Lunchtime during the week finds the U-Club at the Michigan Union hopping. Natalie runs from one table to the next, smiling brightly while she fills and refills every water glass in the restaurant.

A staple at the U-Club, she has been working there for nine years; most people who have eaten in the restaurant recognize her bright face and familiar “hi there” instantly. Despite having Down Syndrome, a disease that affects mental and physical development, Natalie—whose placement organization asked that her last name not be used—works to the best of her ability at a job she loves, one that the staff at the Supported Employment Program (SEP) found for her.

Currently working with the University’s Temporary Staffing Services (TSS), SEP as founded in Washtenaw County in 1986 and continues to work with government agencies all over the county to help people with physical and mental disabilities find work. It offers temporary employees who have been pre-screened and interviewed, and who provide a less costly alternative to the external agencies employers often deal with.

“The people in this program benefit because they’re able to contribute to the workplace and are reimbursed for their efforts. We’re looking for people to succeed,” says Sandra Henkel, coordinator for TSS.

SEP has 15 employees at U-M along with hundreds of others in positions around the state. Positions at U-M include housekeepers, food service workers and grounds- keepers, and some go on to work full-time. The program works with the Washtenaw Intermediate School District, Michigan Ability Partners (MAP) and Michigan Rehabilitation Services to find and place positions.

“We work with these organizations to supply employment for people who otherwise have barriers,” Henkel says. “Temporary Staffing Services works as a funnel, the intermediary between the program and job placement.”

Gary Stelzer with the Washtenaw Intermediate School District has been with the program since the beginning and works as a liaison between the school district and Washtenaw County Supported Employment. The program combines the efforts of the school district, Michigan Rehabilitation Services, Community Health Organization, Michigan Commission for the Blind, Washtenaw Association for Community Advocacy, MAP and other nonprofit organizations.

“People felt that the [Supported Employment] program was necessary because approximately 99 percent of individuals with moderate and severe disabilities were not employed in their communities,” Stelzer says. “They either worked in sheltered workshops or stayed home. We felt that folks who wanted to work deserved that opportunity. We realized they would need some support and hence the need for supported employment.”

MAP provides U-M with job coaches, offering one-on-one attention to people in the program through initial training, and assisting them with their duties, creating a natural support system. Once the person is comfortable in the position and the employer is satisfied with the work being done, the job coach fades from the workplace but remains on call.

Cheryl Brewer is a job coach with MAP and works with 10 people employed in the U-Club, Bursley Residence Hall and West Quad Residence Hall. After job developers find matches for people based on what jobs they can perform and like to do and which employers need help, Brewer comes in to support and train them and provide assistance to the employer, staying as long as the employees need help.

“It’s really interesting how important their job is to them,” Brewer says. “It really is a part of their identity. It’s very gratifying to help people who obviously love their job and create a good camaraderie with the consumers we serve.”

Two people in the program Brewer works with emphasize how much they love their jobs. Doug and Barb, both of whom work in the dish room at Bursley Hall, enjoy the work as well as the paycheck they bring home.

“The people that work here are nice,” says Barb, who has been with the program since 1997. “I get along well with the job coaches,” says Doug, one of the program’s newest participants. “I love working here because I have been doing well at my job.”

Brewer describes U-M as an ideal place for people in the program to work because it is a warm and open-minded environment where students, faculty and staff alike welcome them with open arms.

“It’s hard for employers to give people with disabilities a chance,” she says. “The University has done a good job making people feel welcome and giving them a job they love.”

Stelzer agrees that SEP is good for everyone involved.

“I believe that the program benefits people with disabilities by allowing them to be more integrated into their communities and to become productive members of society,” he says. “Hiring a person with a disability can contribute to increasing staff morale as they view folks with disabilities working to overcome their challenges.”

People at U-M interested in employing someone from SEP can contact Henkel at (734) 763-5740.

Editor’s Note: Investing in Ability events are going on throughout the month. For a listing visit http://www.umich.edu/~hraa/ability.