Photo courtesy of Genesee Intermediate School District

Flint, MI — The Genesee Intermediate School District (GISD) Special Education team has announced the Second Annual “Signing Day” of the Project SEARCH® site for Genesee County, Mich.

Through a partnership with Genesee County Parks, the “Signing Day” event will be held for GISD’s Special Education Transition Center students on Tuesday, May 7, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. at Crossroads Village in Flint, MI.

This Project SEARCH® site, operated by the GISD, is a program created to address critical needs, including improving job readiness, work-related social skills, and employment outcomes for young adults aged 18-26 with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD). Additional options exist to expand transitional support to students with disabilities in Genesee County.

Collaboratively, GISD is closely partnering with the Genesee County Parks, which includes For-Mar, Crossroads Village, and Keep Genesee County Beautiful. Each student who enters the program will graduate with a certificate of completion at the end of the 2024-25 school year.

“Genesee County Parks share our vision where individuals with disabilities can be productive and employed in our communities through the support and training that our special education team provides to the interns and the host businesses,” stated Jan Cox, Transition Center Principal.

The primary goal of Project SEARCH® is to secure competitive integrated employment for individuals with disabilities. This rigorous program has over 680 sites worldwide. Nationally, the program is in 48 states and has a 75% employment outcome rate. Michigan currently has 14 Project Search® sites operated by eight ISDs and four by local school districts.

For additional information or questions about this program, please contact the Transition Center Principal, Jan Cox, at jkcox@geneseeisd.org or (810) 591-5018.