Career Adventure Program reshapes vocational training for students with disabilities
vocational training – Fresno County overhauls its vocational model, placing students with disabilities in real workplaces and adding a pathway to become special education aides.
A Fresno County program is changing what “work readiness” looks like for students with disabilities—moving them from simulated job sites into real workplaces where they work side by side with the public.
The shift is happening through the Career Adventure Program. an effort Fresno County Office of Education officials have redesigned over the past two years.. The goal is straightforward: prepare teens and young adults for competitive employment. not just short-term tasks in settings built specifically for them.. Students can work in local businesses for paid shifts. and some also train for roles as teacher’s aides in special education classrooms.
From modified practice to real workplaces
Before the overhaul, the county relied heavily on Kids Café, a restaurant setting adjusted for students with disabilities.. Visual task cards, color-coded cleaning supplies, and a modified register were used to reduce confusion and support job performance.. But county officials concluded the model didn’t always translate into the realities of a workplace without custom tools and simplified procedures.
“When there was a transition. there was no outcome for hire. ” program overseer Liza Stack said. describing what changed in the county’s thinking.. Fresno County leaders also pointed to practical barriers: Kids Café closed in 2024. in part due to high operating costs and the need to transport students across the region.
The replacement approach keeps the training, but changes where it happens.. Under the Career Adventure Program. students are placed with local businesses and some school sites. learning tasks in environments that look and operate like ordinary employers.. That matters because the job itself is only part of what students must master—timing. workplace norms. communication. and handling unpredictability when something is out of place.
Paid shifts across industries, with growing participation
At Grocery Outlet in Fresno. Elena Santos. 22. returns misplaced items to the correct aisles and refills the shelves with basic products.. For Santos, a cognitive disability can make it harder to process information when she’s overwhelmed.. Knowing where things belong—and doing the work in a consistent environment—has become a way to build independence.
Her job is part of a broader model: Fresno County now works with 26 business partners and five campus worksites.. For students ages 16 to 22—those experiencing intellectual. developmental. emotional. or cognitive disabilities. as well as students who are deaf or hard of hearing—placements can include paid work in areas like retail. food service. and custodial support.
Fresno County’s placement strategy aims to do more than keep students busy.. County staff train and hire the students, then pair them with on-site guidance from businesses during shifts.. Students work for two- and three-hour windows during the week. with the county paying them for the experience while they learn how to perform alongside coworkers.
The county has also increased the scale of the program over time.. In 2024-25, officials reported 71 students involved, a marked rise from earlier partnerships.. Program design has also expanded beyond a one-industry focus: students may stock and sort goods at retail locations. assist with custodial work. support zoo operations. tag products. or even collect weather-related data tied to a federal agency.
The throughline is workforce readiness training that targets practical skills—communication, interviewing, and self-advocacy—along with the day-to-day expectations students encounter in actual job settings.
A paraeducator pathway inside special education
One of the program’s most distinctive additions is a pathway aimed at education employment rather than only industry jobs. Students with disabilities can train to work as teacher’s aides in special education classrooms through a structured paraeducator track.
Alex Navarro, 17, described how she hadn’t previously considered working in special education until joining the program.. Now. she works in an extensive support-needs class where she helps guide learning activities—assisting with tasks that may be nonverbal or involve repeated routines.. The work requires patience and consistency, but it also offers a clear sense of purpose.
In classroom support, Navarro and another paraeducator help students match pictures to words and repeat activities with guidance. Her teacher, Matthew Elliott, said Navarro quickly steps into the work—even when the classroom day is challenging—and resets to support students.
Navarro completed the paraprofessional exam and can become a teacher’s aide when she graduates from high school. For the county, this pathway signals a deeper ambition: that students with disabilities can build career identity, not just complete a training module.
Why Fresno’s model is gaining attention
Fresno’s approach fits into a wider national debate over how vocational education for students with disabilities should be built.. Many programs have historically emphasized sheltered environments or industry simulations—settings that help students perform tasks but may not prepare them for the social and operational complexity of competitive employment.
Placing students into community businesses also pushes employers and the public to see the workers as employees, not as visitors. Fresno County officials described this as an intentional perception shift: workers gain visibility, and communities learn what students can contribute.
Elsewhere in California, similar efforts have emerged.. Merced County. for example. moved students into housekeeping placements. and the state Department of Rehabilitation created a pilot that includes allied health care. clerical. and manufacturing jobs.. Those programs reflect a broader trend: employment models are shifting toward skills-based training and real job tasks. rather than narrowing opportunities to a single sheltered setting.
Even so, the challenge remains that many employers still do not prioritize hiring people with disabilities. The programs that do exist often require coordinated support—job coaching, training adjustments, and employer partnership—so the employer can test job fit without assuming the outcome.
The real test: hiring, retention, and advancement
Fresno County officials argue the most important measure isn’t only participation, but whether training leads to hiring and career growth. In their view, working in real businesses increases the likelihood that employers will consider sustained employment.
For students. that means the difference between doing a task in a protected environment and navigating the rhythms of a workplace shared with everyone else.. For families and schools. it also changes expectations: students can leave high school with a work history that employers recognize as part of how the job is truly done.
Stack pointed to progress within the county’s own network, describing a graduate promoted to a supervisory role at a local business. That kind of advancement—beyond entry-level placement—suggests the program is moving toward outcomes that can change lives.
Back at Grocery Outlet, Elena Santos scans a parking lot and retrieves a cart to bring it back to the corral. Her work isn’t framed as “practice” anymore. It reads more like employment—routine, responsibility, and the steady confidence that comes from being trusted to do the job.
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