Employment
MHA’s Employment Services help individuals who have psychiatric diagnoses prepare for, choose and maintain employment, and assist employers in finding valuable employees. Employment Services staff have specific training in providing recovery-oriented supportive employment services.
Services
Diagnostic Vocational Evaluation (DVE)
Work Readiness Program
Supported Employment
Direct Placement Services
Job Seeking and Development Services
Job Placement and Retention Services
Transitional Employment
Youth Works
Cognitive Remediation (CR)
Diagnostic Vocational Evaluation (DVE) is a 15 day evaluation for Westchester County residents who are 18 years or older and legally entitled to work in the United States. Working with trained staff, the DVE enables you to:
- Identify your personal vocational goals, interests, skills, and values
- Assess your readiness for rehabilitation and vocational goal setting
- Identify past barriers to workplace success and learn how to overcome them
- Improve interactions with supervisors and peers, identify sources of support in the workplace
- Explore vocational options, choose and keep employment
Work Readiness Program is for individuals who have limited employment experience and lack the "soft skills" – nontechnical skills and abilities - that are required for success in the workplace.
The Work Readiness Program assesses an individual’s needs and prepares participants to obtain and retain employment, and to advance at work. Work readiness training focuses on life skills such as stress management, personal care, confidence building, interpersonal/communication skills, wellness in the workplace and daily work related behaviors such as punctuality, dependability, motivation, and following instructions. The training also addresses job seeking skills, interviewing skills, resume writing, job applications, and other work related training.
Work Readiness skills are developed through a 12 session group that meets three times each week - Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays - for four weeks. Groups are held at:
The Sterling Community Center
29 Sterling Avenue
White Plains, NY
To learn more about, or to join the Work Readiness program, please contact Phyllis Greenberg at 914-949-1212 ext. 7106 or greenbep@mhawestchester.org.
Supported Employment assists individuals who have not worked or who have had limited success in prior employment experiences. Services are provided through Jobs Plus, which helps Westchester residents ages 18 years or older to obtain competitive employment in an integrated work setting with long-term supports. Participants must be legally entitled to work in the United States, and ready and willing to begin work. Jobs Plus provides:
- Rapid Job Search: Emphasizes finding a job first. Once on the job, individualized and job-specific support is provided on or off the job site. An Employment Specialist collaborates with participants to find the right placement and identify the most effective supports.
- Integration of Employment and Wellness: Employment is a key aspect of recovery. The Employment Specialist and participant work together to determine how clinical services can best support employment.
- Individualized Employment Plan: Working with your Employment Specialist, you lead the way to create a plan to best support your goals, preferences, and needs. Employment Specialists are available during the day, evenings and weekends.
- Brief classes: Designed to help participants to identify employment goals, create a resume, and obtain interviews. The Employment Specialist works with participants at each step, and can remain involved after employment is obtained to provide support, and work with the support team.
For information about MHA’s Employment Services contact Sharon Caplan at (914) 949-1212 ext. 7119 or at caplans@mhawestchester.org, or contact MHA’s Information and Referral Service at (914) 345-0700 ext. 7303 or help@mhawestchester.org.
Direct Placement Services helps individuals to obtain competitive employment. Beginning with a person-centered intake, Employment Specialists get to know an individual, his or her background, experience, desires, preferences, and aspirations for employment. Working together, the Employment Specialist and participant identify obstacles that have prevented job success, such as family responsibilities, lack of transportation, lack of confidence, inadequate career guidance, a disorganized resume, gaps in employment, outdated skills, or a history of criminal conviction. Methods to overcome those barriers are identified, and an action plan is developed. The Employment Specialist also assists the individual to establish a team of family members, friends, and providers to help identify the dream, and support its progress toward becoming a reality.
Job Seeking and Development Services assist the participant in obtaining competitive employment in an area that reflects his/her stated interests, strengths, and abilities. Job Placement/Development Services are individualized and consumer directed.
Job Placement and Retention Services are available once participants obtain employment to ensure employment retention. Using structured intervention techniques, the Employment Specialist/Job Coach helps the employee to learn how to perform job tasks to the employer's specifications and to acquire the interpersonal skills necessary to succeed as at the job site and in related community contacts. In addition to job-site training, services include assessment, job development, counseling, advocacy, travel training and other assistance needed to maintain employment. The Employment Specialist provides assistance both on and off the work site and helps to develop a "natural support" system designed to establish a sense of belonging to the work place.. MHA staff will also visit the work site and provide individual and group counseling regarding job performance and conduct. MHA also offers ongoing assistance with changing jobs, exploring advancement opportunities and securing promotions.
Transitional Employment assists Westchester residents who participate in Sterling Community Center activities, and are 17 years or older. Transitional Employment offers temporary, part-time, community-based employment at competitive wages, as preparation for full entry into the work force.
- Job Coaches support participants during the transition to the work environment.
- Transitional employment placements are within Westchester and require a commitment of six to nine months.
- Participants meet every Monday at the Sterling Community Center to strengthen skills to obtain and maintain employment.
- Bimonthly dinners for participants provide a social opportunity to share experiences, support each others’ efforts, and celebrate successes.
Youth Works provides comprehensive services to out-of-school youth, ages 17 to 21 who are ready and willing to work and legally entitled to work in the United States. Youth Works provides:
- Pre-vocational activities, including career exploration, informational interviews, job shadowing
- Job-seeking skills
- Work experience (paid and unpaid)
- Leadership development
- Supportive services including job coaching
- General guidance and counseling
- Resource management and referrals to community services, including remediation
For information about Youth Works, contact Ruthanne Abramovich at (914) 949-7035 ext. 7510 or abramovr@mhawestchester.org, or contact MHA’s Information and Referral Service at (914) 345-0700 ext. 7303, or help@mhawestchester.org.
Cognitive Remediation (CR) is a behavioral treatment that utilizes drill and practice methods, and compensatory and adaptive strategies to facilitate improvement in targeted cognitive areas such as memory, attention and problem solving. CR improves cognitive impairments that are making it difficult for an individual to achieve goals or optimally perform daily living tasks. For example, someone with attention and memory problems may have difficulty following directions from an employer, or may lose track of important information. Individuals who have difficulty with organization and prioritizing information may find it hard to manage independent living, or going to school.
CR helps individuals who have experienced a decline in their cognitive skills or who were not able to fully develop their skills due to an illness. Psychiatric diagnoses can also cause cognitive problems. For example, schizophrenia and other psychoses can cause a decline in attention, memory and problem solving skills.
How it Works:
• Interested candidates are administered a Pre-Training Assessment in order to determine level of cognitive functioning and to adjust services to best suit the individual’s needs.
• Participants attend at least one (but optimally two), one-hour sessions per week for approximately 12 weeks and complete homework assignments. Each session consists of a computer-based cognitive training program and the teaching of compensatory strategies, stress management and relaxation skills. All training sessions are one-on-one.
• After 12 weeks of training, another assessment is administered to evaluate progress and to determine whether the individual needs further intensive training or whether services can be reduced to periodic “check-ins.”
For more information or to schedule an assessment contact Dan Mancini, MA, EdM, Cognitive Remediation Specialist, at (914) 949-1212 ext. 7112 or mancinid@mhawestchester.org.
Hours and Locations
Employment Services are located at:
The Sterling Community Center
29 Sterling Avenue
White Plains, NY
Job placements are found throughout Westchester County. Employment Services hours are flexible to meet the individual’s needs.
Languages Spoken
Services are available in English. Some services are also available in Spanish.
Cost
Services are provided at no cost to participants.
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