Individualized Supported Employment

Individualized Supported Employment (ISE) is a program designed to help individuals build on workplace independence by providing intense supports to improve on overall work skills and workplace behaviors. Individuals in the ISE program need more supports than what typical Supported Employment would provide, but are not at the level in which they need DT&H (Ability Enterprises) programming.

Entrance criteria

  • Independent in personal care and medication administration
  • No physically violent behavior
  • May have verbal outbursts, but can be redirected with minimal escalation
  • Must have the potential to arrive and depart from worksite independently using public transportation such as city bus, ZIPS or R&S. There will be ABC transportation if the job is a traveling crew or after normal business hours. ABC staff may be responsible for waiting with a participant until transportation arrives.
  • Have the potential to attain job skills/behavior skills
  • Have demonstrated a need for specialized supports

ABC Program responsibility

Placement on an ABC Crew with supports established to program standards. Additional activities may be offered as indicated by individual program plans.

Program day length up to 6 hours (excluding public transportation time) up to 5 days a week- including evening and weekend vocational programming.  This means that on some weekdays, participants may not have ABC programming.

Skills training may be scheduled to supplement work hours and address need areas identified by plan.

Work Skills

  • Laundry
  • Custodial
  • Housekeeping
  • Dishwashing
  • General Production
  • Groundskeeping
  • Lawn Mowing
 Personal Skills

  • Acceptable Work Behavior
  • Workplace Safety
  • Independence in the Workplace
  • Communication Skills
  • Physical Work Hardening
  • Bus Training
  • Developing Coping Skills

The day may include a combination of work hours (in-center & community), job skills training, bus training and transportation time to and from work sites if placed on a travelling crew.

Staff to client ratios will typically be 1:2, 1:4 or 1:6; 1:1 supervision may be provided for individual skill building purposes, but will be limited.

Work Available

There are individual worksites designed for ISE participants. These sites will provide intensive training and supports (for both work skills and behavior supports).

There will be a slow process of integration to Supported Employment crews to assist in modeling behavior, skill development, etc.

Jobs would be made available on Supported Employment crews as advancement is deemed appropriate by teams.

The goal is full integration to sites that are less supervised as the participant develops the skills for Supported Employment at which time this is a realistic goal for individual participants.

Program Outcomes

Participants may transfer to Supported Employment as skills are developed and integration is successfully completed.  Jobs may not transfer with changes in programming.

Participants may continue in Individualized Supported Employment (ISE) indefinitely if skills are determined to be insufficient for integration to Supported Employment.

Participants may transfer to Ability Enterprises if medical, behavioral or other support needs become an issue.

Contact

Sarah Timmerman
Phone: (507) 535-7137
Fax: (507) 281-6270