Be Empowered

For Students with disabilities

Prepare for Your Future

At the Bender Leadership Academy, you can build the critical skills and competencies to transition from school to work, meet the expectations of employers, and develop a long-term career path.

We are dedicated to supporting successful paths to employment for all people with disabilities.

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Learn

We deliver competency building programs that enable students with disabilities to engage in work opportunities, celebrate successes, and achieve career goals.

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Work

Together, we can have positive impact on the future of students with disabilities by providing the steppingstones for success.

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Lead

Honoring Mary Brougher

July 2, 1964 – August 10, 2021

  • Prior to her death, Mary Brougher, a founding board member of Bender Leadership Academy, was working on a new initiative to build resiliency, coping strategies, and advocacy for youth with disabilities.
  • Today we are celebrating this legacy through the Mary Brougher Mental Health Initiative and through #NotAshamed.
  • #NotAshamed celebrates the lives of those, like Mary, who have a mental health disability and addresses mental health stigma and its intersectionality across diverse communities.
Mary Brougher Mental Health Initiative
#NotAshamed Logo

Empower Others

For Companies & Communities

Make a Difference

At the Bender Leadership Academy, you can impact the future of today’s youth with disabilities by engaging in mentorship, career development, leadership training, and civic engagement opportunities.

Bender Leadership Academy has been serving high-school students with disabilities, since 2001. We accomplish the mission of competency-based workforce development and are dedicated to supporting successful paths to employment for all people with disabilities.

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GIVE

The Bender Leadership Academy delivers competency building programs that enable students with disabilities to engage in educational, empowerment and work opportunities, celebrate successes, and set and achieve career journey goals.

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Teach

Bender Leadership Academy programs address the development of general employment competencies, the lack of experience barrier to employment of people with disabilities and raises the marketability of participants through building career competencies while gaining work experience.

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Serve

Celebrate Success

For students and partners

Achieve Career Goals

At the Bender Leadership Academy, we believe that success starts with opportunity and is achieved when we support our students in developing competencies and applying innovative solutions.

Our strategies for success include developing work readiness skills, building leaders, and providing work-based experiences.

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Opportunity

We value the partnerships we have developed with our communities, educators, employers, volunteers, and mentors.

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Community

Our approach is to create a continuum of learning and definitive path to success within an environment that focuses on ability.

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Innovation
The transition from youth to adulthood is challenging for almost every young person and this is particularly true for young people with disabilities. Part of a successful future includes finding and keeping employment. There continues to be a dilemma facing youth with disabilities. In spite of supportive legislation (e.g., the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act) and effective practices, many of these youth continue to experience high unemployment as well as insufficient opportunities to obtain competitive employment with the potential of career growth.
Guideposts for Success, National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability