When Tanner Clippinger met with employment consultant Amanda Stevens to talk about his future, Stevens was certain they could find the right job for him. Stevens works with HireAbility Vermont, which employs a network of employment specialists and counselors to connect Vermonters with disabilities to job opportunities and help them find lasting careers. (Paid Post) When Tanner Clippinger met with employment consultant Amanda Stevens in 2021 to talk about his future, he felt uneasy. Clippinger had recently graduated from the Community College of Vermont with a certificate in graphic design but had an unpleasant experience at his first job. He knew what he wanted to do and was passionate about it, but Clippinger has learning differences and a stutter and requires a supportive work environment. He worried he wouldn’t find it. Stevens wasn’t nervous at all. She took the time to get to know Clippinger and set up regular meetings to talk with him about his strengths, struggles and dreams. She was certain that they could find the right job for him. Stevens works with HireAbility Vermont, which employs a network of employment specialists and counselors to connect Vermonters with disabilities to job opportunities and help them find lasting careers based on their skills. Stevens is an employment consultant at the Vermont Association of Business Industry and Rehabilitation, which is a key partner of HireAbility. To help Clippinger land a job that aligned with his desired career path, Stevens met with one of HireAbility’s dedicated business account managers, who build relationships with local businesses, to see if there could be a fit for Clippinger. They connected her with Douglas Corey at Main Street Graphics. Corey owns the full-service graphics studio in St. Albans where “anything you can print on, they print on,” he says. Whether it’s cars, signs, banners, uniforms or stickers, the company designs and prints in-house for businesses in 19 states and five countries. When Stevens reached out to Corey about Clippinger, it seemed like the arrangement could be a good fit. Corey had just one graphic designer and could use someone else to help fill orders for his growing business. So they made a six-week on-the-job training plan for Clippinger. This is a HireAbility program that would allow Clippinger to get a good idea of the work environment, and Corey could take the time to train him. HireAbility paid Clippinger’s salary for those six weeks. Stevens said it was “like a home run” to be able to support both a local business such as Main Street Graphics and Clippinger at the same time. “And it just grew from there,” Corey said. “Tanner immediately became part of our team. Everything just clicked, from us as a company needing another employee…