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UNIQUE SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP – Creating Employment Opportunities for People with Autism
Spectrum Works is a nonprofit screen printing company with a unique social mission. This innovative nonprofit social enterprise incorporates individuals with autism into the workplace empowering them with the confidence and skills needed to achieve a sense of independence, purpose and pride.
Given the staggering statistics –1 in 88 children in the United States has autism– it’s easy to extrapolate that a tremendous amount of children with autism will be graduating in the next few years. Unfortunately, these individuals disappear from public view after they leave school—eighty to ninety percent of adults with autism are unemployed or underemployed. Spectrum Works aspires to be the catalyst to change this, giving people with autism the opportunity to enjoy productive, rewarding lives.
Spectrum Works aims to increase self-sufficiency for its employees with autism and to attain financial sustainability for the organization through the sale of products created by its workforce. Every screen printed purchase helps support jobs for individuals with autism as all revenue is reinvested into the business to sustain the employment program. Spectrum Works also provides job training for students as part of their high school curriculum.
Spectrum Works partnership with Green Distribution, one of the largest screen printing companies on the East Coast, enables Spectrum Works to produce both volume and specialty orders at a competitive price while giving people with autism the opportunity to show society that they are capable of producing high quality products. Green Distribution produces screen printed items for organizations such as Harley Davidson, Major League Baseball, Universal Music, Disney, and the NFL. All screen printed items sold by Spectrum Works are produced with the assistance of individuals with autism.
This innovative employment model demonstrates how companies can partner with nonprofits to impact the lives of individuals with autism. Purchasing screen printed items from Spectrum Works provides an inspiring way for companies to support employment for individuals with autism without sacrificing quality and the bottom line. For additional impact, the items can be tagged “made by individuals with autism” increasing the company’s image as a socially responsible organization.
Once financial sustainability is attained with its first social enterprise with a record of success, Spectrum Works will set up additional enterprises and then replicate the model across the United States creating sustainable impact. Ultimately, the goal of Spectrum Works goes beyond paychecks and sustainability, it’s about raising awareness that individuals with autism can work and contribute to society so that in the future every person with autism will have access to the job training, work experiences and guidance required to realize his or her true potential.
Contact : Ann Marie Sullivan, 100 Dorigo Lane, Secaucus, NJ, 973.866.6887, annmarie@spectrumworks.org |
