DMD Mentees hosted by the White House and various branches of the Government, and in communities around the country
Total Number of Today's Mentees Exceeds 3,000
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mariana Nork
Vice President for Communications
202-955-6114WASHINGTON, DC, October 16, 2002- Today, Disability Mentoring Day mentees in Washington, DC, will work with all levels of the Administration-- in the White House, the Departments of Commerce, Education, Labor and Transportation, and the Social Security Administration. Concurrently, in communities in 41 states, plus Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, New Zealand and Kosovo, more than 3,000 job seekers/students with disabilities will also be mentored through National Disability Mentoring Day.
The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) is the Host of Disability Mentoring Day, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP). AAPD is the largest cross-disability membership organization nationally.
Participation as mentees in Disability Mentoring Day affords students/job seekers with disabilities insight into careers that are available to them, by offering them job shadowing and hands-on career exploration opportunities. Disability Mentoring Day also promotes their career development on a significant level.
Disability Mentoring Day happens in October, which is National Disability Employment Awareness Month. On October 1, President George W. Bush issued a Proclamation celebrating this month; he has also publicly pointed to Disability Mentoring Day as a crucial activity of National Disability Employment Awareness Month.
Public-private partnerships are fundamental to Disability Mentoring Day, which exposes corporations, government agencies, colleges and school districts, non-profit organizations, and mayors' and governors' committees to the disability community through their participation as mentors. They have the chance to work closely with people with disabilities, identify potential employees, recruit interns, learn about the experience of disability and forge relationships with disability community leaders.
"Employment is at the heart of economic empowerment," explains Andrew J. Imparato, AAPD's President and CEO. "By exposing students/job seekers with disabilities to people who can help them pursue fulfilling careers, Disability Mentoring Day is opening doors that can lead to jobs and long-term success. This important program also gives participating employers access to a pool of talented workers and a large consumer market for their products."
As further explained by Michael Takemura, Director of the Accessibility Program office at Hewlett-Packard, "This is a unique opportunity for companies, like Hewlett-Packard, to expand accessibility and diversity efforts. We are proud that employees in several H-P sites nationally are participating as mentors today, but see this as a longer-term means for evolving relationships with members of the disability community and exposing them to high-technology careers. Through programs like Disability Mentoring Day, we can help people with disabilities to find rewarding careers."
More than 110 Local Coordinators in 41 states and the international locations, all serving strictly as volunteers for AAPD, have organized the Disability Mentoring Day activities in their communities, which bring together students/job seekers with disabilities and employers. Ollie Cantos is AAPD's National Coordinator for Disability Mentoring Day.
The mission of AAPD is to promote the economic and political empowerment of all 56 million adults and children living with disabilities in the U.S. AAPD was founded in 1995 by a group of cross-disability leaders to help unite the diverse community of people with disabilities, including their family, friends and supporters, and to be a national voice for change in implementing the goals of the Americans with Disabilities Act: equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living and economic self-sufficiency.