The proposed mentoring and career development project will draw 60 youth with disabilities involved in postsecondary settings, 60 adult mentors who are disabled and currently employed in career areas of interest to the student participants, 60 -120 parents of the students involved and up to 120 service providers working with the students in postsecondary education and rehabilitation. Student participants will be recruited from the annual California Leadership Youth Leadership Forum and other identified sources. Students with a variety of disabilities, and balanced by gender and ethnicity will be selected. Mentors will come from a variety of sources and will be matched to individual students based on similar disability, ethnicity, career interest and geographic location.

The general objectives are:

• Improve the ability of students with disabilities to transfer classroom accommodations to the workplace.
• Improve potential for specific career development, exploration, and employment.
• Improve student/family awareness and student use of self-advocacy and self-determination skills.
• Improve the capacity of service providers and mentors to understand ethnic, cultural, and language diversity needs of students with disabilities.
• Disseminate a manual describing detailed procedures to replicate the model.

Major activities include:

• Recruitment, matching of students with disabilities and mentors, and mentor training.
• Workshops for mentees, parents, and service providers to plan and enhance transition to work and independent living and cultural diversity issues.
• Job shadowing opportunities and summer work experience at the mentor's workplace.
• Ongoing interaction between mentor and students.
• Student-developed career portfolio.
• Program manual development and replication.
• Conduct project evaluation and disseminate results of project.