Human Resources

Management Council

MEMORANDUM FOR DIRECTORS OF PERSONNEL
 

FROM:	JANICE R. LACHANCE /s/ October 6, 2000 DIRECTOR
SUBJECT:	Disability Mentoring Day

The second Disability Mentoring Day will be held on October 25, 2000. This event is held in October to coincide with Disability Employment Awareness Month, proclaimed by the President each year. It has special meaning this year because it also falls between the tenth anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in July and the 25^th anniversary of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in November.

The event is being sponsored by a public-private partnership between the White House, the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities (PTFEAD), the President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities (PCEPD), and the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD). Disability Mentoring Day presents an opportunity to help people with disabilities, particularly youth, think about Federal career opportunities and see the connection between what they learn in school and what career options might be available to them. The event also presents an opportunity to educate the public about the potential of people with disabilities as a massive, and largely-untapped, resource for sustaining our national economy and well being. Its ultimate goal is to mobilize the employment of people with disabilities.

We encourage your agency’s participation in this event. The activities offer exciting and innovative opportunities to learn more about the strengths and skills of students with disabilities while providing them the opportunity to observe closely the working of public servants.

In order to make Disability Mentoring Day a success, we need each participating agency to

(1) select a Disability Mentoring Day Coordinator, and (2) find agency employees willing to mentor youth for the day. Agencies should feel free to find youth willing to participate, or the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities can assign youth for your agency. The Mentoring Day Coordinators will be the primary point of contact for each agency in this effort. They will be responsible for recruiting agency staff to participate, making all internal activity and transportation arrangements, and, if feasible, recruiting youth mentees.

Agency coordinators should contact Michael Reardon at the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities on 202-693-4937 or electronically at as soon as possible.

We count on each one of you to make Disability Mentoring Day a success.

cc: Directors of Personnel