Stories

Friendship Keeps Lakeshia and Shakeera motivated to excel in AccessCNY’s DSP certification program

Lakeshia Herbert Adams and Shakeera Hayward have been working side-by-side in Residential Services for eight years, so it was natural for them to consider applying for the Direct Support Professionals certification program at Onondaga Community College together. When Lakeshia was accepted into the program, she had just been promoted to Senior Program Manager, and was […]

Desire Ndagijimana’s American Dream realized through DSP Program with Onondaga Community College

Desire came to the United States with his family in 2016, after 20 years living in Uganda as a refugee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He felt that getting an education would help him achieve his American Dream, and allow him to help other refugees in Syracuse. However, he was forced to put […]

Cassandra & CASA

Cassandra had numerous moves as she navigated her foster care journey and never found the right family fit. As she became older, it was unfortunate, but clear that Cassandra needed to learn how to be independent. CASA worked with Cassandra to teach skills for independence and encourage her growth. With the Food $en$e program, CASA […]

Agnes’ CDPA Journey

Twenty-five years ago, Agnes found herself in a tough situation. As an active young woman with small children at home, the traditional homecare model wasn’t meeting her needs, but there were no alternatives. After a year without services for her Cerebral Palsy, Agnes learned about AccessCNY’s Consumer Directed Personal Assistance (CDPA) program and signed up. […]

Thank You- Jess Brown

Thank You Jess Brown If you’re looking for an all-around team player, then look no further than Jess Brown. Whether day or night, when Jess gets a message from a struggling Exploring Your World preschool parent she immediately offers personalized occupational therapy suggestions that can be done quickly at home. When staff were asked if […]

Thank You- Maggie Williams

Thank You Maggie Williams As a member of the Human Resources team, a lot of Maggie Williams’ work is done out of the public eye. But that doesn’t make it any less important! When AccessCNY’s Executive Team made the decision to start implementing COVID-19 safety measures, one of the first requests was that every employee […]

Thank You- Rich Llanos

Thank You Rich Llanos Those who have met Direct Support Professional (DSP) Rich Llanos will tell you about his calm, kind demeanor. In a crisis, there’s few better people to have around. This is a fact that one of our participants learned last week when bed bugs were discovered in his apartment. Rich has been […]

Thank You Jess Evans

Thank You Jess Evans Community Habilitation and Deaf Services Program Manager Jess Evans is always on the lookout for new and exciting ways for Community Habilitation participants to get out in the community and have fun. We’re happy to say that even the coronavirus isn’t standing in her way! While helping her program manage the […]

Thank You- Unique Peerspectives & Berkana Teams

Thank You Peer Support Specialists In the face of the coronavirus pandemic, the need for mental health support has risen all over the world. Recognizing this, the teams at AccessCNY’s Unique Peerspectives and Berkana programs have taken extraordinary effort to ensure help is available for Central New Yorkers in need. Some of their efforts include: […]

Thank You- Michael Scriven

Thank You Michael Scriven On a normal day, Direct Support Professional (DSP) Michael Scriven can be found at the David Clark Learning Center, helping members heal and connect through music. However since the coronavirus pandemic began, Michael has been helping to support participants at AccessCNY’s Boysen residence. Not only has Michael met this change in […]