The timing couldn’t have been better. At a time when employers are scrambling to fill important jobs, Washtenaw Community College recently hosted the ongoing series: “MI Hidden Talent Tour.”
The MI Hidden Talent Tour is all about hiring people with disabilities. Michigan Supreme Court Justice Richard Bernstein, who has been blind since birth, was one of the panelists discussing the challenges people with disabilities face in gaining meaningful employment. Elected last year to the state’s highest court, Justice Bernstein remains cognizant of the fact that many others in Michigan don’t always get employment opportunities.
Joining the justice at the event were Lt. Gov. Brian Calley, a longtime supporter of strategies to improve the lives of the state’s most vulnerable citizens; Tracie Wolfe, recruiting specialist for Zingerman’s Community of Businesses; and Carolyn Grawi, executive director and CEO of Ann Arbor Center for Independent Living (CIL). WCC President Dr. Rose B. Bellanca was moderator of the event held in the college’s Towsley Auditorium.
“The Ann Arbor CIL was honored to cohost the MI Hidden Talent Tour with Lt. Governor Calley, Justice Bernstein, and sponsors Ann Arbor Area Business Leadership Network, Ann Arbor Ypsilanti Chamber of Commerce, Comcast and Washtenaw Community College,” Grawi said. “Together, as a community, we all can make a difference in the lives of many when there is inclusion of all of us.
“Ready to make your first effort? We’ll be there to support you and your business when you honor the community by offering a person with a disability an opportunity to succeed.”
By Susan Ferraro, APR