U.S. Department of Labor Announces Funding to Support Employment Policy Development for Youth with Disabilities

WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor has announced the award of $4 million for a four-year cooperative agreement to operate a policy development center focused on youth with disabilities. The center will build on the work of the Department's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth.

During the performance period, the awardee – the Council of State Governments – will develop and manage the center. The center will conduct research, engage with the workforce system and its partners, identify effective policies and practices that support youth with disabilities, and provide resources and training to help support the transition of youth with disabilities to employment.

"The Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy is intent on making a difference in the lives of youth with disabilities," said Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Disability Employment Policy, Jennifer Sheehy. "Using evidence-based practices and proven collaborative strategies with the Council of State Governments' management of the Center, we can develop policies that help these young people transition from school to adulthood and to make a valued contribution to the workplace."

ODEP's mission to develop and influence policies and practices that increase the number and quality of employment opportunities for people with disabilities. Learn more about ODEP and this cooperative agreement.

The mission of the Department of Labor is to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.