Community Work Experience

The Arizona Pathway to Work Program Model is designed to provide individuals with developmental disabilities opportunities for community inclusion through structured, goal-based programming. All programs emphasize community integration to enhance social skill development, functional independent living skills development and  development of job skills, to ensure that our participants are afforded a full opportunity to engage in competitive integrated employment.   

All participants will engage in the Person-Centered Planning process to create their own Person-Centered Plan. Person-Centered Planning is an individualized and strength-based approach to life planning. This guided process assists participants, in collaboration with their families, friends, support staff, community members, etc., in creating a vision for their future, identifying personal goals, and identifying the steps to achieve these goals.

The Pathway to Work Day Treatment Program is a structured program focused on skill development designed to educate participants on how to better access their community. Individualized goals, created through Person- Centered Planning, will guide the participants’ choices of center based and/or community activities, and guide the staff to provide the supports needed to achieve these goals.    

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The Pathway to Work - Vocational Training Program or Transition to Employment Program (TTE),  provides individualized instruction, training, and supports for participants to develop work related abilities, skills and behaviors with the intended outcome of integrated and competitive employment.  This training program also focuses on soft-skill development through addressing the meaning, value and demands of work, including the development of positive attitudes toward work. 

PTW Transition to Employment Program provides a curriculum-based training program taught in small group sessions including visuals, videos, written instruction, as well as interactive and hands-on activities.  PTW Vocational Training Program (TTE Program) also includes community-based instruction by utilizing unpaid work exploration/experiences (job shadowing or volunteer opportunities) and visiting a variety of employment and community settings. These on-site experiences allow participants to practice their job skills to progress into competitive integrated employment, or group support employment (GSE). Participants person-centered plans and ISP will drive the individualization of programming, schedule for implementation, and assessment/data collection and progress monitoring methods. Pathway to Work Vocational Training Program (TTE Program) currently offers 16-week classes (for those members with some work experience) and 28-week classes (for those members without work experience). 

Pathway to Work will offer a variety of individualized integrated, competitive employment opportunities. A participant’s Person-Centered Plan will detail the employment choice(s) best suited to match their strengths, preference, and interests.  A participant's Person-Centered Plan may also determine if new employment options should be created. All participants will be provided supervision (both on-site and off-site), and transportation needed to support all program activities.