Valley View students with disabilities showcase paid internships, adaptive tool for assembly at local robotics firm

Valley View High School staff and student interns demonstrated a paid internship program with local employers that gives students with disabilities on-the-job experience during the school day and produces tangible workplace solutions, staff told the board.

A special-education teacher explained the district partnered with local companies including robotics firm Yaskawa to provide paid internship time for several students. Staff and students described an adaptive jig they designed to make it easier to align and screw together fuse pieces used in the employers assembly process. "So our first set was creating a design ... a box of springs that push the fuse against the wall," a student presenter said, describing iteration through 3D prints and testing.

The teacher described two device versions: a table-mounted vice-style model for one student who needs more stabilization and a handheld lighter model for another student that provides enough tension to assemble parts independently. Staff said the company hosted a tour for students and that "Michelle has indicated that they're interested in hiring 1 of the students without an adult for next summer."

Board members asked whether staff would present the program at a school board association session. Presenters said they saw the work as an example of cross-classroom collaboration — engineering, special education and career partnerships — that boosted students' employability and entrepreneurship skills. The demonstration was presented as a routine update; no formal board action was required.