The New Jersey Library for the Blind and Handicapped
Hosts Visually Impaired Students with Multiple Disabilities in the WSP@TCNJ WorkSkills Program
The New Jersey Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired partnered with the School of Education at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) to operate an innovative summer program for high school students with visual impairments and multiple disabilities with on site job training opportunities at the New Jersey Library for the Blind and Handicapped (NJLBH) in Trenton. The program gives students the opportunity to learn the skills necessary to be competitive in the job market.
Students had the opportunity to see what having a job is really like. NJLBH hosted eight students between July 17th to August 1st, who performed tasks such as rewinding tapes, data entry on computers equipped with assistive technology, and preparing newsletters for mailing. Students reported to work at LBH daily, and under the guidance of job coaches, they rewound tapes, checked in books, performed data entry using computers equipped with assistive technology, prepared newsletters for mailing, and sorted returned books into bins for reshelving. It was a rewarding experience for staff and for students; many of them said that working at NJLBH was the best part of the program!
Andrew Ujj of Trenton is one of eight visually impaired students
with multiple disabilities who received on-the-job training at the
New Jersey Library for the Blind and Handicapped (NJLBH) in
Trenton during July and August. (Photo by Mary Crain, NJLBH staff member)
Michelle, a WorkSkills student, enjoys processing
cassette tapes – “Talking Books” - during her work
experience at the Library for the Blind and Handicapped
