Mission Statement
To equip individuals with the skills necessary to integrate into the community as
independent citizens.
In March 2009 the Transition Program began with ten Civitan adult clients working
toward fulfilling their dreams of living and working independently. The Transition
class work is in the newly renovated Bay 2 of the Civitan Plaza in Bryant, next
door to The Civitan Shoppe.
Faced with record enrollment and limited space at the Civitan Center (both physically
and in the current six class daily rotation) the adult program staff began exploring
new ideas and options for accommodating the current enrollment and considering future
needs and how to best meet the needs of the clients. The Transition track is for
clients just what it sounds like, the process of transitioning out of life at Civitan
Services with its support system and into the community as an active and independent
citizen.
“We have many clients coming to us straight out of high school who have been told
that having a job and living on their own can be a reality. We needed to find a
way to support our supportive employment program
and tailor our instruction toward making these dreams a reality,” said Mariessa
Bearden, Associate Director.
“The ultimate goal of the track is to graduate clients from Civitan and slowly withdraw
the supports so they can stand on their own,” said Mariessa. “We realize that not
everyone will move at the same pace, but they can stay in the Transition class as
long as they show forward progress. As soon as someone graduates, we will move another
candidate into the program. On the other hand, we might have to remove someone from
the program for a time if their work ethic changes or they lose the motivation.”
The ten
inaugural clients were recommended for the class by the adult instructors based
on the amount of interest they have shown toward getting a job and their work ethic
in the jobs they have done around the Civitan Center. Recommended clients had to
fill out an application listing their goals and what types of jobs they were interested
in having. Mariessa then had a conference with each client and family support was
obtained to make sure everyone was on the same page and ready to commit to the work
ahead.
Amber White has been the Transition Coordinator for Civitan Services since the spring
of 2011. She has focused on building the self-esteem of our clients so they are
more confident in exploring employment in the community. She has continued to promote
job readiness skills by assisting in the volunteer opportunities that Saline County
has to offer. Many of our clients have met their goals under her instruction and
guidance. They can now work towards new goals that will promote the furthering of
their independence.
We have 3 off site training rooms with two locations to offer our clients. They
include the Donation Center and the Transition Class which coordinates with our
Independent Skills Class. The job skill training offered in these three training
areas have access to The Civitan Shoppeas well.
The group works as a team to accomplish all their goals. The transition classroom
has its own kitchen where they cook meals together. There is a bank of computers
where they work on resumes and letters together. The walls are even covered with
goal boards and creative collages meant to represent such positive concepts as laughter,
happiness and smiles.
Besides a kitchen, the new classroom has computers, a projector and a new flatscreen
TV for class instruction, tables for interviews and work space and an area of more
comfortable chairs for class discussions. They will also be able to get online with
the computers to do job searches and applications. All instruction will be geared
toward the workplace. For instance, the usual human relations class will talk about
how to act on your break at work, how to read your coworker’s body language or how
to ask for help.
In the beginning the clients will mainly spend their time in the classroom or next
door in The Civitan Shoppe, but as they meet certain goals
they will be able to leave and do activities like volunteer work in the community,
job shadowing, field trips to job sites and eventually to work.
The proximity to The Civitan Shoppe as well as the
Civitan Donation Center is a great advantage for these ten job seekers.
“All the clients you see working in The Shoppe and at the Donation Center will also
be in the Transition class. The Shoppe provides valuable on-the-job training for
a variety of employable skills,” said Darrell Peters, Community Services Director.
“It will be nice to tell an employer that I have a candidate who has been working
in The Shoppe for months and has mastered several skills like working a cash register
and customer service.”
“The group will be a team supporting and motivating each other to reach their goals,”
said Mariessa. “Motivation and rewards will play a big part in helping the clients
stay motivated and going forward even though it might seem difficult at times. They
will have smaller, short-term goals on their way to independence that we will celebrate
too.”
The Transition program has all the clients, staff and board members excited, but
it doesn’t come without some major costs. Not only is there the renovation costs
of creating the new classroom from the old Laser Beam store, but this is a different
type of class from what we normally provide.
“Not all of the services we will be providing will be reimbursed by Medicaid,” said
Leah Henderson, Executive Director. “The time they spend in the classroom or working
at either The Civitan Shoppe or the
Donation Center will be covered, but any volunteer opportunities, job shadowing
trips, off-site interviews, field trips, etc will not be covered, nor will be the
transportation costs associated with it.”
“Once a client is employed, supportive employment plans begin and we will get funding
for all of that,” said Darrell “but there is a big gap in between that we will have
to fund on our own.”
And that gap is the most important in the lives of the clients and one Civitan Services
has made the commitment to help them bridge with the new Transition track. “These
clients are stepping up and accepting a challenge and we will be there for the exciting
journey,” said Mariessa. “Hopefully the excitement will spread and more clients
will start wanting and believing that an independent life is possible.”
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