PROGRAM HELPING GET JOBS.

Byline: Naush Boghossian Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - As the job market tightens and unemployment rates continue to rise, the city of Santa Clarita and the Hart school district are helping those who find it especially hard to find work - the disabled.

The William S. Hart Union High School District's Career Visions program trains people with physical, emotional, developmental and learning disabilities for careers.

``We help promote the benefits of hiring people with disabilities,'' said director of the Hart district's Career Visions program, Ron Rudzinski. ``We also develop their skills and talents for gainful employment.''

Rudzinski taught special education at Hart High School for 13 1/2 years before heading up the Career Visions program for the district, citing his concern for the difficulty his students would have in finding employment.

``I had an interest in what happened with the kids after they left high school,'' Rudzinski said.

He was honored recently by the Hart school board for his work in encouraging local businesses to hire and train people with disabilities, as well as being committed to preparing them for the transition from school to employment.

He was shocked by the huge disparity in national unemployment rates for the disabled and those not suffering from disabilities.

``I saw that nationally the unemployment rate was about 4 percent, but persons with disabilities have an unemployment rate of about 68 percent,'' Rudzinski said. ``That's obscene. It exemplifies that need for career preparation.''

Educators assess the students' interests and their individual talents, and expose them to different jobs by bringing in guest speakers and by planning field trips in the community.

Through the Career Visions program, which receives funding from the state, they can also place a student on a job site of his or her interest and pay the state minimum wage for a limited amount of time, as well as the liability insurance and workers' compensation, so they can experience the job setting.

``We want them to experience jobs,'' Rudzinski said. ``And we want to match up abilities, interests and talents with a job.''

Rudzinski said that local businesses have responded positively to their requests and have helped support their programs, employing close to 1,000 students in the last nine years.

Ultraviolet Devices Inc. in the Commerce Center has been one of the more supportive local companies, allowing dozens of students to experience work in its manufacturing department.

``It's been very successful,'' said Dan Goetz, the company's vice president and chief operating officer. ``The employees have a pretty good appreciation of what it's like to work a regular shift in a manufacturing job, and they even participated in some assembly work, putting parts in boxes, and even running some equipment.''

The supervisor reported to Goetz that a few of the students would be eligible for jobs at Ultraviolet Devices.

``They had good work habits, they were focused on what they were doing, and the supervisor felt that they could be very productive employees if they wanted to do that kind of work.''

Some of the former students come back to share their experiences with current students and encourage them in their pursuit of employment.

``It's motivational for other students,'' Rudzinski said. ``They come back and tell the students about what they've done with their lives.''

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Ex-teacher Ron Rudzinski is director of the Hart school district's Career Visions program, which helps disabled students gain job skills and experience.

Shaun Dyer/Special to the Daily News