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$2.5 million grant to place disabled young adults in jobs

June 28, 2011

(JTA) -- A $2.5 million grant to Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Boston will fund a groundbreaking program that places young adults with disabilities in jobs.

The Ruderman Family Foundation provided the grant to fund the Young Adult Transitions to Work program, which provides young adults with disabilities customized training, placement and ongoing support services, representing a new approach to providing work for the disabled.

Jewish Vocational Services will run the program as part of the Combined Jewish Philanthropies’ Pathways program for people with disabilities.

Young Adult Transitions to Work is part of a pilot project with Hebrew Senior Life to identify jobs and develop customized training and support that match those positions. It also combines comprehensive training to fully integrate life, work readiness and vocational skills, and ongoing case management once individuals have been placed in jobs.

Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation, called the program "a testament to what partnerships between the private sector, nonprofit world and advocacy community can achieve, and a real breakthrough for the disability community.”

Ruderman said there are some 25,000 disabled young adults aged 18 to 30 in Boston’s Jewish community who are capable of working in the proper jobs.
 

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