Want a Great Job When You Graduate?

By John R. Jell

John Jell is a former "at-risk" student who now works for Nestlé in the account marketing division.

I was born to immigrant parents, and English was not my first language. My father, and later my mother, worked in a factory. Just after I celebrated my 6^th birthday, my parents split up.

I still remember the day my sister and I were walking home from school and a white station wagon taxi went roaring down our laneway (we lived just on the outskirts of town). It was Friday, November 20th to be exact. We ran home to find our mom standing on the doorstep of our house, wearing her best blue dress, her hair perfectly done, weeping, with three garbage bags full of clothes. All she said was “Get in. We are leaving.” My mom had had enough of an abusive relationship.

School as Workforce Preparation and "Resume"

By Dan Sackheim

Dan Sackheim is the program consultant in the Educational Options Office of the California Department of Education.

Recently, I was at a conference focused on transition for youth with disabilities. This was one of the better conferences, where the youth we were talking about were actually in attendance. When asked what their biggest issues were, youth after youth said that the key concern was getting a job — they were very worried about going to an interview when they had never worked and, for many of them, they had some physical condition that could, possibly, raise questions in the minds of a less sensitive or less informed potential employer. Several of the adults responded, offering words of empathy and sympathy. I had a much different approach. I told the youth that, while I heard their concern, that they were wrong. Sometimes (but certainly not always) it can be fun to tell youth they are wrong, then wait and watch as they react. I soon added that they needed a different perspective.