[TRANSCRIPT]
0:00:00 - (Doug Jenkins): Coming up next on chamber amplified.
0:00:02 - (Nicole Gunka): So this kind of helps their parents or their guardians once they turn 18, give them a sense of comfort, knowing they can come to a place. They have job coaches with them, helping them learn the skills, teaching them independent living content.
0:00:18 - (Doug Jenkins): Welcome to the show. I'm Doug Jenkins from the Findlay Hancock County Chamber of Commerce. On each episode of Chamber amplified, we're examining issues impacting the local business community. Whether they be employee recruitment, retention, marketing, it issues. It's really anything that can impact your business, or maybe it's something that you want your business to be involved in. That's where we're headed today.
0:00:37 - (Doug Jenkins): Our goal is to give our tip members tips each week on at least one way they can improve operations and thrive in the current business environment. One thing that I hear a lot from members, especially newer members, is how do I get involved in the community? Which is actually a really big question because there are literally hundreds of ways you can do that. Today, though, we're highlighting one option like that. It's called Project Life.
0:00:58 - (Doug Jenkins): The program helps teenagers and young adults with developmental disabilities find ten week internships with local businesses. And it's grown quite a bit in the last few years. Besides growing, it's been very successful, too. We'll get into all of that. I'm joined by Nicole Gunka to talk about how the program got started, the successes that they've seen, and how you can get involved with project life.
0:01:17 - (Doug Jenkins): We also talk about why simply having programs like this are so important for the community, and how Hancock county is actually a very good example of providing opportunities to those with developmental disabilities. It's all very interesting. I think you're really going to like today's show. Thanks again for tuning in. Remember, if you're listening on Apple podcasts or Spotify, you can rate and review the show. It really does help spread the word.
0:01:38 - (Doug Jenkins): Now let's get into it. So let's get people familiar with Project Life if they haven't heard about it to begin with. This is a great program available in Hancock county. But what is it and what does it do?
0:01:52 - (Nicole Gunka): Yeah, so Project Life is a multi year program in which we get interns from our local school districts who have graduated high school, and they come to us to help learn on the job skills as well as independent living skills so that we can hopefully set them up for a successful future.
0:02:11 - (Doug Jenkins): And this has been going very well. And I really appreciate being on the steering committee for the program. I don't have to do a whole lot for it other than talk about it. You guys are the ones really doing all the groundwork to get businesses involved, to get the graduates involved. What was that process like as the.
0:02:30 - (Nicole Gunka): Program was launching, you know, early stages? Tanya Weising pike was kind of our lead person. And Linda search here at Blanchard Valley center were the ones that brought the program to us early on. It was really trying to figure out if this is something that we could sustain long term. It was a part of a school district in Butler county, and that's kind of how it was created there. And so they allow people to basically buy into their program, and so it's something we were interested in doing. And so we worked with them to buy the project life licensing, to be able to use their content and basically their guide to us on how to run this program.
0:03:15 - (Nicole Gunka): So that was about three or four years ago that we started that process. So year one was really deciding what this program was going to look like for us because our model is for high school graduates. However, other project life models are, you can be in school junior and senior year. So we opted to go and aim for those graduates at our local school districts. And so from there, it was kind of deciding where we could look for businesses.
0:03:43 - (Nicole Gunka): And so we were very fortunate that Ohlers and the YMCA were willing to take us on our first year. And then from there, we've grown. So we're at Oller's and Culver's. We're at the YMCA. We're at the child Development center with the YMCA, the library, and we recently added in GSW manufacturing.
0:04:05 - (Doug Jenkins): Very good. And I have to imagine the conversations were probably encouraging at first, just based on the Findlay businesses that I deal with. All of them want to help and they want to be involved, but it's the process of. All right, so what do I have to do? And do I need to commit a staff member to it? If a business is interested in it, what does that process of kind of evaluating if it's a good fit look like?
0:04:29 - (Nicole Gunka): Yeah. So we would meet with the local business and discuss the project life concept. We do offer a job coach who goes out to the job rotations with our interns. However, our job coaches are this kind of there to provide guidance. We do like to have someone that we can connect with at the business, and they kind of run and show our interns how to do things, and we're just there to kind of supplement what they're doing.
