April 03, 2014
Two interns have brought their skills and enthusiasm to TriHealth as part of a new partnership.
TriHealth has teamed up with Project SEARCH, a workplace internship program for youth with significant disabilities, and placed its first two participants, Ben Naylor and Maya Walton, in different roles at Good Samaritan.
Ben has joined Volunteer Services as a customer service representative and Maya has joined Nutrition Services as a retail food service representative.
Meet TriHealth's Project SEARCH interns:
"These students are doing a great job and bring a smile to many of our team members, visitors and patients each day," said Jamie Easterling, executive director of hospital operations for Good Samaritan.
"Good Samaritan is very lucky to have this opportunity."
The one-year Project SEARCH program, which originated at Cincinnati Children's, fully immerses participants in the workplace and provides a seamless combination of classroom instruction, career exploration and hands-on training through worksite rotations.
Ben and Maya, as well as future participants, will experience three 10-week rotations, allowing for extensive career exploration. Each student has a job coach who works with him or her during this time.
The ultimate goal for participants is to make a successful transition from school to productive adult life in which they're working nontraditional, complex and rewarding jobs.