The Opportunity Center of Owensboro is helping middle school, high school, and college students with disabilities prepare for their future careers. Through their free vocational program, the Opportunity Center aims to empower individuals with disabilities to discover their potential, develop meaningful skills, and pursue successful futures.
“Every student deserves the opportunity to explore careers, build confidence, and become an active, contributing member of our community,” Training & Employment Specialist Tiffany Vinson said. “Through pre-ETS and [pre-vocational], we’re helping make that happen. One student, one opportunity, and one success story at a time.”
The program focuses on hands-on learning, getting kids ages 14-21 actively involved with learning and honing in on the skills they’ll need for whatever career they want to pursue. They’ve even taken tours to OCTC, HealthForce Kentucky, Daviess County Fiscal Court, and Chaney’s Dairy Barn in Bowling Green to learn about the different programs and potential careers the students could pursue.
“It’s just to help them build skills, get confidence, and get experience with different career paths that they may be interested in,” Director of Vocational Services Nick Tallent said. “We can also help them with looking into college if that’s something that they might be interested in going into later. We can help them with doing their FAFSA, doing whatever they may need when they get to college.”
Many students in the Daviess County area are eligible for the program, but organization leaders say just as many aren’t even aware of the program’s existence. They said the range of people with disabilities that would qualify for the program is much wider than you might initially expect.
“What we are finding is that a lot of students and parents don’t know that this service exists,” Tallent said. “Some of the schools in Daviess County — both county and city schools — are providing the service, but I think overall, parents don’t know that this service is available to their students. Then, the ones who do know that it is available think that it has to be like an intellectual disability. They don’t realize that there are so many more students that could be approved for this service that are eligible.”
Others who meet eligibility requirements include students with autism, ADHD, physical limitations or impairments, vision and/or hearing impairments, anxiety, depression and/or bipolar disorders. Even if a child or young adult struggles with a particular area — math, for example — they could be eligible.
An application process is involved, but leaders say the Opportunity Center has done its best to make that as simple and straightforward as possible.
“Students can be referred by the school,” Tallent said. “Parents or guardians can do the application. Guidance counselors [can help]. They can go to the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation over on Fairview Drive. Healthcare providers can do the application, or they can just come here to the Opportunity Center or contact us, and we’ll help them with the application.”
She added, “It’s very simple. It’s only two pages. Very minimal information, and we can help them get everything submitted. Along with the application, they will also need to have either a 504 plan at school, an IEP (individualized education plan) with the school, or they will need to have some sort of documentation from a doctor/provider with their diagnosis on it. So, the application and that paperwork is what needs to be submitted for them to be approved.”
There is no cost for applying for the program.
Representatives from the Opportunity Center will be at the WBKR Yard Party on Aug. 28 from 10-2, and on Sept. 16, a health fair at the Opportunity Center from 10-1 will allow people to learn about the different services that the center provides.
“A lot of our pre-employment transition students that are in our program will actually be down there [at the WBKR Yard Party] helping serve the burgers and getting some real-life experience, which is a very cool thing for them,” Tallent said.
By Phoenix Stevens The Owensboro Times