Ellie's Updates
The impact of Wisconsin Promise depends on making a difference in the lives of all Wisconsin Promise youth and families.
The more impact we can have with more youth and their family members, the more we will be able to demonstrate how Wisconsin Promise Services and Supports can help to increase participants’ education, employment, and financial self-sufficiency.
Promise success Story:
Sean is a student with a developmental/cognitive delay. He receives special education services for all academic courses. Last year, he completed several job shadows at Walgreens and a restaurant to assist him with career exploration. With some urging from his parents, Sean participated in an 8 hr per week work experience. Sean was responsible for filling the ice machine and making sure the area was clean and fully stocked with lids and straws. He was also responsible for sweeping the lobby floor, wiping down tables and chairs in the dining room and cleaning the restrooms. Sean used a laminated list to keep him on task during his shift. Sean talked about initially struggling to tie the garbage bags and followed up by saying, "Now it's easy as pie." According to the reports from the employer, customers commented on how nice Sean was during his shift often asking if they enjoyed the meal, wishing them a good evening, etc. Feedback from his co-workers was similar. On several occasions during our meeting, Sean asked when he could work again and even offered several upcoming dates when he's available to work. We explained the Trial Work Experience (TWE) is complete but there is a lobby attendant position available. Sean's dad indicated he'll take Sean into Burger King to pick up an employment application and they will complete it together. Sean reported he'd like to explore working as a bagger at a grocery store. We agreed to move ahead with this service while waiting to hear back from Burger King about a permanent position. We all agreed Sean is very personable and it would be beneficial for him (and a business) to work in an environment in which he's able to have contact with customers. If Sean enjoys the job shadow at the grocery store and expresses interest in working there, we will explore the possibility of another Trial Work Experience (if things do not pan out with Burger King.)
