Focusing on transition opportunities for young adults after they leave high school, NCCDD awarded Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center for its Project SEARCH High School Transition program. It provides internship for youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities in an integrated setting. Project SEARCH is a unique, business led, one-year school-to-work program that takes place entirely at the workplace and provides total workplace immersion facilitating a seamless combination of classroom instruction, career exploration and hands-on training through worksite rotations.

At the beginning of 2015, with the help of the Council, Project SEARCH expanded from seven to 10 sites across North Carolina. Below are the three new additions to the NC Project SEARCH family:

Greenville (Pitt County)

• RHA-Howell
• Pitt County School System School District, North Carolina Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, Greenville Office
• East Carolina Behavioral Health

Lumberton (Robeson County)

• Robeson Community College
• North Carolina Division of Vocational Rehabilitation
• Revelations Placement Service
• Southeastern Health
• Youth Employability Services of Robeson County, Robeson Community College in collaboration with local Workforce Investment Agency Out-of-School Youth program

Monroe (Union County)

• Union County Public Schools
• North Carolina Division of Vocational Rehabilitation
• InReach
• Cardinal Innovations

NCCDD is excited to welcome these new sites to the Project SEARCH initiative to work together a more employment opportunities for people with I/DD.