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Community Experience Programs
Kennedy Industries
Community Experience programs are small programs serving adults with varying disabilities and interest levels. There are 15 of these programs nestled throughout New Haven and Fairfield Counties.
Each program has been developed to meet the needs of the consumers who attend the program. The services are designed to assist the individuals develop their personal habilitative skills and behaviors.
Each program directs the services provided towards a combination of functional skill development in an inclusive community setting.
The overall goal for all of the individualized services is to enable the consumer to be successfully included into their communities.
All of the services provided at these programs are based on the principals of self-determination and person-centered planning.
These services are (click the links for more detail):
 Community Inclusion Services
Volunteer Opportunities
As part of our individualized training program, many of the consumers have the opportunity to volunteer at local Not-For-Profit Companies. These volunteer options provide the individual with a realistic modality for skill development. Over the course of a month, the consumers volunteer in over 20 Agencies. This volunteerism helps each individual learn valuable skills as well as giving something back to the community.
Vocational Options
In order to assist the consumers to be productive members of society the Community Experience Programs offer work options for those individuals who choose to work. These vocational opportunities include small bench assembly work, warehouse manufacturing and inclusive supported employment. These opportunities provide individuals with paid work options within a small staff to consumer ratio.
Person Centered Planning
On an at least annual basis through the coordinated efforts of The Kennedy Center's case managers and DMR, each has a individual develops a comprehensive individualized plan of services developed. This plan is developed with the individual and his/her support staff. This planning process is developed inclusive of the principals of person centered planning where the individual has a directed vision towards the future. As part of this process, personalized goals are developed to help attain this vision.
Community Recreation Options
As part of the inclusive services provided to all the consumers is the community recreation program. This program promotes adult recreational skill development in an inclusive setting. Services are provided at local facilities and parks.
Support Services
Behavioral and Crisis Intervention
All Community Experience Programs are staffed by individuals who have received a minimum of 12 hours of behavior management training and are certified in verbal and physical crisis mediation through the Crisis Prevention Institute ®.
These Programs are further supported by a skilled and diverse Behavioral Services Department.
Supports include but are not limited to:
- individualized behavior plans
- milieu development
- consulting with family and residential services
- informal planning
- personnel support
- individualized training
- crisis intervention
The level and type of behavioral support is dictated by consumer need as identified by the Interdisciplinary Team and the Behavioral Services Department.
Case Management
All of the consumers who attend the Community Experience Programs also receive individualized casemanagment services. The case manager acts as an advocate, quality assurance person as well as an oversight individual that insures that the individual is receiving all of he services that are committed to be provided in accordance to the Overall Plan of Service (OPS). This OPS is developed annually and reviewed on at least quarterly basis. The Case Manager is responsible to insure these reports are completed.
Nursing
To help to insure the individual's medical needs are being met there is a Kennedy Center Nurse available to individuals in the Community Experience Programs. This nurse service as a medical oversight person who helps to insure each individual's medical needs are being taken care of.
Recreation and Expressive Arts Therapy
The Therapies provide individuals a modality of self-expression through the mediums of art, recreation, dance, movement and music. This form of therapy utilizes the overall process of being creative and how one feels after this experience as the direct results to the services. These services are provided in an individualized as well as a small group environment.
Transportation
All of the consumers who attend the Community Experience Programs have the option to utilize and /or learn to utilize various forms of transportation services. The Kennedy Center has a fleet of vehicles that is utilized to provide daily transportation for individuals who choose this as the form of transportation to and from their day services. There is also Public bus mobility training available to those who choose to use this mode of transportation. Transportation to and from daily community inclusion activities is also available to all those who attend the Community Experience Programs.
Program Based Services
Functional Skill Development
As part of the Community Experience Program's focus to provide a learning environment all of the consumers work on the development of Functional Skills. This is completed through various forms of facility based and/or inclusive programs. The overall goal for all of the services is to promote the consumer's skill so they live as independently as individually possible.
Sensory Integration
Sensory Integration is a direction for many of the services provided in the Community Experience Programs. Sensory Integration is a technique of providing services to individuals who have been found to have Sensory deficits. This modality of learning focuses on stimulating the individual's senses which in turn expands the opportunities for learning. This approached is used in many of the programs so as to meet the need of the consumer's enrolled in that program.
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