Sam Seaton
Sr. Vice President, Rehabilitation Services
------------------------------------
Sam Seaton is Vice President Rehabilitation Services of PRIDE Industries, a non-profit organization creating jobs for people with disabilities. PRIDE provides value added outsourcing solutions in the following service industries: Manufacturing & Logistics Services and Integrated Facilities Services.
Sam has been employed at PRIDE since 1983, and has held positions as Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, Director of Rehabilitation and Executive Vice President. During Sam's tenure, PRIDE has grown from a non-profit organization dependent on federal and state funds to a self-sufficient business enterprise providing services to Fortune 500 companies and government customers nationwide. Today, PRIDE is the Sacramento region's third largest manufacturing and service company, with more than 3,500 employees and $100 million in annual revenue.
Sam is very active throughout the community, serving in the following capacities: Sam was selected by the Governor of California to sit on the State's Rehabilitation Advisory Council, which advises the Department of Rehabilitation Director. Sam has served on the Placer County Workforce Investment Board, California Rehabilitation Association Board, Sacramento County Disability Advisory Board, Sacramento County Foster Youth Community Advisory Board and the Sacramento County Children's Coalition Report Card Counsel. Sam is currently serving on the MIND Institute Board. The UC Davis MIND Institute is a unique research center where scientists, clinicians and parents are collaborating to discover treatments and cures for autism, learning disabilities, fragile X and other neurodevelopmental disorders.
PRIDE has won numerous local and national awards in the fields of human service and business, including the Distinguished Service Award from the California Governor's Committee (1991); The Overall Best in Business in the Sacramento region (1992); PRIDE was honored as the only social program in the United States to ever receive an award from The President's Committee on the Employment of People with Disabilities; the FAST TRACK 25 Award (an award formerly reserved exclusively for for-profit companies); Global Best Practices Award for excellence in customer satisfaction (1994); Global Best Practices Award for excellence in employee empowerment & motivation (1995); Best in Business Award as the Best of the Decade (1985-1995) in Manufacturing in the Sacramento Region; PRIDE was selected by The League of Women Voters of Sacramento as a recipient of their Special Salute for Civic Contributions (1996); NISH Award for Performance Excellence in Government Contracts (1996); Economic Development Board Private Sector Award in recognition of outstanding community service and making a significant contribution to the economic well-being of Placer County (1997); Commendation from The Solano County Mayor's Committee for the Employment of People with Disabilities at PRIDE's Travis Air Force Base operations (1997); the Most Admired Company in the Sacramento Region (1998); Alta California Regional Center Vendor/Provider Of The Year (1998); Vanguard Award For Contract Manufacturing Practices (1998); United Cerebral Palsy Humanitarian Award (1999); Mather Community Campus 2000 HUD Best Practices Award (2000); and today PRIDE is ranked as the Third Largest Manufacturing Firm in the Sacramento Region, the Fourth Largest High-Tech Company in the Sacramento region, the Eight Largest Employer in Placer County, and the Eleventh Largest Private-Sector Employer in the Sacramento Region.
Sam graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a Masters degree in Counseling.
