Although helping individuals living with disabilities find employment has been a part of the J. Arthur Trudeau Center’s mission for decades, the newly redesigned and relocated Employment Concepts division is sending the message to local businesses that they are a resource for finding untapped talent.

Yesterday, a grand opening celebration was held at Employment Concepts’ new building at 3451 Post Road, directly next to the Trudeau Center, attended by many members of the business and behavioral health community. The new facility houses Program Coordinator Gayle Reid and her staff of job developers, vocational evaluators, job coaches and culinary program coordinators. Reid explained the goal is to position Employment Concepts as a place where businesses can come to find employees, similar to recruiting companies.

“Getting out into the business sector isn’t always easy,” said Reid. “That’s something we’re still working on.”

Trudeau CEO & President Donald Armstrong said the opening was a big day for the center.

“Trudeau is 100 percent behind employment first. We thought that by having this building strictly dedicated to employment, it would be beneficial to the community to have a special place to visit in order to match the skills of our individuals with your employment needs,” said Armstrong. “We look forward to collaborating with each of you as we continue this exciting adventure of employing individuals with developmental disabilities.”

Reid believes finding employment for clients has always been a part of Trudeau’s mission at some level, but it has grown and evolved over the years. Before, in the early 2000s, the goal was to fit the client into a job versus finding or creating new jobs to fit the client’s interests and skills, which happens today.

That change came in part from the Employment First initiative backed by the state and the U.S. Department of Justice to find individuals with disabilities employment.

“Employment needs to be the first option for those with disabilities,” said Reid.

Reid explained that over the years, there were two main challenges faced by her employment division. One was the Center was offering workshops to serve as a transitional piece between graduating from high school and finding a job, but they became a crutch.

“The workshops became another permanent place,” said Reid. Attendees did not want to leave friends in the workshops and families felt the individuals were kept safe at workshops compared to traveling to a job site.

This attitude changed thanks to the nationwide movement toward finding employment for those with disabilities.

“I wish it’s happened 10 years ago. People with disabilities should be working. The expectation should be the same,” said Reid.

A work-readiness workshop is still offered, but the attitude has shifted.

“The question is always when am I going to get a job. Now that is all they ever say,” said Reid.

Another hurdle for the division was when the employment division was housed in the main Trudeau Center building starting in 2007, fighting for attention with workshops, arts and crafts, and other fun activities.

“At first we thought it would be cool to be included with the community activities,” said Reid. “What happened was people got so involved in community activities, they didn’t want to look for jobs.”

Then the building next door, which was previously used as a residential administration building for Trudeau, was vacated and renovated to ADA standards. Reid estimates it sat empty for a year as Trudeau debated what to do with it. It was eventually decided the employment division could move in this past January.

By having their own separate space designed to look like a professional office with a lobby, private offices and a conference room, Reid says Employment Concepts looks less like a “program” and is more conducive to working with businesses. Having all different offerings in one building made for a crowded, busy space that did not give a sense of professionalism.

That has all changed thanks to the new space.

“When we came to this building, I wanted it to be business friendly,” said Reid. “I think the business world sees us in a different light.”

With their new space, Reid and her team have reached out to the business community and families of clients in different ways to highlight offerings. They will host a Business After Hours event with the Rhode Island Central Chamber of Commerce on June 18, hold open business meetings for anyone at Trudeau to attend, and have held open houses with benefits counselors for families.

“Families fear losing benefits or don’t understand how a child could work,” said Reid.

At a recent open house, Reid said families seemed rigid at first, but once they asked questions and understood, they left happy.

At Employment Concepts, evaluators work with clients to determine not only work readiness, but interests. Then job developers work with businesses to find available jobs and help get clients into those jobs. Job coaches will train a client while starting a job, then slowly back away and let the client become independent in their work.

Employment Concepts is funded for the most part by the Office of Rehab Services (ORS) to cover costs associated with finding employment. The Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals also provides long-term funding needs. Any individual with a disability that is a member of Trudeau or services through ORS can go to Employment Concepts for job assistance.

If a client gets a job and it doesn’t work out, they can come back to Employment Concepts and find something different.

“We want to make sure that job is a fit,” said Reid.

Reid recalled one client whose interests included arts and crafts and volunteering with the people. They ended up taking her to the retail store Marshalls, where she assists customers and fellow co-workers with a variety of things.

To find businesses willing to employ their clients, Reid first turned to businesses already invested in Trudeau such as donors, partners and vendors. Slowly, their network continues to grow. Employment Concepts currently has over 30 clients employed in paid positions and another 40 with referrals for employment. And there is no limit for how many clients they are willing to help.

“If we were at capacity [at Trudeau], we would still take people for employment services,” said Reid.

Some companies they work with are Automated Business Solutions, Buffalo Wild Wings, P.F. Chang’s, Marshalls, Hilton Garden Inn, city of Cranston, Greenwood Credit Union and Citizen’s Bank.

And the positions in restaurants are not just busboys or dishwashers, but backroom kitchen positions, thanks to Employment Concept’s Culinary Program. The 12-week program run by individuals in the culinary field allows participants to complete their food safety certification, a five-week internship in a local restaurant and learn the necessary skills to work in a kitchen. The program is currently in its third session, with each session having four students. Sixty percent of those who went through the program have gotten a job in an area restaurant’s kitchen.

“We made sure to hire people from the culinary field to run the program. We found businesses were more open to working with us and giving us opportunities,” said Reid. “So when they walk into a restaurant, they walk the walk and talk the talk.”

For more information about Employment Concepts, Gayle Reid can be reached at 739-2700.