Catherwood LibraryILR School

Teenagers with disabilities have long had more difficulty finding summer work than their fellow high school students, but the gap has become even more pronounced in today's recession-era economy. In Massachusetts in 2006-7, 17% of disable high school students held a job, while 31% of those without disabilities did so. Only 25% of high school graduates with disabilities received a paycheck, over 62% of those without disabilities did. Recognizing that having a job is potential a great benefit for the disabled in terms of building a resume and gaining experience for independent adulthood, the state of Massachusetts has set aside $30 million dollars over the next two years towards creating 10,000 community jobs for disadvantaged and disabled youth. This summer however, only 15 out of 100 disabled youth are expected to find a job, compared with 50 or 60 out of 100 for those without disabilities.