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Mississippi Department of Special Education
The Mississippi Department of Education is the state education agency of Mississippi. The Office of Special Education (OSE) is a service-oriented office that seeks to improve the education experience for children with disabilities. In keeping with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and State law, we help local schools and districts provide effective educational programs to students with disabilities, ages 3-20, who need special education and related services. Here is a list of the special education contacts by districts.
Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation Services (MDRS)
https://www.mdrs.ms.gov/Pages/default.aspx
MDRS has two age based programs. Please select your age group.
- Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) is for high school students with disabilities ages 14-21 to assist in transitioning to work or post-secondary education. Pre-ETS focuses on 5 areas: Job Exploration Counseling, Workplace Readiness Training, Work-Based Learning Experiences, Transition Counseling, and Self-Advocacy. Click on this link to see your regional MDRS office contact information on the brochure, and call to ask more about Pre-ETS.
- Supported Employment provides opportunity to assist individuals with disabilities in finding employment. Individuals with significant disabilities that require ongoing support services to succeed in employment will be given a professional team to assist finding a job that meets their needs. Click on this link to learn more about Supported Employment and see which regional office to call and ask for more information.
- Mississippi Partners for Informed Choice is a program that assists individuals understand how working may impact their SSDI/SSI benefits. Click on this link to learn more and see which regional office to contact.
- Adult Services. For individuals with disabilities and are not in school and/or older than 21. Consult this link to learn about services offered for adults and office locations.
- Supported Employment provides opportunity to assist individuals with disabilities in finding employment. Individuals with significant disabilities that require ongoing support services to succeed in employment will be given a professional team to assist finding a job that meets their needs. Click on this link to learn more about Supported Employment and see which regional office to call and ask for more information.
- Mississippi Partners for Informed Choice is a program that assists individuals understand how working may impact their SSDI/SSI benefits. Click on this link to learn more and see which regional office to contact.
- Adult Services. For individuals with disabilities and are not in school and/or older than 21. Consult this link to learn about services offered for adults and office locations.
Mississippi Department of Employment Security (MDES)
The goal of the Mississippi Department of Employment Security is to help Mississippians get jobs. Through our network of WIN Job Centers, MDES matches qualified, prospective employees with employers. WIN Job Centers are service centers that offer programs and resources geared toward your job seeking and claim needs and are partners in the American Job Center Network. MDES also provides a database for employers to post job listings and prospective employees to search; this can be found here.
ACT Work Keys
https://www.act.org/content/act/en/products-and-services/workkeys-for-employers/curriculum.html
This is a national career readiness curriculum that allows for the assessing and teaching of workplace skills. Many of our local high schools use this to help students prepare for the workforce.
Mississippi Online Workforce College
https://onlineworkforcecollege.com/
The Online Workforce College was designed to build upon the existing relationships between local industry and the Mississippi Community Colleges. The Online Workforce College offers a huge library of workforce skills training. Individuals can use it to expand their skill sets on their own time and at their own pace, so that they can gain employment. As users complete courses, they will earn badges that can be added to their social media sites like Linked In or on their resumes to show potential employers.
Job Corps
https://supportservices.jobcorps.gov/disability/Pages/default.aspx
Job Corps is a residential career training program which helps young people ages 16 through 24 complete their high school education, trains them for meaningful careers, and assists them with obtaining employment. Individuals live in a residential facility where meals, basic health care, living allowance, and career transition assistance are all provided completely free. The link above is to the specific Job Corps Disability Community that assists individuals applying receive appropriate accommodations.