CLEVELAND - To help blind persons overcome the challenges they face to establish a career and live independently, Key today presented a $50,000 Key Foundation grant supporting career development projects at the Cleveland Sight Center.

The unemployment rate of blind or visually impaired persons in Cuyahoga County is a staggering 60 percent, according to the Cleveland Sight Center, which has served the needs of the blind for nearly a century. Of the adult blind persons who are seeking jobs, about 66 percent have no work history or have not worked in more than 10 years.

"Many blind or visually impaired adults must transition mentally and emotionally to accept the fact that they can live independently," says Cleveland Sight Center Executive Director Michael Grady. "Not only do these clients have to learn proper mobility techniques, and master the ability to use a variety of adaptive equipment and techniques, they must also learn how to interact appropriately in the workplace."

For example, some clients must learn to focus and speak in the correct direction to supervisors and co-workers. Others may need assistance with their professional appearance or resume development.

The Key Foundation grant will support services and programs at the Career Development Center operated by the Cleveland Sight Center. The Career Development Center served about 50 blind individuals last year. More than 41 percent landed jobs.

"Every year, we expect to place more blind persons in jobs that can help them live independently," says Grady. "The Key Foundation grant will help us achieve this ongoing goal."

Founded in 1906, the Cleveland Sight Center is a private agency that provides educational, rehabilitative, preventive and support services for 10,000 people in Greater Cleveland who are blind or visually impaired.

Cleveland-based KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) is one of the nation's largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $92 billion. Key companies provide investment management, retail and commercial banking, consumer finance, and investment banking products and services to individuals and companies throughout the United States and, for certain businesses, internationally. Contact Key Foundation Senior Program Officer Quentin McCorvey at 216-689-5505, or Quentin_mccorvey@keybank.com, for more information about corporate grants.

Note to Editors: For up-to-date company information, media contacts and facts and figures about Key lines of business, visit our Media Newsroom at Key.com/newsroom.

KeyBank

KeyBank

KeyCorp's roots trace back 190 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation's largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $176.2 billion at March 31, 2021. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,100 branches and more than 1,400 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC. 

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