Summer 2024 Campus Dining Today - 15

The mission of Johnson County Community
College (JCCC) in Overland Park, Kansas, is to
" inspire learning to transform lives and strengthen
communities, " which JCCC Dining Services
supports with its own commitment to " Bridging
Communities and Nourishing Lives. " To that end,
a closer partnership with JCCC's College Learning
Experiences, Activities and Resources program,
known on campus as CLEAR, is proving fruitful
for everyone involved. The students in CLEAR are
adults with mild developmental disabilities or other
cognitive disabilities and are regularly seen on
campus at lunch time mixing with the student body,
faculty, and staff around the food court.
The CLEAR Connect Program is a two-year, nondegree,
continuing education certificate program
that serves students ages 18 and older with
intellectual and developmental disabilities and/or
autism. Students participate in program-specific
courses focused on career development, job
readiness, independent living skills, and social skills
and spend additional time on campus engaged in
activities that include peer mentorship and campus
life activities.
In spring 2023, students in their second year of the
program who were ready to take the next step of
becoming dining interns sat for real job interviews
with representatives from JCCC Dining and the
JCCC Bookstore. The director of dining, executive
chef, manager of retail operations, and supervisor
for the food court attended a CLEAR Connect class
session to interview potential employees in teams
of two. The applicants were well-prepared for the
process and some even seemed to enjoy it. Though
the interviews were simple, the Connect students
had to impress interviewers that they were ready
to work and wanted to work in dining. Discussions
between dining, the bookstore, and Connect
Manager Jordyn Bogdan afterwards determined
who was best suited for which positions in each
area based on the impressions of the interviewers
and assessments of the individuals' ability to
meet expectations.
" Our job was to train them to work with others, "
JCCC Food Court Supervisor Gebdao Smail said.
" To get a feel for the real world. "
Smail paired each of the Connect interns in the
food court with an employee who was able to guide
and train them in helping with assembling and
distributing mobile orders, keeping the salad bar
filled, and helping keep the dining rooms clean
and neat.
Connect interns worked four to six hours each week
and got their weekly schedule from Smail. Each
was responsible for clocking in and out and calling
in when they weren't able to be present for their
shifts. They were expected to conduct themselves
professionally, too. Smail praised them.
" They have their own problems and try hard to
meet expectations, " Smail said. " They also pay
attention, learn, and listen. "
Funding for the interns' salaries is from the Connect
program budget and JCCC Dining provides a
uniform shirt and nametag like any other employee
on the payroll.
Bogdan said the interns " enjoyed working in a place
where much of the campus would visit. Students
who never had jobs before learned what it was to
work, how to stay busy, and how to ask for help
when unsure of what to do or how to complete a
task. "
This project ensured that students who were
selected for the internships had some interest in
learning about dining and how it works. Offering
them a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes
to serve the entire campus helped them develop
as people, and it helped dining services attend to
some responsibilities that had been folded into
other positions. With the interns, those jobs could
be theirs to own and grow into, and the people
that had been helping could focus again on their
main duties.
" Students who have been employed before were
able to expand their skill set and can build on their
current resumes, " Bogdan said. " For them, the
internship experience was positive. "
With this program,
students, faculty, and
staff participated more
directly in the growth
and learning of a group
of students that aren't
always top of mind
across campus.
BRIDGING COMMUNITIES, NOURISHING LIVES
| CAMPUS DINING TODAY
15
Summer 2024 Campus Dining Today

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