What one participant’s journey to Chick-fil-A reveals about the power of Spring Dell’s employment pathway.
Ashaunna knew where she wanted to work before anyone else did.
Not after the interview. Not after the training. Before any of it — she had already said it out loud, over and over, to anyone who would listen: I’m going to work at Chick-fil-A. She said it so many times, so confidently, that by the time it actually happened, it didn’t feel like a surprise to the people around her. It felt like something she had already claimed.
“She had already spoken it, owned it,” says Tina Maddox, Community Employment Program Supervisor at Spring Dell Center. “It was hers.”
That kind of clarity — knowing exactly what you want and saying it without apology — is exactly what Career Bridges is built to meet. Not to talk someone into a goal. To help them get to the one they already have.
A Journey That Started with a Question
Ashaunna came to Spring Dell as a transitional youth, fresh out of high school and looking for an agency that could support the life she wanted to build. From the first day, her energy stood out.
“When she seen our tree of employment, I seen her light up,” Tina remembers. That spark — along with her age and readiness to grow — made her a natural fit for Career Bridges, Spring Dell’s nine-month employment pathway for adults seeking the skills to succeed in the workplace of their choosing.
Ashaunna and her family came to orientation, completed the application, and made the decision together: this would be the start of her journey.
What Career Bridges Is Built to Do
Career Bridges is Spring Dell Center’s nine-month employment pathway for adults with autism and intellectual disabilities. It’s designed for people who know they want to work — and need a structured, supported bridge to get from where they are to competitive, integrated employment.
“Career Bridges is a nine-month program designed for adults who are seeking employment to gain the skills they need to be successful,” says Caleb Ferro, Career Bridges Manager. “We work on soft skills, hard skills, and we really just hone in on what their interests are, what their strengths are, and how we can get them where they want to go.”
That last part is the whole model: start with the person, not the placement. Employment is a broad term, Caleb points out — some people want retail, some want construction, some want fast food — so the program builds outward from real interests through volunteer experiences across the community, indoors and out, in small groups and large ones, until the right fit comes into focus.
Career Bridges Manager, Caleb Ferro met Ashaunna on her first day in the program, in August 2025. “It was very evident to me that Ashaunna is very, very outgoing and very social,” he says. “She instantly interacted with everyone in the group. She is someone who, when you tell your name one time, she’ll remember it for the rest of her life.”
That memory — sharp, consistent, reliable — turned out to be one of Ashaunna’s greatest strengths as the team worked to identify where she’d fit. “We knew she was going to end up in a customer service role eventually, from the beginning,” Caleb says. “It was on us to figure out how to help her get there.”
The Program’s Approach: Strength First, Not Diagnosis First
One of the clearest things Career Bridges does differently is where it starts looking for a match.
“A lot of times when we see people with disabilities, we focus on their disabilities,” Tina says. “I try not to. As people label a disability, it wasn’t a disability — it ended up being an ability that was marketable.”
Ashaunna’s memory and love of structure are a clear example. Chick-fil-A operates on a script — a consistent greeting, a consistent process, the same steps done the same way every time. For many jobs, that would be a limitation to work around. In this program’s eyes, it was the exact strength the role called for.
“She was able to identify what they had said — greet people,” Tina explains. The first customer Ashaunna greeted, a regular named Tony, became someone she recognized every time he walked through the door. “That’s what they needed.”
That’s the Career Bridges method in practice — building the plan around what someone already does well, and then finding the workplace where that ability is exactly what’s needed.
Support That Doesn’t Disappear on Day One
Career Bridges doesn’t stop at placement. The support structure follows participants into the job itself, especially in the earliest days when everything is new.
On Ashaunna’s first day at Chick-fil-A, a manager named Megan met her at the door, made sure her uniform was right, and walked through every step with her — no rushing. “Orientation is four hours. That was the truth,” Tina says. “Ashaunna appreciated it — and the next day, she came in perfect.”
From there, the team kept working to make sure her role wasn’t static. Ashaunna went on to work alongside other Career Bridges graduates already employed at the same location, and she met managers across different departments as the workplace looked for where she could keep growing.
“They don’t want her to just be in the dining room,” Tina says. “Where can she grow throughout that company? They won’t stack in her growth.”
That’s the throughline of Career Bridges: the program doesn’t end when someone gets hired. It’s built to keep asking what’s next.
Why It Matters
“Ashaunna’s story really shows a true journey of someone who had an idea of where she wanted to go, and we stepped in to help achieve that goal,” Caleb says. “Seeing success to us means making dreams happen. That’s what motivates us every single day.”
“Never judge a person,” Tina adds. “Everybody in your community is unique and has something to offer. We’re all a piece of the puzzle for our community to be successful.”
For a program built on the belief that employment is a right — not a reward reserved for the most able — Ashaunna’s path from transitional youth to orientation to “I have a job” is exactly why Career Bridges exists. Not a favor. Not an exception. A pathway, built for the goal someone already had — one shift, one relationship, one step of growth at a time.
Career Bridges is Spring Dell Center’s nine-month employment pathway for adults with autism and intellectual disabilities, built to bridge the space between where someone is today and the competitive, integrated employment they’re working toward.
