Employee Profile

Scott Hill

Place of Employment: Boulder Montessori School
Occupation: Dishwasher/Cleaner
Rehabilitation Counselor: Pam Christensen

In working with a caseload of mostly severely disabled individuals, Scott’s DVR counselor Pam can often be heard saying she’s on a treasure hunt. What is the facet this person contributes, what is the setting and what are the supports to best shine? It can be challenging to get those to all line up. Scott is definitely shining and treasured at his workplace - and it took a team of supports to get there. He has been working at the Boulder Montessori School since April of 2009. He washes the dishes by hand, puts them through the sanitizing machine and puts them away. Scott also does other tasks such as emptying trash and cleaning off tables. Scott is a very enthusiastic and hard worker, and is proud to work all five days of the work week. He almost always has a smile on his face at work, and you can tell that he enjoys what he is doing. He had previously worked at Pizza Hut and Dominos but when he came to DVR he had been out of work for some time. Scott has challenges. He is mostly non verbal, has severe cerebral palsy with spasticity and doesn’t read and write, yet he displays incredible tenacity in pushing through the obstacles. Given a chance to shine, he does! Scott is dependable, gives his best and has a genuine smile on his face for work every day. Scott just loves to work and feels a sense of self worth from work that couldn’t be matched by any behavioral plan.

The Montessori school was fantastic to give Scott a chance, and Tim Eaton of Employment Link knew just how to support him and bridge the gaps in communication to make this a lasting success. Everybody was very patient with the adjustment and now the staff at Boulder Montessori considers Scott part of their ‘family’. Karen Olson, the Director for Boulder Montessori School said, “Scott is such an integral part of our staff. He is very energetic and if he’s done with the dishes he will look for something else to do. Also the students respond well to his friendliness.”

Scott’s sister Lea says, “The Montessori position was a great fit! It was wonderful to see the communication and interaction between the State of Colorado’s DVR Program, the Boulder County programs Imagine and Employment Link, Scott’s host home provider and family to find such a perfect position for Scott.”

But ultimately, it was up to Scott.

Congratulations Scott! You are an inspiration to all of us.

Success Stories