Spectrum Arch, Inc.After school ends, the big question for most families is simple: what will my son or daughter do all day? In the OPWDD system, the answer usually involves one or more of three services. Their names are not very descriptive, so here's what each is actually for.
Day habilitation
Day habilitation focuses on building and keeping everyday skills: self-care, communication, social skills, getting around the community, and adult learning. It takes place outside the person's home, often mixing time at a program site with activities and volunteering in the community.
It often suits people for whom paid work isn't the goal right now, and who benefit most from structure, connection, and skill-building.
Prevocational services
Prevocational services prepare someone for work without being a job yet. The focus is on the skills that make employment possible: following directions, staying on task, finishing a task, solving problems, and working safely. These services can be site-based or community-based, and community-based programs often include volunteer work.
It often suits people who want to work eventually but need time to build stamina and work habits first.
Supported employment
Supported employment has a clear goal: a real job, in a regular workplace, paying at least minimum wage. Support includes help finding the job and then the coaching needed to keep it.
It often suits people who are ready to work, or close to it, with the right support on the job.
You don't have to pick just one
Many adults combine services: for example, two days of supported employment and three days of day habilitation, or prevocational services that lead into a job over time. If your family self-directs, a budget can mix these with other supports to build a week that fits.
Questions to ask when visiting a program
- What does a typical day look like here, hour by hour?
- How much time is spent in the community, and doing what?
- How do you support people with sensory needs or who find groups hard?
- For employment programs: how many people have you helped into paid jobs, and how long do they stay?
And if work is a goal, ask your Care Manager about ACCES-VR, New York's vocational rehabilitation service, which can also help.
Sources: OPWDD, Site-Based and Community-Based Prevocational Services regulations; OPWDD Self-Direction Guidance (March 2022); ACCES-VR.