Photo By Jonathan Stack | Alyssa Schreiner, a DLA Strategic Plans and Policy management analyst, participated in...... read more read more
Subscribe
FORT BELVOIR, Va. -- As many of the Defense Logistics Agency’s summer interns head back to school for the fall semester, one is staying behind to work full time at DLA.
Alyssa Schreiner participated in the Workforce Recruitment Program for College Students with Disabilities this summer, working as a management assistant for DLA Strategic Plans and Policy. Her internship was converted to a permanent position as a management analyst, Aug. 29.
“Throughout my entire work experience, I was able to obtain the skills and knowledge that helped me obtain a permanent position,” the recent graduate of Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, N.Y., said.
WRP, which is co-sponsored by the Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy and the Department of Defense, is a recruiting and referral program that connects federal and private-sector employers nationwide with postsecondary students and recent graduates with disabilities.
“Since I was able to obtain a permanent job within the federal government, I have completed the program's goal and mission to successfully place students or recent graduates with disabilities in the federal government,” Schreiner said.
She was able to gain an understanding of what it takes to be a successful worker from her supervisors and co-workers, she said. By performing her expected duties and completing them on time, she gained respect within her workplace.
“My supervisors and co-workers made my work experience unforgettable as they offered suggestions and guidance, which helped me work better,” said Schreiner, who recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in public policy with a minor in political science.
Her supervisor, Jeff Stagnitti, DLA Strategic Plans and Policy’s chief risk officer, said having a summer hire was a great experience.
“It gave her the opportunity to get some practical experience associated with her degree,” he said.
Stagnitti said a number of projects needed somebody solely dedicated to them, and Schreiner was given two that she completed very well.
Schreiner was a key collaborator with Stagnitti as he developed a policy instruction and procedural manual to establish consistent oversight practices and standards for DLA internal review offices, he said.
“[Schreiner] not only assisted me in crafting the initial draft, she was invaluable in helping me capture and address the comments received from the seven IR directors at the DLA field activities,” Stagnitti said.
She developed a comment matrix to document, describe and catalog the details of feedback from those directors, as well as document the disposition of each piece of feedback.
“This enabled me to prepare the policy and procedures in a matter of weeks and to provide a detailed explanation to each reviewer,” Stagnitti said.
Stagnitti said this was the first time he had used the Workforce Recruitment Program in his two years in his position and added that he anticipates using it again.
“I would encourage other managers in the agency to take advantage of it,” he said. “It’s a good way to get access to some student hires that can benefit from the opportunity to have some paid experience, and it’s a pretty easy way, within the government, to infuse some new talent in your organization.”
He said it was personally rewarding and that he thinks others would have a similar experience.
Schreiner also found the experience rewarding and said the program encouraged her to be proud of her disability and embrace it since differences are what makes people unique.
During the summer, DLA employed 85 people with disabilities through WRP. Eight of them were hired permanently.
“These WRP students are eager to prove their abilities in the workplace through summer or permanent jobs,” said Renee Harrington, a DLA equal employment opportunity specialist.
The benefit of DLA’s participation in WRP is offering a chance to have a positive impact on students’ or graduates lives and help focus their career goals, she said.
WRP is a free resource with no impact on the agency’s budget or staffing requirements.
“In addition, participation in the WRP helps DLA meet President Barack Obama’s Executive Order 13548 of Increasing Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities,” she said.
The order states the federal government will employ an additional 100,000 people with disabilities over five years and mandates that each agency establish hiring goals for people with disabilities and sub goals for people with targeted disabilities for every year.
“DLA developed a disability plan designed to achieve a proportionate goal of 36,000 hires through 2015,” Harrington said.
To meet the requirement of the DLA Equal Employment Opportunity Office and the Department of Defense’s longstanding goal of 2 percent participation by those with targeted disabilities, 9,250 of the 36,000 hired by 2015 will have targeted disabilities.
“I’ve received many positive comments from both the WRP students and management detailing their wonderful WRP experiences,” Harrington said. “The WRP has a bright and vibrant future for the DLA workforce.”
| Date Taken: | 09.20.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 10.05.2011 09:31 |
| Story ID: | 78044 |
| Location: | FORT BELVOIR, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 80 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, DLA recruiting program leads to permanent position for recent grad, by Jonathan Stack, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT