Celebrated a very special graduation ceremony

St. Joseph’s, in collaboration with Hutton House and Thames Valley District School Board, hosted youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities for Project SEARCH, a 10-month internship program that helps them find meaningful employment. The school-to-work training program involves collaboration with organizations, including health care, to establish internships that prepare young adults in their final year of high school for the working world.

As senior high school students across the city received their diplomas, a very special graduation ceremony was held at Parkwood Institute in late June, when the first cohort of interns with Project SEARCH proudly crossed the stage having reached ambitious goals they and their families never thought possible. St. Joseph’s, in collaboration with Hutton House and Thames Valley District School Board, was the host organization for Project SEARCH, a 10-month internship program that helps youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities find meaningful employment. The school-to-work training program helps prepare young adults in their final year of high school for the working world. Participating students were provided valuable work experience within various programs and services at Parkwood Institute. An onsite classroom for the program was also established with instruction supported by a teacher from Thames Valley District School Board and a skills trainer from Hutton House.