Jennifer Kuntz knows what it’s like to struggle. It was twenty years ago that she was working as a job coach in special education in Worthington City Schools. At that time, Jennifer was a single parent with 3 young boys at home and was earning around $13,000 a year. Working as a job coach she saw a need for a company that could help people with disabilities find and keep employment and gain more self-reliance and self-confidence. So Jennifer decided to take a risk and leave her job to start Greenleaf Job Training Services. By taking that risk, Jennifer has served as a strong role model and mentor for other women.
When Jennifer founded Greenleaf Job Training Services, she tackled a need in society by helping people with differing abilities become part of the workforce. She has helped those with differing abilities gain self-reliance and self-esteem and escape the chains of poverty and homelessness. Greenleaf Job Training Services has become a place that promotes and accepts people, no matter their race, age, socioeconomic background or disability.
Outside of running Greenleaf Job Training Services, Jennifer has served as a mentor to other women business owners and is very involved in Women for Economic and Leadership Development (WELD), Women Presidents Organization (WPO) and Vistage, an organization dedicated to leadership development. Jennifer also encourages her staff to get involved in organizations that interest them, and she supports those efforts as a company as well. Greenleaf has sponsored teams in the Komen Race for the Cure, has adopted families through Toys for Tots and also has adopted families of some of their clients who had specific needs to fill.
Jennifer has also taken the time to mentor female youth in the community. She has spoken to middle-school girls through Ruling Our Experiences, an organization whose mission is to equip girls with the knowledge and skills to live healthy, independent, and violence-free lives.
Jennifer’s vision is to continue to help people break out of life circumstances that are typically full of limitation by offering the support needed to achieve more fulfilling lives. She plans more speaking engagements to advocate an expanded definition of work place diversity that includes individuals with disabilities. She sees her role as promoting communities that are better off when everyone in them feels respected, has meaningful work, and can make a contribution.
Oh, and you might wonder where the name Greenleaf comes from. It is actually Jennifer’s middle name and was given to her to honor her ancestor John Greenleaf Whittier. She also honors him by including a quote of his on the company’s website: “I’ll lift you and you lift me, and we’ll both ascend together.”
For more information about Greenleaf Job Training Services, please visit www.greenleafjts.com