Travis at work in the summer of 2026.

Travis at work in 2026.

When Brooklyn Grady first walked into Licking Memorial Hospital in 2021 as a Project SEARCH intern, she was nervous and didn’t know what to expect.
Four years later, as a culinary assistant at the hospital, she talks about those early days with current Project SEARCH interns.
“I used to think before I started that Project SEARCH would be very scary, but it was totally fun,” she tells them. “It is ok to be nervous and it is ok to try new things.”
As Project SEARCH kicks off its 11th year in Licking County, Licking Memorial Health Systems (LMHS) is reaping one of its many benefits — a growing group of Project SEARCH graduates who have transitioned into longtime employees.
That was one of the objectives of Project SEARCH’s founders, who began the program at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in 1996
The model they developed provides a year-long internship experience for high school seniors, immersing them in the workplace and preparing them for competitive employment.
Over the years, the program has spread throughout the world, offering hundreds of internship sites at a variety of locations.
The Licking County program — a partnership of LMHS, the Licking County Board of Developmental Disabilities, Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, the Licking Regional Educational Service Center and Greenleaf Job Training Services — started in 2016 with a group of 10 interns.
Since then 70 students have completed the program. Of those graduates, 60 have transitioned to competitive jobs in Licking County, while several have decided to pursue higher education. LMHS  has hired 23 interns over the years, in a variety of roles.
When Brooklyn, 24, started Project SEARCH, she thought she wanted to work in a childcare center. But after completing her three internship rotations, she realized she would enjoy working at the hospital.
In her role in Culinary Services she cleans tables in the hospital’s cafe, stocks items and helps with inventory.
“I like the people I work with,” she said. “My supervisors are nice, the customers are nice. There is always something that needs to be done around here so I rarely get bored.”

Travis in at Project SEARCH in 2019.

Over the years, Brooklyn has had several surgeries on her ankles and her managers and coworkers are always understanding if she needs to sit down.
“Everyone is a team,” she said. “They have been super supportive of me.”
The Culinary Services department hosts several interns throughout the year and Brooklyn often trains them on stocking and cleaning.
“It’s been my favorite part of my job, I’ve had some pretty great interns,” she said. “Every intern is different, no one is the same.”
Travis Jones, 25, has worked in the Environmental Services department since he graduated from Project SEARCH in 2020. Although he doesn’t often interact with interns in his daily tasks — the lessons he learned in Project SEARCH six years ago are used at work every day.
“Try to be professional and do your job,” he said.
Brooklyn credits Project SEARCH with teaching her how to be on time, how to treat customers and coworkers and how to communicate in the workplace.
She tries to share that wisdom with each new group of interns.
“I try to tell them to try their best and it’s ok if they don’t know how to do something — just ask for help!” she said.