FSACentral is proud to once again celebrate National Disability Employment Awareness Month by featuring people with disabilities sharing their advice & experiences. We lost some momentum in October due to the hurricanes so are extending our employment profiles for a few weeks.
Meet Katie Kaiser from DeLand.
Katie is a teacher at Head Start preschool in DeLand and leads a special needs youth group at her church. She is a FL SAND Fellow and has a degree from Liberty University in Virginia. Learn more about Katie and her self-advocacy journey below.
Employer: Head Start preschool in DeLand, Florida.
Positions: Early Head Start Teacher (current); Paraprofessional for Volusia County Public Schools (past)
Duties and Responsibilities: Design and implement lesson plans to align with the Head Start classroom curriculum; support infants to 5-year-olds in the classroom.
Years on the job: 2 years
What is the best advice or encouragement you’d give to a fellow self-advocate about accessing or keeping employment? The best advice I can give to other advocates keeping a job is don’t be afraid to share with your employer about your disability. Never give up on your dreams.
What advice would you give employers about hiring a person with a disability? The advice I would give to employers is do not be afraid to hire people with disabilities. Give us a chance; ask them how the workplace can be made more accessible for them.
In your opinion, how does employing a person with a disability help their quality of life? Employing a person with a disability helps their quality of life by giving them a purpose in life. They feel accomplished for working in the world. They feel like they fit in because they are out in the community and giving back.
What’s the most important employment-related challenge you face as a person with a disability? The most important employment-related challenge I face as a person with disability is knowing how to address your boss and coworkers about your disability.
How should we be advocating for better employment opportunities and practices in Florida? We should be advocating for better employment opportunities and practices in Florida by having more jobs available for people with a disability. I also feel we need trainings in the workforce so people with disabilities can understand the job better.
Florida Self-Advocacy Central would like to thank Katie for her time and thoughtful answers.
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