Mercy Medical Center Project Search
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A program that effectively prepares students with disabilities to enter and be successful in the world of work.
Mercy Medical Center, Des Moines Public Schools, Easter Seals Iowa and Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services have partnered together to bring Project SEARCH to the Des Moines area. This collaborative effort was initiated in the fall of 2012, and currently involves twelve students who are interning at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines. These students are being provided a range of hands-on job experiences; developing work skills necessary for future employment. Mercy Medical Center Project SEARCH offers students (18-21 years old), that have completed their graduation requirements, a one-year school-to-work program that takes place entirely at Mercy Medical Center. Total workplace immersion facilitates a seamless combination of classroom instruction, career exploration, and relevant job-skills training obtained through three strategically designed internships. The national Project SEARCH program began in 1996 by Erin Reihle, Director of the Emergency Department at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. She had a number of entry level positions to fill and worked with the Great Oaks Career Campuses and the Hamilton County Board of Developmental Disability Services to provide an opportunity for students with disabilities to participate in the workplace. The program was so successful that the model was adopted in 40 states and four countries including the National Institute of Health – Clinical Center, Xavier University, the Federal Department of Labor, and the University of Rochester Medical Center.
09/23/2026
Today students learn how to choose appropriate job interview clothing. They chose two outfits which included top, bottom, shoes, purse, and jewelry. After we were done, we had to get out in the sunshine so we went to the river walk! What a beautiful day!!
09/23/2026
Mercy and Methodist Project SEARCH programs joined forces and visited Mainframe Studios. Students had access to all the art supplies and learned how to gain access to the studio on their own! It’s important that they learn how to attend to leisure activities that help fulfill their lives. 😊
09/15/2026
Project SEARCH students from Mercy and Methodist joined together and put together hundreds of meal kits at Meals From the Heartland!!
09/11/2026
The MercyOne class went to the Unity Point Methodist class to learn about the DART from a DART employee, rose to DART with him, and toured the station to get familiar with DART Central!
09/11/2026
Students in Project SEARCH go through the hiring process like employees who get hired at MercyOne. Here, the girls are waiting to talk to a nurse and get their TB tests done!
09/08/2026
We finally got a group photo! I am proud to present the 26-27 class!!!
Getting ready for the 2026-2027 school year! We're so excited!!
05/29/2026
We had our 4+ Graduation ceremony last night! It was my pleasure to honor all the amazing humans from my class! I didn’t get a picture of everyone (it was chaos after the ceremony). Here’s what I got!
05/26/2026
More internships!
02/06/2026
Ty is working in Surgery inventory Control and doing an excellent job!!
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1111 6th Avenue
Des Moines, IA
50309
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