Tayone

Tayone Miller is a full-time computer analyst with Charles County Public Schools (CCPS), bringing nearly a decade of experience in developing, managing, and improving information technology.

Tayone was born with cerebral palsy, which has caused him to have trouble with speech. In school, he struggled with “people not seeing past my disability, creating stereotypes, and getting various instructional strategies to help me in classes.” After he graduated from Florida Memorial University, where he was recognized as Student of the Year in 2012, Tayone says, “Many of the jobs I have applied for require at least three rounds of interviews. I always had difficulties passing the first stage due to my speech impairment. After having interviews with many prospective employers, I could tell by their responses and body language they were unwilling to hire a person with disabilities. [Because of this], I have not directly disclosed my disability on applications.”

He’s not alone. Research shows that a shockingly low number of employees disclose their disability to their employer, likely for fear of discrimination. It took many rejections, but Tayone found an employer who saw him for his skills, not his disability. “I started working at CCPS as an intern, then I was promoted to a temporary computer analyst, and now I am a full-time computer analyst. I now manage various interns.”

Even though Tayone deserves his job and excels at it, he has faced microaggressions, or subtle discrimination, in the workplace. As he notes, “In the past, my co-workers displayed eye-rolling when I spoke or turned away from or avoided me altogether.” But Tayone ignored them because “I did not want to give them control over me. Disability representation in the workplace means that people with disabilities are seen, heard, and respected in their jobs. Furthermore, it promotes inclusion for all. My employer is able to see my strengths and capitalize off my positive attributes. In the next 5 years, I see myself still working at CCPS as a senior computer analyst. Some advice I would give to people with disabilities who are struggling to pursue a career is to be persistent. Never give up on yourself. Build relationships with others in the field to mentor you.” 

Amy

Amy started with typical jobs for young adults, working at Bath and Body Works and Giant Food for several years while taking classes at the local community college until enrolling in Project SEARCH, an employment program for people with disabilities that aims to train and place each participant in competitive and rewarding employment through a series of internship rotations. As an added bonus of the program, the placements help demonstrate to businesses the long-term value of hiring people with disabilities and the wide range of jobs they can be successful in.

Amy enrolled in the program and began her placements, including one at the Montgomery County Department of Finance Treasury Division where she got to work learning about homestead compliance and correcting records in the department’s system. Amy learned what it took to succeed in an office job and focused on building skills and making herself an asset to the department.

Amy chose to pursue a Treasury Department job after all of her rotations were done and was thrilled to secure a full-time, competitive job there where she thrived in an environment where people believed in and supported her to succeed. Now 32 years old, Amy is still at the same job enjoying her work, and is optimistic about what her future holds.

“I like everyone I work with. They like working with me too. I am most proud of working on property tax refunds. I research accounts ahead of time to figure out who is eligible for a refund, and then take their information and add the record into our system so it can move to the next step. I’ve gotten better at it over the course of my time there and I like working in Excel. I’m coming up on my 10-year anniversary which makes me proud. I do think about the future and maybe learning more skills. Having a job allows me to be independent, buy groceries, pay housing expenses, and go out to dinner with friends. It’s very important to work and try to make a good life for yourself.”

Michael & Dylan

Meet Michael, Dylan, and others who are thriving at Sephora – both at work and in their personal lives. Sephora’s commitment to inclusion is paying dividends for both the company and its employees. Watch this video to learn more.

Darren

Darren sought employment at UPMC Hospital through The Arc of York County in Pennsylvania, and now works in the culinary department stocking shelves and supporting the cooks. He calls the position his dream job. And his manager is just as thrilled, noting: “Folks like Darren are great, valuable employees. They’re focused and Darren has proven to be a great asset. He was an immediate hire. He is very self-sufficient. He’s picked up a lot and taken on new responsibilities, and I think he has a lot of long-term potential in this place. I wish I had a dozen Darrens.” Watch this video to learn more.

Sephora

Sephora is fully embracing inclusion in its workforce, with the goal of having 30% of staff in its distribution centers be people with disabilities. Watch this video to hear from managers about progress and surprising results across the full workforce.

Nathaniel

After college, I worked for the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities, People First Wisconsin, and I was selected as an officer on the National Council of Self-Advocates where I have helped people learn about self-advocacy, how to reach personal goals, and how to live independently. My duties have included advising on public policy, collecting constituent feedback, facilitating meetings, working on video projects, and assisting with website updates. My main goal in working with these organizations is to help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to learn what their rights are and how to advocate for what they need, so they can build a good life for themselves just like I have!

Jessica

Jessica is one of several employees with disabilities at Acadia Windows and Doors and while she is legally blind and developmentally disabled, she is able to work independently on the manufacturing production line. As a result of employing people with disabilities, Acadia has made production line improvements and an overall safer work environment—and was awarded the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Award from OSHA (Occupational Health & Safety Administration) twice. Here’s what their Vice President of Production had to say about the experience: “This is a manufacturing environment, with materials capable of inflicting serious injury. Everything that we did to make things safer for our team members with disabilities made it safer for everyone else as well. They are also reliable employees, consistently have exemplary attendance records, and always hit their production goals. As a result of hiring them, we work better as a team. In planning to assimilate our new employees, we problem-solved in a way that was different for us, and this new ability carried over into all aspects of our teamwork. We were learning to think differently, and forming interdepartmental relationships that hadn’t existed before. Along with looking out for our team members with disabilities, we began to look out for one another, too. Hiring people with disabilities makes sense as a business decision. This is a great pool of workers.”

Matthew

Matthew works as a Sales Associate at Industry Horror, a trendy clothing and retail store in Ventura’s Historic Downtown Cultural District. Matthew started working 12 hours a week for the first month of his employment. With successful job coaching services and support, he quickly learned all job duties within his first 30 days of employment. Matthew also learned various marketing skills to advertise and promote Industry Horror’s clothing line through social media and at Ventura College, where he is a part-time student. His manager reported that Matthew is their top Sales Associate. As such, his weekly work hours have increased to 24 hours a week.

Tommy

Any conversation will show that Tommy has a wealth of knowledge about most sports and statistics and can talk to anyone who is interested. His outgoing personality and natural leadership skills, along with his passion for sports, made him a natural fit for the Greencastle Golf Club. The Arc of Washington County in Pennsylvania worked with him to find the role and get him started, and he has since taken very well to his role in customer service at the golf club. He loves his job, where he can contribute to the customer experience through his welcoming nature and ability to engage patrons with useful information and good conversation.