Our WorkWorkforce DevelopmentIncreasing Opportunities for Apprenticeships, Internships, and Skill-BuildingStudent Training & Employment Program (STEP)

Student Training & Employment Program (STEP)

Workforce development, student-focused, mission-aligned.

The California Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) and FoundationCCC coordinate the Student Training & Employment Program (STEP), established in 2018, to provide work experience and job preparation training for students with disabilities ages 16-21.

STEP leverages collaborative partnerships between Local Workforce Development Boards, America’s Job Centers of California (AJCCs), and Local DOR District Offices to serve students statewide.

DOR provides support at the state and local levels to enroll students with disabilities into STEP and ensure connections to resources for students and employers. FoundationCCC supports STEP awardees through a tailored approach to funding administration and individualized technical assistance leveraging human-centered design principles.

STEP Project Goals

STEP projects provide to students with disabilities:

  • Job preparation training, including job exploration, workplace readiness skills training, and work-based learning experiences
  • Year-round paid W2 work-based learning experiences
  • Training in self-advocacy and setting personal goals
  • Counseling in postsecondary training opportunities
  • Career exploration counseling

Funding Opportunities

The California Department of Rehabilitation (DOR), in coordination with the Foundation for California Community Colleges (FoundationCCC), administers federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Title IV Vocational Rehabilitation funds to design, develop, and implement projects that provide work experience and job readiness support for students with disabilities. FoundationCCC oversees the Solicitations for Proposals (SFP) process and funding distribution and contract management for selected Awardees.

While there are no open funding opportunities, SFPs are periodically available and can be found on this page. The next solicitation is anticipated to be released in 2027.

Career Catalyst

To support implementation of the paid work experience requirements of STEP, FoundationCCC offers an option for Awardees to leverage its employer of record service, Career Catalyst.

Career Catalyst offers an all-in-one web-based human resources service featuring paperless employee acquisition, online timekeeping, payroll, and employee access to paystubs, W-2s, and training videos.

career catalyst

Program Impact

  • 2,000+ students

    have engaged in paid work experiences.

  • 20 workforce development boards

    participating in providing students with work experiences.

Resources

Student Testimonial

“The key pieces of Clarence’s success in education, work, and life as a student with disabilities (SWD) is a combination of support from family, K-12 and Pathways programs, DOR STEPS work experience, vocational rehab, and community college courses…With his first paid work experience, Clarence not only had the opportunity to practice fiscal management of his STEPS earnings, but invested some of the earnings into a college textbook–a true investment in himself, his education, and his future.”

Arlitha H. (Mother of Clarence H.)