This profile is in honor of National Disability Awareness Month is Ricky DeRennaux, a teacher and inventor who overcame his own challenges to help kids with disabilities. Ricky DeRennaux struggled with a leaning disability all of his life. He faced obstacles in school, taunting from peers and frustration from educators. Eventually, DeRennaux overcame his problems and decided to focus on helping others with disabilities. He has done that in two ways, by operating an ODEP-funded program for teens with disabilities, and inspiring them to new heights by appearing on a nationwide TV show for inventors.
DeRennaux is president of Tech-Now, Inc. and the Oklahoma state high school tech director with responsibility for 34 schools. He runs an after-school high-tech program for students with disabilities, the High School/High Tech program. Students work together with sophisticated equipment including scanners, digital cameras and state-of-the art software to design and construct buildings, create graphic arts and animated web advertisements, and produce radio ads and movies using digital engineering.
Students in the Tech-Now, Inc. program mimic a workplace environment by clocking in and out for each session, and trying to get as much done in a short time as possible. The program includes a summer institute held on the campus of Southern Nazarene University in Bethany. The program was recently extended to 90 special educations students at 13 schools.
In addition, DeRennaux received national acclaim as a finalist on the popular ABC TV show American Inventor. DeRennaux’s design for an HT Racer allows users to design and build remote controlled model cars, planes, trucks, boats and any sort of craft that they can imagine. Programs such as DeRennaux’s High School/High Tech institute provide help and inspiration for people with disabilities. Another such program is the disabilityworks project in Illinois. Disabilityworks uses a business model targeting both the supply and demand sides of employment for persons with disabilities. The project works with companies to develop employment opportunities, and build awareness about financial incentives and tax breaks for hiring disabled employees. Disabilityworks also engages educational programs for youth and adults with disabilities, and workforce development services.
Disabilityworks is funded primarily by the State of Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, with support from the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce and the city of Chicago. The project partners with the Chicagoland Provider Leadership Network, which represents 117 organizations, and the Chicagoland Business Leadership Network, which has 63 member companies. In its first year, the project resulted in jobs for 194 people with disabilities, more than 90 percent in private industry. In 2006, the Secretary of Labor and ODEP recognized disabilityworks with a New Freedom Initiative Award for demonstrating exemplary and innovative efforts in furthering the employment and workplace environment for people with disabilities.
President George W. Bush proclaimed October National Disability Awareness month as an opportunity to recognize the contributions and accomplishments of Americans with disabilities. It’s also a time to underscore the nation’s commitment to advancing employment for citizens with disabilities and ensure diversity in the workplace.
Until 1990, many disabled people were denied opportunities in the workplace. Homes, businesses and even public buildings were constructed to prevent access by those with disabilities, particularly those in wheelchairs. This all changed with the ADA, the landmark Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990. The ADA made it illegal to discriminate in hiring, promotion, or training of workers with disabilities. Under the ADA, employers must make reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities.
Since 2001, the New Freedom Initiative has helped promote the full participation of people with disabilities in all areas of society including education, training and employment. Programs such as “Ticket to Work” have helped improve access to employment training and placement services.
Despite all these efforts, according to the ODEP, there is still chronic underemployment of workers with disabilities
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