Graduates across Northwest Florida are celebrating a major milestone after completing Project SEARCH, a transition-to-work program that prepares young adults with disabilities to enter the workforce.

As one of the nation’s largest employers of people with disabilities, Global Connections to Employment (GCE) has established Project SEARCH sites at five locations across Northwest Florida. These sites include Baptist Hospital, Gulf Breeze Hospital, Santa Rosa Medical Center and Innisfree Hotels in Escambia and Okaloosa counties.

Over the course of their senior year of high school, Project SEARCH interns receive classroom instruction and hands-on training through worksite rotations, giving them experience in a variety of jobs and work environments.

Across these job sites, Project SEARCH interns had the opportunity to experience different types of work, ranging from customer service and food service to large-scale laundry operations and working alongside medical staff. Project SEARCH focuses on helping interns strengthen their customer service and communication skills, gain experience working on a team, build independence and develop job-specific skills.

This year, 24 Project SEARCH graduates completed the program throughout the region. During the graduation ceremonies, the graduates reflected on their time as interns, listing major personal growth areas, such as overcoming social anxiety, strengthening their communication skills, learning how to work on a team, improving their eye contact and learning how to utilize new technology.

These graduations reflect a partnership between the business sites, GCE, Vocational Rehabilitation, Agency for Persons with Disabilities, Santa Rosa County District Schools, Escambia County Public Schools and Okaloosa County School District.

To get involved or learn more about Project SEARCH, visit gce.org/project-search.