Project SEARCH
Lisa Cannon has over two decades of experience in special education, serving as a Teacher of Special Education at Greater Southern Tier BOCES since September 2000. In addition to this role, Lisa currently works as a Project SEARCH Instructor and services coordinator, providing vocational and life skills training to students in their final year of school. With a Master's degree in Special Education from Mansfield University of Pennsylvania and two Bachelor's degrees in Elementary Education from the State University of New York Cortland, Lisa is dedicated to supporting students with special needs in their transition to competitive employment.
This person is not in any offices
Project SEARCH
Project SEARCH was developed at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, a research environment that fosters visionary thinking and innovation. It all began in 1996, when Erin Riehle was Director of Cincinnati Children's Emergency Department. Erin felt that, because the hospital served individuals with developmental disabilities, it made sense that they should commit to hiring people in this group. She wondered if it would be possible to train people with developmental disabilities to fill some of the high-turnover, entry level positions in her department, which involved complex and systematic tasks such as stocking supply cabinets. As a starting point, Erin presented her ideas to Susie Rutkowski, then the special education director at Great Oaks Career Campuses. Erin and Susie formed a partnership that was instantaneous, and together they launched Project SEARCH. Since its inception, Project SEARCH has grown from a single program site at Cincinnati Children's to over 600 sites across the United States, Canada, England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Portugal, Iceland, New Zealand and Australia. Project SEARCH's primary objective is to secure competitive employment for people with disabilities.