Cortney Fish and Jaclyn Benigno were awarded the Lee Henson Access Mizzou Award on September 28 for their work on the Thompson Center’s STRIVE program. Self-Determined Transition Readiness Through Individual Vocational Experiences (STRIVE) is a post-secondary education program offering two semesters of non-credit employment skills development at the University of Missouri for 18- to 30-year-olds with autism or a similar diagnosis.
Fish has worked on STRIVE since its beginning in 2016 and Benigno joined the following year. The program is currently in its seventh cohort and has had 27 participants over the years.
The Lee Henson Access Mizzou Award is given to individuals who have had an impact on accessibility and disability at the University of Missouri. Lee Henson, for whom the award was named, was the ADA Coordinator at Mizzou who passed away in 2014 after 20 years of service to the University.
Congratulations and thank you to Cortney and Jaclyn for their hard work!