This year, Legacy Cares has launched an incredible workforce development program with our friends at NYT Deli, Autism Academy, and Lexington Services to address the employment gap for young adults with autism and other developmental disabilities and to provide a safe, friendly, and exciting environment for these individuals to succeed in a typical workforce environment!

Young adults involved in the program will be scheduled over the course of ten weeks to serve in various capacities at Legacy Park. They will learn basic communication and life skills with staff, procedures and responsibilities for positions in the ticketing, janitorial, and food and beverage departments, as well as participate in team building activities hosted by the Legacy Cares team. 

With the adoption of the Not Your Typical Workforce Program and our partnership with NYT Deli, Legacy Park will become one of the most autism friendly locations in Arizona. We plan to shatter the stigma of Americans with autism through leading by example and showing companies what Americans with autism and developmental disabilities are capable of achieving in the workforce and beyond.

We plan to serve as the national example for how strategic community collaboration, innovative thinking, and understanding of individuals with autism and developmental disabilities can lead to successful employees in any industry.

ADDRESSING THE EMPLOYMENT GAP FOR YOUNG ADULTS WITH AUTISM AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES

In a 2017 report to Congress provided by the Department of Health and Human Services submitted by the National Autism Coordinator, the report emphasizes “an acute need exist[ing] for a range of services and support [for young adults on the autism spectrum], including employment opportunities and community integration services.”

Also provided by the US Department of Health and Human Services, “autism is a neurological developmental disability with an estimated prevalence of one to two percent of the American and worldwide population. The diversity of the disability means that each person’s individual experience of autism and needs for supports and services can vary widely. For this reason, the clinical diagnosis in the American Psychiatric Association’s DSM-5 uses the term autism spectrum disorder [or ASD]. However, all children, youth, and adults on the autism spectrum experience a common atypical neurological profile with several key traits. Namely, they have atypical language and communication, social interaction, motor coordination and sensory processing, and executive functioning.”

Young American adults with ASD experience a variety of challenges in their life. One of the most prevalent is earning an employment opportunity with medium to large scale companies. In a more recent report provided by Jillian Seamans at the Arizona Department of Economic Security, Seamans provides a disappointing statistic revealing “up to 80% of the adults with ASD in Arizona are currently unemployed.” However, many organizations advocating for this community argue this figure to be much higher at nearly 90%.

80% unemployment among young adults with ASD is unacceptable. This troubling figure has become the catalyst for why we at Legacy Cares are seeking to launch a program focusing on addressing this employment gap in Arizona by giving young adults with ASD the opportunity to succeed in a typical workplace setting, something that previously has not been a focus of major companies and organizations in our state.