CSU’s RAM Scholars Program empowers disabled adults in ag

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and while there are job opportunities for intellectually disabled adults, Colorado State University is looking to provide students with exposure to agriculture-related careers. The CSU Ram Scholars program’s eventual goal is to match adults with disabilities to jobs in agriculture, an industry that needs employees.

“What it means for them is that they’re having an exposure to a potential pathway to a job, and not just to a job, but a career in a sector that’s employing up here in Colorado,” explains co-director of the Ram Scholars program, Deborah Fidler. “As Dr. Grandin says, we don’t know what an individual might excel at until they have the exposure to it.”

The pilot initiative began this spring at CSU’s Agricultural, Research, Development, and Education Center, or ARDEC, and with classes at CSU.

“It feels great to be free to help animals,” says Anika Pounds, a RAM Scholars participant. “It makes me feel better to calm down and tell myself to be independent.”