0:04:54 - (Nicole Gunka): And then we also have had times where our job coach is just the person in charge, because that agency or business doesn't have someone to dedicate to us, and that's okay, too. What we're looking for is really that real world work experience. So, you know, if it's our job coach teaching them how to do all the skills, and really they're sheltered within that local business, that doesn't give them the opportunity to meet new people, to learn how to interact with their coworkers.
0:05:21 - (Nicole Gunka): So we are looking for someone that could be dedicated to us to help us along the way.
0:05:25 - (Doug Jenkins): We'll get into the successes of the program in a little bit. But first, just, I guess the overall question is, why is something like this so important?
0:05:34 - (Nicole Gunka): I just think it helps set our folks up for being successful in the future. I mean, I think a lot of times the school districts are doing really well about learning and growing their transition curriculum to help set them up for the future. But as a part of a student's IEP, they should be looking at what's life going to be like after school and after they graduate. And this is just one of those programs that can help them maybe decipher what's next for them.
0:06:01 - (Nicole Gunka): You know, is it employment? Is it full time? Is it part time? Do they want to live on their own? So this kind of helps their parents or their guardians once they turn 18, give them a sense of comfort, knowing they can come to a place they have job coaches with them, helping them learn the skills, teaching them independent living content so that they can be more successful in the future. And parents can feel comfortable if their child wants to, then become community employed and live on their own at some point.
0:06:30 - (Doug Jenkins): There's a lot going on there. We've heard from the businesses that have done this, and they've all raved about the program. But I think the part that really stands out to me. Couple of years ago, we had a project life graduate talk about what they did at fresh brew business, and it's the students who are going through the program. Listening to them talk about it, I think is really what drives the point home, that this is a program that's working for sure.
0:06:57 - (Nicole Gunka): Yeah, I think our students get a lot out of this program. It's helped them develop confidence in themselves, confidence in their ability to be able to work alongside other community members. And I just think it gives them this sense of accomplishment that they may not have gotten if they just left high school and didn't have anywhere else to go after.
0:07:16 - (Doug Jenkins): Can you share? You mentioned the parents and them getting a little bit more comfortable with, with their student living on their own or being more independent. Can you share what their feedback has been in the program.
0:07:28 - (Nicole Gunka): They 100% back our program. A lot of them come in. We do three life planning meetings a year after each job rotation. So we share with them during those meetings what we've been up to for the last ten or twelve weeks. And it's always great to hear the parents feedback in which they're saying, like, I didn't know my student could even do that at home. You know, I've asked them to do that task, and they say they don't know how, but now I'm learning they're doing that at project life.
0:07:54 - (Nicole Gunka): You know, my student never said, you know, safety things or concerns they had until project life kind of helped them give that confidence and that voice to be able to say those things. So every parent has been so wonderful. They just enjoy the program. I think they don't know what they're getting themselves into. So hearing their feedback, to know that this program is really working the way it's supposed to is really great.
0:08:19 - (Doug Jenkins): Finley and Hancock County, I think, have always been, maybe not always, but from the time I've lived here, there you can see a lot of businesses that are trying to help people with developmental disabilities of whatever find fulfilling work. And it's always been something that stood out to me. How, which. It's great to see that from a community standpoint. How much has this amplified that since it got started then?
0:08:46 - (Nicole Gunka): I think it's amplified it a lot. I feel like as we're getting interns out into different places who might not have been comfortable hiring someone with a disability, they're starting to see that our folks do just kind of work right alongside. Sometimes they work 110% harder than some of the other employees, and you give them a task and they're happy to do it. I think it just shows the employers that they can take a chance on someone who has a disability and that they will do the work that, you know, everybody else can do.
0:09:19 - (Doug Jenkins): So what does the future of project life look like here in Hancock county, then?
0:09:24 - (Nicole Gunka): Our future?
0:09:25 - (Doug Jenkins): That's a big question. I understand.
0:09:27 - (Nicole Gunka): I feel like it looks really bright here. We are working on a summer rotation with the city of Findlay recreation and the Hancock County park district. So we're looking to fill a few spots for some summer rotations, and then our goal is to make this a year round program. Currently, we run on a school year August to about May or June, but we really feel like there's benefit from keeping it going year round. So it really phases away from that school setting.
