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Youth Employment Series (YES)
Soaring Futures: Career Exploration and Travel at SFO

In October, join the LightHouse Youth Employment Series, YES, and workshop celebrating White Cane and National Disability Employment Awareness as transition-age youth engage in career exploration at the San Francisco International Airport (SFO). Gainful employment and effective use of mobility tools are critical to pursuing self-confidence, personal satisfaction, economic empowerment, and disability talent development. Attendees will have the opportunity to experience an interactive visit and discover career paths at SFO, to be challenged in confidence building outings, and to collaborate with one another in engaging activities throughout the weekend in preparation for life post high school/college. YES workshops are monthly weekend-long learning experiences emphasizing the vocational enrichment of low vision and blind youth, increasing and providing access to a multifaceted array of mentorship, employment readiness skills, and alternative accessible techniques.

The YES Workshop in October will provide students with the tools to obtain information on career pathways in both the public and private sectors, to create a disability disclosure and advocacy plan for work and school, to learn and improve mobility and independent travel skills, as well as to refine their interpersonal skills (soft-skills). The weekend is spent learning from blind and low vision mentors and engaging in creative hands-on activities which further support youth to explore and achieve their individualized and professional aspirations.

Workshop Learning Objectives:
1. Participants will expand their understanding of rights and responsibilities as blind and low vision individuals as they explore and create personalized disability disclosure and advocacy plans for school and work.
2. Transition age youth will acquire information on employment opportunities in both public and private industries from administration and management to retail and customer service.
3. Students will build their confidence in orientation and mobility as they collaborate with their peers to plan, prepare for, execute, and reflect on a group excursion.
4. The over-night nature of the YES workshop provides opportunities for students to refine their workplace readiness soft skills including effective social and professional communication and independent living all while building community with their blind and low vision peers and mentors.

If you are interested in participating in the October YES Weekend Workshop, please:
1. Contact your Department of Rehabilitation counselor to discuss workshop attendance and authorization.
2. Confirm attendance with Ann Wai-Yee Kwong, Transition Program Specialist, by email at youth@lighthouse-sf.org or by phone at 415-694-7328.

If you have any questions or would like to pay for your participation in the workshop, please contact youth@lighthouse-sf.org. Each workshop costs $950 to attend for the entire weekend. Please note, space for this program is limited and workshop attendance must be confirmed one week prior.
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