News Release

ODEP News Release: [10/25/2004]
Contact Name: Jane Norris or Michael Volpe
Phone Number: (202) 693-4676 or x7909

Nine Honorees Receive Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao's New Freedom Initiative Award Recognizing Achievements On Behalf Of People With Disabilities

WASHINGTON—Five businesses, three non-profits, and one National Football League player have been selected by U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao as recipients of her Annual New Freedom Initiative Awards.

The NFI Award recognizes exemplary and innovative efforts to train, recruit, and hire people with disabilities, and to incorporate the principles of President George W. Bush's New Freedom Initiative (NFI). The NFI is a comprehensive set of proposals designed to give people with disabilities the opportunity to fully participate in all aspects of community life, including employment. Awardees will be honored by the Secretary at a November 17 departmental ceremony. Biographies on the awardees and additional information can be found at www.dol.gov/odep/newfreedom/nfi04.htm.

"President Bush wants all Americans to have the opportunity to develop skills and engage in productive work,” said Chao “The recipients of the 2004 Secretary of Labor's New Freedom Initiative Awards recognize the value that persons with disabilities bring to the workplace and exemplify that philosophy in their daily operations."

The awardees are:

INDIVIDUAL

• Michael John Maslowski
  Kansas City Chiefs, Overland Park, Kansas

NON-PROFITS

• Marriott Foundation for People with Disabilities
  Washington, DC
• Project SEARCH
  Cincinnati, Ohio
• Salt Lake Community College Skills Center
  Projects With Industry
  Salt Lake City, Utah

BUSINESSES

• A & F Wood Products
  Howell, Michigan
• Hewlett-Packard Company
  Palo Alto, California
• MBNA America Bank, N.A.
  Wilmington, Delaware
• Microsoft Corporation
  Redmond, Washington
• SunTrust Banks, Inc.
  Atlanta, Georgia

Today's announcement comes during National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Secretary Chao selected "You're Hired! Success Knows No Limitations" as the official theme for October to continue to bring focus and awareness to solutions that ensure the full inclusion of persons with disabilities into the 21st Century workforce.

BACKGROUND: President Bush introduced the New Freedom Initiative within the first 30 days of his Presidency, on Feb. 1, 2001. The New Freedom Initiative represents a comprehensive set of proposals designed to ensure that Americans with disabilities have the opportunity to learn and develop skills, engage in productive work, make choices about their daily lives, and participate fully in their communities. The department's Office of Disability Employment Policy has the key responsibility for implementing the employment-related aspects of the President's New Freedom Initiative.

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