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[Applause] This year we're doing something a little new.
Virginia has gotten hip to a concept,
embraced by the title "Project SEARCH".
This is an opportunity
where we bring in some youngsters typically in the latter part of their educational experience
and give them some on-site work opportunities
for them, and we have new awards
that we're going to be giving now.
I prepared a 45 - 60 minute PowerPoint
explaining the theory behind
project SEARCH -
and I had it all ready,
and I had the buttons to push,
and remembered everybody's name,
it was really going to be good;
but Aileen said you just can't do that, [Laughter]
so we've now got a film.
It really sums up the concept of up my sixty-minute lecture on Project SEARCH
philosophy, methodology and implementation in about a three minute video -
so: hit it!
[Applause]
and that presentation: I think I'll just hit "delete" [Laughter]
Jennifer McDonough, please come on up for our first partnership award for Project SEARCH
It's a great honor that I am able to present the first partnership award
to Bon Secours Richmond health system.
In January of 2009, VCU, Bon Secours
Saint Mary's, DRS,
Henrico County Public Schools,
and the Faison School for Autism partnered on a research study that was funded through
the National Institute
on Disability and Rehabilitation Research,
looking at students with autism spectrum disorders
with full participation from the CEO Peter Bernard
the Vice President Michael Stein, and the Bon Secours leadership team
a Project SEARCH site was established at Saint Mary's hospital.
Bon Secours or has gone above and beyond -
they detonated a beautiful classroom for our students, they've given more than five thousand dollars
in equipment to the classroom.
We've had an outpouring of internships sites
offered up to us from the coronary care unit
to the intensive care unit to mother and infant and they have had so many sites offered
for our students that we actually don't have enough students to offer them
you just saw the video of our graduation ceremony that bon secours hosted
for our first class of interns
over one hundred twenty people were at
that presentation, and the majority of them were hospital employees, individuals in
the departments that were touched by one of our young adults with autism.
As you saw at the very close, Wes Thiss
announced that all six students from our first class would be hired by Saint Mary's,
and they are now earning that truly highly competitive wage and starting their careers
at the Bon Secours - they have been embraced by their community.
Please join me in welcoming our business liaison, who has been with bon secours for more than fifteen
years. He is the Director of Environmental Services,
Patient Transport, Linen Management, Nutrition Services; and he is an advocate for our students
Mr. Wes Thiss. Thank You.
I got the email last night that said "three minutes".
I had marriages that lasted shorter than three minutes, I don't know... [Laughter]
This could be tough. [Laughter]
It truly is a partnership with Henrico County Public Schools, VCU, DRS,
Aramark - it's nice to see Keith here from HandCraft Linen Services.
They're our provider and they provided an internship for us and I want to thank you for hiring one of
this year's kids next year - Keith: thank you right now for that. [Laughter]
Thought I'd do it in a crowd. [Laughter]
This has been terrific and a couple of stars of the video are here: Ann Marie Chevalier and Ben Woolf.
[Applause]
This has been a marvelous experience to over twenty five hundred employees at Saint Mary's.
Really, I believe have benefited far more than the kids, they had a profound impact on the
culture of the hospital.
We've got 8 kids this year who end up graduating as young adults and terrific employees in June and
the support we've gotten from VCU, DRS.
Jennifer has just been been outstanding,
and on behalf of
Bon Secours and St. Mary's, I want to thank you. [Applause]
[Commissioner Rothrock] Thank you Wes!