EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Dressed in a strawberry-red suit, Erik Whedon was preparing to make a PowerPoint presentation about his dream job.
A gregarious 21-year-old and client of The Arc of Lane County, Whedon wants to open a restaurant where actors dressed as Disney characters mingle with customers.
“So kids would get to know what it’s like to be in a Disney film,” Whedon said. “As you can tell, I’m a Disney fan.”
Whedon created the PowerPoint in a new computer literacy class offered to adults at The Arc of Lane County, a chapter of the nationwide nonprofit organization.
The Arc helps people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families. In Lane County, The Arc has more than 600 people registered to participate in an array of programs, said Angela Phinney, director of employment services at The Arc.
In August, The Arc received a $10,000 grant from cable provider Comcast to buy six Dell laptops and six iPads, which it put in a new Learning Lab at its E Street location in Springfield.
The Arc of Lane County was one of six chapters selected to receive a Comcast grant to promote digital literacy, said Rebecca Brown, director of community investment for Comcast in Oregon.
“So often we take for granted, those of us without disabilities, how much technology is a part of our everyday lives and how it allows us to connect,” she said. “We needed to take a step back and make sure everyone has that same opportunity to connect.”
Nationwide, about 83 percent of households have a computer, according to The Arc. But fewer than 25 percent of adults with disabilities have access to a household computer and the internet. The Arc wants to use the computer literacy class to bridge that digital divide.
“It offers people a chance to get to learn about the computers in a safe, supported environment,” Phinney said.
The classes are free for participants.
The nonprofit started its Keys to Success program in September with a six-week class. The class starts with computer basics, such as how to care for laptops and how to use flash drives, said Karen Gold, career development specialist at The Arc and the class instructor. Then, Gold talks with the students about Internet safety and preventing identity theft by not giving out personal information. Gold also teaches her students etiquette for email and how to write emails to potential employers.
Some of her students had never typed on a keyboard, so Gold worked on typing skills by having them create a one-page profile in Microsoft Word. Students then created r?sum?s. They used Microsoft Publisher to create invitations to their class graduation. The final project was to create a PowerPoint about their dream job.
The goal for adults who attend classes at The Arc is to find a job, Phinney said. One student created a r?sum? and filled out an online job application during the computer literacy class. He now has a job at Taco Bell, she said.
“One gentleman was really shy, and the class helped him increase his self-confidence, according to his mother,” Phinney said. “And not just on the computer, but how he presents himself to people.”
Whedon said he met his best friend in the computer class.
“Everybody here has a disability, and it made me fit in a little bit,” he said.
Whedon said he plans to take the advanced class. He wants to learn about malware detectors and how to protect his computer from viruses.
The Keys to Success program went so well in its pilot stage that The Arc is rolling out an advanced class to teach students how to write a cover letter, how to use the computer to build a budget and about using social media, Phinney said. The intermediate course, also spanning six weeks, will begin March 2 and will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
A new class for beginners will begin March 1 and will meet Mondays and Wednesdays.
So far, 25 students have graduated from the beginner course, Phinney said.
She said each graduate who participates in the course receives a desktop computer donated by NextStep Recycling.
