Ability Development - Moon Rider 7 Project

Employees with Disabilities Working Professionally at Store ~Costco Part 1~

The last company I visited in Seattle is Costco. The headquarters is located in Issaquah, which is 30-minute drive east from Seattle. I interviewed Brenda Weber, Assistant Vice President of Human Resource. At Costco, the vast majority of employees work at warehouses, which requires more physical movements as an essential function of the job. Those jobs might not link with employment for people with disabilities in Japan. However, Brenda estimates that there would be at least one employee with disabilities at each warehouse of Costco. Unlike Japan, US does not have a quota system for hiring people with disabilities. Then what kind of hiring process does Costco have to hire talented applicants including ones with disabilities?

Women and People with Disabilities Are Key Persons to Change A Working Environment

Being a person with disabilities may be a disadvantage in workplace. Being a women also may be too. Professor Lisa Iezzoni, whom I visited in Boston, works for the Massachusetts General Hospital, a major teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. She has multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair for all mobility needs. She shared her experiences of difficulties to build her career because of her gender and disability, and explained how change of law and education gave an impact to workplace in US.

Self-advocacy Is One of the Most Essential Skills but Least Trained ~University of Washington, DO-IT Part 3~

In the next day of DO-IT interview, I was invited to a pizza networking gathering which is held 3 times a year to get all Scholars and parents together. The rooms for students and parents are separated. In that way, students can talk with students about their updates, and parents can exchange information.

It is very good idea to make an opportunity for parents to stay connected. Parents have so many worries because they don’t have enough information or experiences, and eventually they overprotect their kids. By providing a place where parents get together, they can share their worries and difficulties, and other parents can give advice and think ways to resolve the issues together. This is a huge power.

Self-advocacy Is One of the Most Essential Skills but Least Trained ~University of Washington, DO-IT Part 2~

Though DO-IT hosts many programs, the most remarkable is the ”Scholars Program”. Once the selected, students can learn about college life throughout the school year and the upcoming summer. By experiencing real college life, students with disabilities notice things they need assistance with and think of what kind of support they need. They also practice how to communicate with faculty to ask for accommodations.

In English, “self-advocacy” means that people with disabilities speak up for themselves to ask for what they need to resolve issues around them. Kids learn that naturally through their daily life at home and school. However, for kids with disabilities, sometimes adults intervene too much at home and school. Then kids with disabilities miss opportunities to learn to self-advocate themselves.

“Dignity of Risk” – Failure Helps People Grow Stronger ~Boston Center for Independent Living Part 1~

In Boston, I visited Boston Center for Independent Living and interviewed Allegra Stout and Sarah Kaplan. Through the interview, I became interested in Transition Internship Program which provides paid internship opportunities for high school students with disabilities. The internship sites vary, and include profit and non-profit organizations, local companies, educational institutions, and governmental agencies. The important point is that Transition Internship Program gives an opportunity based on what trainees want to do, not what they can do. What would be the reason for that?

The Future of Learning Environment -Power of Diversity-

In February, I have visited a non-profit private school, Academy for Precision Learning (APL) in Seattle. APL offers K12 (kindergarten to high school) education and has 109 students in total, including students with disabilities. The largest number of disability is autism spectrum disorder which accounts two thirds of the total students. Other diagnostic representations include intellectual disabilities, Learning Disabilities, ADD/ADHD, and Depression. The specialty of APL is fully inclusive education and individualized curriculum. From a general Japanese education perspective, people might feel “What is the meaning of putting students with with disabilities with students without disabilities in the same classroom although they cannot study the same subject at the same speed?” There are actually important values and benefits of including all students from various backgound to learn in the same environment.

Skills Developed by Disabilities Are Precious Assets ~Part 4~

The last report of Starbucks Headquarters visit. I had an opportunity to meet Jessica Rafuse who is manager within the Equal Employment Opportunity team at Starbucks. Jessica has muscular dystrophy and uses a wheelchair. To empower employment for people with disabilities, Jessica works with Starbucks business units to develop individualized hiring strategies. I often hear from US companies, including Starbucks that “hiring the very best person for the job” is first priority. A person with disability often develops a powerful strength, which is developed by the disability. Jessica gave an inspiring example.

On the other hand, it appears that Japanese companies has not yet realized and recognized persons with disabilities’ strengths. I see Japanese companies often remove people with disabilities from “the very best person” from the beginning of recruiting process.

Awareness Determines the Fate of Employment for People with Disabilities ~Starbucks Part 3~

Continuously on the Starbucks report, I had a chance to talk with Adam Novsam who is a Deaf Starbucks partner and works as a Business Analyst. I was impressed when he shared his perspective as a Deaf person in the Starbucks Access Alliance meeting. He shared his interesting background and career experiences before he joined Starbucks. There are lots of differences between Deaf and hearing culture. I also shared my previous experiences of working with Deaf colleague in Tokyo.

Reasons Why Starbucks Is Loved by Customers and Employees ~Starbucks Part 2~

Continuously on the Starbucks report, I interviewed Ms. Marthalee Galeota who is a manager, Equal Opportunity Initiatives and is also a nationally certified American Sign Language interpreter. Marthalee is like a professional “bridge.” She serves as an internal consultant sharing her subject matter expertise on new and existing initiatives, and also dedicates her efforts for Starbucks customers with disabilities by improving customer service and accessibilities at store.

Real Strength of People with Disabilities at Workplace ~Starbucks Part 1~

I am always impressed by Starbucks’s high quality of customer service and very curious how Starbucks maintains the high quality of customer service at the numerous number of stores. In Seattle, I could visit Starbucks Headquarters twice! I have lots of stories to share with you. In part 1, I write about my great experience at the meeting of Access Alliance, one of Starbucks’s employee resource groups which promote inclusion and integrate accessibility. I found real strength of diversity and inclusion at Starbucks.