(New York City, October 14, 2003) — The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) today continues its commitment to expanding opportunities for youth with disabilities by announcing its plan to host "Disability Mentoring Day: Career Development for the 21st Century" on October 15, 2003. Disability Mentoring Day helps meet the goals of the ADA — equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency — by giving students with disabilities a chance to learn about different employers and to meet one-on-one with mentors who can offer insight and advice about career paths.

"Economic empowerment is at the heart of disability rights," says Andrew J. Imparato, President and CEO of AAPD. "Millions of talented and qualified people with disabilities face unemployment. Disability Mentoring Day provides an excellent opportunity for students with disabilities to make the types of connections that can provide a competitive edge in joining our workforce and contributing to our nation's economic growth."

Disability Mentoring Day in New York City is a collaboration of many organizations which include: New York State Education Department-VESID, NYS Business Leadership Network, CBVH and the New York State Department of Labor. The lead sponsors of this year's events are IBM, New York Life Insurance Company, Avis Access and Diversity Partners. The following businesses have already committed to participating in this year's activities in New York City: Hallmark Entertainment, IBM, CitiGroup, HSBC, Equality Staffing, New York Life Insurance Company, HireDisability.com, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Manpower, UBS Warburg and Aramark Corporation. We also want to acknowledge the hard work of Mathew Sapolin, Director of MOPD on behalf of the Honorable Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of the City of New York and his commitment in making New York City better for all New Yorkers.

"AAPD is proud to serve as this year's National Host of Disability Mentoring Day," says Imparato. "We applaud U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Elaine Chao and the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities for sponsoring this effort as a complement to President Bush's New Freedom Initiative."

Disability Mentoring Day is designed to maximize local creativity. With the assistance of resource materials developed by AAPD, each participating community will plan activities that best suit the needs and abilities of its students and local employers. Disability Mentoring Day events need not be large to be successful — making an impact in just one person's life makes a difference. And the benefit is not just for the students. Participating employers can learn more about disability and tap a pool of qualified potential future employees. Disability Mentoring Day is also a great opportunity for local communities to draw media attention to the importance of employing people with disabilities.

For more information on Disability Mentoring Day, visit www.nysbln.com   or contact Jeffrey Klare at 212-822-8524 or jklare@hiredisability.com

Contacts:

Lisa Fels
New York Life
(212) 576-7937
lisa_fels@newyorklife.com

Jeffrey Klare
Equality Staffing
212-822-8524
jklare@hiredisability.com

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