Project SEARCH places Highlands County interns at AdventHealth Sebring to build workplace skills

At a School Board of Highlands County presentation, a Project SEARCH representative described a nine-month internship program based at AdventHealth Sebring that places 18- to 21-year-olds with disabilities in three on-site internships while providing classroom instruction and individualized coaching.

Program leaders said the model, founded in 1996 at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, combines classroom lessons led by a full-time special education instructor and skills trainers with workplace placements to build employability and marketable skills.

The Project SEARCH representative (unnamed), Project SEARCH representative, said, "Project Search was founded at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in 1996. What began as an innovative and visionary idea for a pathway to employment for individuals with disabilities has grown into a comprehensive and internationally recognized internship model." The presenter described the program as a "9 month internship program designed for individuals with disabilities who aim to achieve competitive employment." Participants complete three distinct internships and work with a team that can include family members, the instructor, and local and state agencies to set employment goals.

An AdventHealth Sebring staff speaker, AdventHealth representative, explained the hospital's approach to interns: "Our mission here is to extend the healing ministry of Christ... Once you're on our team, you're on our team here." The speaker said interns begin each day with classroom lessons on employability and workplace skills before reporting to their designated internship placements and that internships are conducted entirely on-site at AdventHealth Sebring.

Family members who spoke during the presentation described changes they had observed in interns. A family member (unnamed), Family member, said, "I've seen more growth in 1 year of Project SEARCH. Maturing, growing into adulthood, thinking outside the box, the real world." Another family member (unnamed), Family member, described one intern's confidence and leadership growth: "The biggest change is a leader with his parents, his peers, siblings. It's more of a leadership role that I see in them now." A parent (unnamed), Family member, added, "I tell James, I don't look to Marvel. I don't look to DC superheroes. James is my reality of just a heroic person. He's my superhero. He's my superhero."

The presenters and family speakers outlined eligibility requirements that the program sets for participation: interns must be 18 to 21 years old and not turn 22 during the program year, have completed high school requirements but deferred receiving their diploma, possess an individualized education program (IEP) with a goal of competitive employment, be eligible for vocational rehabilitation supported employment, demonstrate a desire for independence, and exhibit appropriate workplace and community social skills.

Presenters named partners that make the local Project SEARCH cohort possible: the School Board of Highlands County, AdventHealth Sebring, Project 10, Vocational Rehabilitation, and Ridge Area Art. The presenters emphasized that the partnership creates a support network in "a place where it's safe to fail, it's safe to grow, and it's safe to ask questions," and that a frequently observed outcome is stronger social relationships and friendships among interns.

No formal action, vote, or budget decision on Project SEARCH was recorded in the presentation. Speakers and family members focused on program outcomes, participant eligibility, and the local partnership that hosts internships at AdventHealth Sebring.

School district staff and program partners said they look forward to student graduations and to continuing collaboration that supports competitive employment pathways for program participants.