0:09:56 - (Nicole Gunka): Some of our interns are like, yeah, now I have summer break. Well, that's not really the real world. And so we are moving it. Yeah, we're moving it August to August. So we'll have 410 to twelve week work rotations that we'll be offering. And the goal is to kind of have them all experience all of the work rotations that we have to offer within a two year setting so that they can kind of decide what their likes and dislikes are and help them maybe find a job that's really going to work for them.
0:10:26 - (Doug Jenkins): One thing that stands out, or that at least I noticed, is that it's managed growth for the program. This does seem like something where a lot of people would want to get involved right away, and it can be kind of unwieldy to manage. How important is it to just be very intentional and specific about, again, expanding it to August to August instead of being a school year program. That's not something that just happens overnight or having a bunch of businesses all come in at the same time and say, let's go, I want to get in on this.
0:10:56 - (Doug Jenkins): There's a very specific reason not to do it that way.
0:10:59 - (Nicole Gunka): Right. I just think this helps our program grow in the right direction. Not having times where we feel like we're not having a positive impact. And so I feel like just taking it slow, adding a few interns every year, adding a job rotation every year, just allows us to continue to monitor is what we're doing working, and if it's not, how do we fix it? And so we've had lots of great conversations with employers that are coming on like GSW of like, here's the things we've tried.
0:11:33 - (Nicole Gunka): Here's the things that didn't work so well. Here's how we can hopefully make this partnership a little bit better with you. And I just think it helps us be comfortable and confident when we're pitching this program.
0:11:44 - (Doug Jenkins): Absolutely. So if a business were interested in it and just want to maybe start the conversation understanding that they may not get involved in it for a year or two before an intern actually can get started with them, how do they get that process started, though?
0:11:58 - (Nicole Gunka): They would just want to contact me. Nicole Gunka. I'm the director of community supports at the Hancock County Board of Developmental Disabilities. We would have a conversation just so they could learn a little bit more about what we're doing. We can put them in touch with some of the employers we're currently working with that they want, like that hands on, real world experience, knowing what it's like from them to work with us.
0:12:20 - (Nicole Gunka): And then if they're interested, we really sit down to determine what they can do at the rotation. We like to try to stay away from cleaning. We try to limit it to no more than 30 minutes of cleaning per rotation because our interns have a lot to offer. And so I think sometimes that's the quick and easy thing to give us. And so we really tried hard to stay away from that aspect of it. And so we look at six tasks. So we need to find six things we could do with you for about two to two and a half hours in order to make the rotation work.
0:12:52 - (Doug Jenkins): All right, all things to consider if you're interested in taking part in that. Nicole, again, thank you for everything you're doing for the community. I really appreciate being part of the steering committee. It's great to just be able to talk about the great things that are happening in Finley and Hancock county. So thanks for having me as a part of it, and thanks for joining us on the podcast as well.
0:13:09 - (Nicole Gunka): Thanks for having me today. I appreciate it.
0:13:15 - (Doug Jenkins): Thanks once again, Nicole, for joining us here on the podcast. And if you think that your business would be a good fit for the program, or maybe you just want to find out if it's a good fit, let me know. I'd be happy to contact you with project life and get that process started for you. Chamber Amplified is a free podcast for the community thanks to the investment of members from the Findlay Hancock County Chamber of Commerce.
0:13:36 - (Doug Jenkins): Because of our robust membership, we're able to focus on providing timely information to the Findlay and Hancock county business community, run leadership programs for adults and teenagers, and be an advocate for the area while also providing tools to help local businesses succeed. If that sounds like something youd like to be a part of, just let me know and we can talk about how an investment in the chamber helps strengthen the community and your business at the same time.
0:13:57 - (Doug Jenkins): Thatll do it for this week's episode. If you do have topics for something we should cover in the future, let me know. Just send me an email dashenkinsindleyhancockchamber.com dot thanks again for listening. Well see you next time on chamber amplified from the Findlay Hancock County Chamber of Commerce.