Work Training for Students With Disabilities

For the last ten years, junior and senior high school students with disabilities in District 287, Brooklyn Park, MN, have found assembling birthday bags a rewarding project. This program makes it possible for students to experience job success by providing a work training program whose goal is to assess and teach students how to be productive, contributing and valuable members of a working community.

Mary Moga, Program Coordinator, says that “students are always excited and interested in seeing the different items that go into the bags. Erin, Julia and Shawn have joined together as a team to fill the bags. Joe keeps the containers full with toys so the assembly line can keep going. Brian has learned how to tie a bow and attach a small birthday card to the top of each bag. Laura’s job is to count the finished bags, put them into shipping boxes and write the count on top of the box. Sam has shared with his co-workers and staff many times that some lucky kid is going to get this birthday bag!”

Self-esteem and the acknowledgement that people care about each other are things that packaging the birthday bags has taught each student in this program.  According to Mary Moga, “this wonderful partnership with Cheerful Givers has provided a golden opportunity for students to learn more about themselves in the context of work.”

During 2007, these fantastic students created 21,405 birthday bags for which we are very thankful!