Community Supports

Direct Support Workforce Development

In initiatives to enhance the Direct Support Workforce, The Boggs Center is collaborating with an number of public and private provider agencies and networks in a variety of initiatives to strengthen recruitment, retention and supports for direct support workers. With the collaborating agencies and networks, The Boggs Center is working on other initiatives to strengthen recruitment and retention, develop better training, including training for front line supervisors, and enhance supports for direct support professionals.

Background

The Boggs Center has focused on training and supports for the direct support workforce in New Jersey since it was formed in 1983. A variety of training and education programs are coordinated in collaboration with the New Jersey Division of Developmental Disabilities and other networks. Technical assistance is provided to consumers with a wide range of disabilities, their family members, and the direct support professionals who provide the support.

Examples of the programs provided by the Center include the Pre-Service Training Curriculum for direct support professionals in community settings (since the 1980's), person centered planning training for agencies (early 1990's to present), community building training and technical assistance to support agencies in the development of community supports for people they serve, and customized trainings for direct support in a variety of areas, e.g. Medicaid managed care, community building, families, grief, and support.

The Boggs Center has worked with community colleges since 2000 to develop certificate programs for direct support professionals. The Boggs Center has also coordinated the Developmental Disabilities Lecture Series since 1984, a Series which brings national experts to New Jersey to present on the state of the art of service delivery.

Recent Initiatives 

In April 2002, the Boggs Center partnered with the New Jersey Division of Developmental Disabilities, the New Jersey Association of Community Providers, and the Alliance for the Betterment of Citizens with Disabilities to convene a New Jersey Workforce Development Summit. The summit addressed the barriers in retaining and recruiting a cadre of high-quality direct support professionals in the state. (See Summit Report below.)

Follow-up meetings to this summit gave birth to the New Jersey Direct Support Professional Workforce Development Coalition (NJDSPWDC). The coalition is comprised of professionals from provider agencies, direct support professionals, educators, policy makers, individuals with disabilities and their family members.

The coalition operates a listserv to provide a vehicle for quick, efficient communication amongst everyone in the state committed to strengthen the direct support workforce in New Jersey. Membership to the listserv is open to professionals, agencies, policy makers, educators, individuals with disabilities, and family members in New Jersey. If you are interested in joining the listserv, please email Elizabeth Ong at the Boggs Center at Elizabeth.Ong@umdnj.edu.

The 2002 Summit and NJDSPWDC recommended a separate summit for direct support professionals themselves to identify barriers and potential solutions for retaining and recruiting a highly qualified cadre of direct support professionals. In September 2003, The Boggs Center convened a New Jersey Direct Support Professional Summit to address these issues.

As a result, a core group of direct support professionals has organized to further workforce development. This group of professionals, from a variety of agencies, has recently developed a mission statement, which reads:

The New Jersey Direct Support Professional Association is an alliance of frontline human service workers dedicated to enhancing the quality of services provided through the development of the workforce. We are striving to increase the recognition of the value of the Work done by Direct Support Professionals. In order to achieve this we need to gain respect an acknowledgement. We also look for opportunities for professional development through continuing education, statewide certification, and a career ladder. We seek to provide a forum for Direct Support Professionals to congregate ideas and have a voice in state and national matters that affect us. We will work to influence policy and decision making as it impacts service providers, service recipients, and families.

If you are interested in learning more about the NJ Direct Support Professional Association (NJDSPA), please contact Maribelle Torres at NJDSPA@aol.com

Other initiatives in workforce development include:

Front Line Supervisor and Management Training

The Boggs Center offers a series of three courses for managers: Survival Skills for Managers in Community Supports, Leadership Skills for Managers in Community Supports, and Personal Skills for Managers

Boggs Center Training Resources

Developmental Disabilities Lecture Series

New Jersey Training Network

Rutgers School of Social Work Certificate Program in Developmental Disabilities

National Links 

College of Direct Support

Human Services Research Institute

National Alliance of Direct Support Professionals

Project Director/Contact: William Gaventa
Staff: Colleen McLaughlin, Carol Britton