are meeting their needs. For employers of people with disabilities, CHI offers some support services. As some of the CHI students are deaf or hard-of-hearing, CHI provides interpreters who can help employers and their HR departments to communicate with these young adults. During the probationary period, ongoing job support and weekly evaluations allow employers, individuals and the CHI staff to communicate regularly and make sure everyone is satisfied in this mutually beneficial relationship. If there are issues with communication or performance the CHI job coaches and counselors will work to resolve them. To be eligible to take part in the CHI program, students with disabilities must be at least 18 years old, possess some self-help abilities and have a qualifying need or disability such as
Autism or Asperger’s syndrome, cerebral palsy, developmental or intellectual disabilities, deafness or hearing impairment, or other learning disabilities. Students who meet these requirements need to complete an application, schedule a tour of the Providence Place campus in San Antonio and go through an interview process. Most of the students come from the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services (DARS), but Providence Place welcomes other men and women with disabilities who have been referred by another student, family, or members of the community here in Texas. To learn more about the Center for Higher Independence or to schedule a visit of our 25-acre campus, please visit our website or contact us today.