Ep. 45: Bringing Project SEARCH to your Community

The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs estimates that worldwide, there are between 180 million and 202 million youth who have a disability. In Canada alone, there are well over half a million youth who have a disability — 546,410 to be more precise. That’s the figure from Statistics Canada. Over 100,000 of these young people are what’s known as NEET — not in employment, education or training of any kind. And of those, 83,000 have been identified by Statistics Canada as potential employees. There’s a unique program called Project SEARCH. And it’s playing a significant role in helping businesses make sure they have up-and-coming talent to fill roles while at the same time training youth who have a disability to succeed in the workplace.   In this episode — to mark the 30th anniversary year of Project SEARCH — we find out all about the program. It started as a recruitment and retention strategy in the health care sector, in Cincinnati, in 1996. There are now over 750 Project SEARCH sites worldwide, including 29 in Canada. Why is it so important for businesses to get involved in Project SEARCH? What’s the ripple effect in a community when they do? And how can businesses bring Project SEARCH to the communities they serve? Carolyn Mcdougall from Holland Bloorview Children’s Hospital in Toronto has some insightful answers to these questions, and others. She’s the Ontario and Canada Co-ordinator for Project SEARCH Canada.   SHOW NOTES Episode 45 transcript (PDF) Find out more about Project SEARCH Canada Get in touch about being part of Project SEARCH: [email protected]