OOD Works

Makayla Jones, Wilberforce University Senior

Makayla Jones has been helping with family businesses for years. Now, in her senior year at Wilberforce University, she’s completing her degree in business management with her sights set on launching her own business.What’s more, Makayla is earning A’s while playing forward on the Wilberforce University women’s basketball team.Makayla, who has a learning disability and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, has found support from Taleisa Jones, OOD Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, dedicated to Wilberforce University through OOD’s Ohio College2Careers (Ohio C2C) program. Ohio C2C is available at 17 public colleges and universities in Ohio to ensure students with disabilities have the support they need to complete their degree and/or credential, earn higher wages, and meet the demands of tomorrow’s labor market.Transcripts and MP3 files are available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast.Need more information or have general questions about Ohio College2Careers? Email college2careers@ood.ohio.gov.Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find Ohio College2Careers on social media: @OhioC2C. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Changes to Social Security Disability Benefits in 2022

Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities’ Division of Disability Determination (DDD), in agreement with the Social Security Administration (SSA), determines medical eligibility for Ohioans who apply for Social Security disability benefits. DDD is federally regulated and receives 100% of its funding from SSA.  Under SSA, disability is based on an individual’s inability to work. Robert Fenn and Brandon Smith, Public Affairs Specialists with SSA,  join the podcast to discuss changes to Social Security disability benefits in 2022.Learn more at SSA.Gov or call 800-772-1213.Transcripts and MP3 files are available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast. Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD. Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Anthony Keeps Promise Made to His Mother

One of the last things Anthony Winston of Wellsville, Ohio told his mother before her passing in 2014 was that he would return to college to finish his education. Anthony, who has cerebral palsy, explains it this way: “It’s basically just a bruise on one of the lobes in your brain. Mine just happens to be on the one that controls your motor skills: walking, running, things of that nature.”He connected with Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) for assistance and connected with Jennifer Strank, OOD Senior Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor. “She was right there for me,” Anthony said.Anthony graduated from the Ohio Valley College of Technology with a 4.0-grade point average in 2020. Then, in July 2021, he began working at PsyCare Behavioral Healthcare & Counseling in East Liverpool.“The only person I am ever in competition with is the person I look at in the mirror at every day, and so my confidence is through the roof now thanks to OOD and what they’ve done for me,” Anthony said.Transcripts and MP3 files are available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast.Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Cleveland Clinic, 2021 Governor’s Inclusive Employer Award Winner

In October 2021, OOD announced Cleveland Clinic as the 2021 Governor’s Inclusive Employer Award winner for their commitment to individuals with disabilities in the workplace and being a leader of diversity and inclusion best practices in Ohio. Listen to episode 33 of the OOD Works Podcast as staff with Cleveland Clinic discuss their “disability-inclusive” culture.Guests from Cleveland Clinic include Diana Gueits, Interim Executive Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Carmen Roman, HR Business Partner, serving as an Advisor while supporting the Digestive Disease and Surgery Institute and the Glickman Urology & Kidney Institute; and Tim Gibbons, Department Director of Patient Transportation in Operations. They are joined by Michael Hoag, OOD Business Relations Specialist for the Northeast Region of Ohio.Transcripts and MP3 files are available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast.Employers interested in partnering can visit the OOD Business Relations Team webpage to get started. Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Ohio College2Careers Supports Students with Disabilities

OOD Director Kevin Miller and Kristin Garrett, Ohio College2Careers (Ohio C2C) Program Administrator, join the podcast to discuss career support for college students with disabilities.Ohio C2C is an OOD program available at 17 public colleges and universities in Ohio to ensure students with disabilities have the support they need to complete their degree and/or credential, earn higher wages, and meet the demands of tomorrow’s labor market.Transcripts and MP3 files are available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast.Learn more about Ohio C2C. Need more information or have general questions about Ohio College2Careers? Email college2careers@ood.ohio.gov.Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find Ohio College2Careers on social media: @OhioC2C. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Professor Michael Schor

Michael Schor is the Associate Professor of Instruction at Ohio University (OU) where he teaches finance courses and is the president of the OU Chapter of the American Association of University Professors. He was a participant with Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) about fifteen years ago. Recently, Michael reached out to his former OOD Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, Melinda Wingard, to share how he is doing.“I think people all have special parts of their past and things in which they’re interested in that could be aborted or blocked by a disability or change in circumstances,” Michael reflected. “Whatever kinds of things people are going through, it’s important not to lose valuable parts of themselves and to have that full richness in life by removing barriers.”Transcripts and MP3 files are available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast.Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Priya Prepares for Her Future

Priya Goddard is a 2021 participant of the Youth Leadership Forum (YLF) in Cleveland, a collaboration of Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD), the Ohio Statewide Independent Living Council, and Linking Employment, Abilities and Potential (LEAP). At YLF, high school juniors and seniors with disabilities participate in a weeklong career leadership training program to help prepare them to be one of Ohio's future leaders by improving leadership, citizenship, and social skills.Priya explained that she is writing a book on autism and getting bullied. “I was really thinking about some of the things that I’ve been through but also just really wanting to help other people,” she shared. “Everybody on the spectrum has their own differences, but each one of them has something to bring that is powerful and meaningful.” Transcripts and MP3 files are available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast.Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Jack Requests Support for People with Disabilities

Jack Salvaggio of Highland Heights, Ohio is a 2017 graduate of Mayfield High School and a 2020 graduate of the Cuyahoga East Vocational Education Consortium. While a student, he connected with Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) to prepare early for his career.“I hope that people could support people with disabilities, people with autism, any kind of special needs spectrum,” Jack encourages. “Support autism awareness.”Kenneth Crookston, OOD Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, explained, “Jack has been employed since November 2020, and he and his family are so happy. He has been praised for his good work and earned raises and increased hours. He just has an awesome personality that truly adds to the people around him.”Transcripts and MP3 files are available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast. Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Jennifer Walker’s Life-Changing Experience

Jennifer Walker of Blacklick, Ohio is a wife, mother, and teacher. In her sixth year of teaching, her vision began to deteriorate from retinitis pigmentosa. One of the first steps she took was to reach out to the Bureau of Services for the Visually Impaired (BSVI) with Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD). Transcripts and MP3 files are available at https://ood.ohio.gov/Podcast.Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!

Applying for Social Security Disability Benefits

Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities’ Division of Disability Determination (DDD), in agreement with the Social Security Administration (SSA), determines medical eligibility for Ohioans who apply for Social Security disability benefits. DDD is federally regulated and receives 100% of its funding from SSA.  Under SSA, disability is based on an individual’s inability to work. DDD and SSA staff join the podcast to answer questions about applying for disability benefits.·        Brandon Smith, Public Affairs Specialist with SSA ·        Robert Fenn, Public Affairs Specialist with SSA·        Kristen Alexander, Disability Claims Manager with DDD·        Beth Baker, Professional Relations Officer and Field Office Liaison with DDLearn more at SocialSecurity.Gov or call 800-772-1213.Transcripts and MP3 files are available at https://ood.ohio.gov/Podcast.Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? OOD can help! Visit OODWorks.com or call 800-282-4536 to get started. Find OOD on social media: @OhioOOD.Have a disability? Want to work? Visit OODWorks.com!