Sunday, March 29, 2009
By Elise Franco
Students work at a different community business every nine weeks.
AUSTINTOWN — Teaching students with multiple disabilities the skills they’ll use when they join the workforce is something employees at Brudders Wood Fire Grille and Bar say they are proud to do.
Karen Marra, intervention specialist for Mahoning County Educational Service Center, said she teaches a transition class at Austintown Fitch High School for students ages 17-22 who have multiple disabilities.
She said the disabilities range from Down syndrome to cerebral palsy to behavioral problems.
“The class is partly in the school, but the focus is out in the community,” Marra said. “They learn skills that will help them transition from school to work.”
Part of the class curriculum includes employing the class at businesses around the community for nine-week periods, she said.
The most recent business to open its doors was Brudders, 920 N. Canfield-Niles Road.
Robert Gonzalez, manager, said bringing the students into the restaurant was a “no-brainer.”
“Our business is in the community,” he said. “These kids are a part of the community, too.”
Read the full story Monday in The Vindicator and on Vindy.com.