The Center For Career Freedom
Est. 1998
Success Stories
Profiles In Courage
Ahmeds Therapeutic Ladies
Dr. Mahmoud was searching for a provider who had vocational training experience with the I/DD population. Ahmed was bored at his Day Hab program. They would watch tv and wait for lunch or the bus. He lived at home and wasn’t prepared to live on his own or be self-sufficient. He had a loving family but no friends. His one interest was the computer. He was frustrated. The world seemed to have given up on him. He could not envision a future. Only his mom believed he had the potential to acquire job skills and work. At the Center, Ahmed became certified in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. His mom credits the Centers’ personal 1:1 training model and the staffs’ loving care for his success. We credit his courage, determination, and his moms’ love. Ahmeds’ diagnosis made him ineligible for Acces-VR services. OPWDD, reluctantly, said they would pay his tuition, but only if he could achieve Microsoft certification. He would be the first. His story spread. Now, we have five more I/DD students!
Ahmeds Happy Dance
Profiles In Courage
Michael and His Team
Michael was referred to The Center for Microsoft Office certification and employment. He presented with three disabilities: hearing impaired, unable to speak, and low vision. This unique combination of disabilities challenged the Centers’ staff to create a personal communications strategy for his instruction. First, our ASL interpreter translated the Microsoft Office lessons given by our NYSED licensed instructor, Ed Pinkowski. In researching the ASL signs corresponding to Microsofts technical language (signingsavvy.com), we could not find any signs for Microsoft Word much less for the technical terms, so our interpreter spelled out each letter. Michael’s sight is restricted so a Ruby magnifier and Zoom software were used so he could better read the screen (freedomscientific.com). An enlarged 22-inch monitor and color-coded keyboard also aided his visibility. While Michael is learning at a moderate pace compared to our other students, his memory is excellent. Now that we have a viable communications strategy, we expect him to earn his Microsoft Word certification in two to three months. We were unable to identify a government agency for support, so the Center gave Michael a full scholarship. The Center also donated keyboarding and practice software so Michael is able to work at home. Cathy, our job developer, is confident that Michael will be qualified for a part-time office job near his home when he finishes his training. We are grateful to Michael for challenging The Center to serve more folks with these needs.
Profiles In Courage
Joliese and Her Super Mom
Did you notice when people win an award, whether it’s for sports, acting or singing, they almost always thank their moms? Moms’ lifelong love and encouragement are a powerful force in folks achievement. We’ve found at the Center that moms are the secret behind our students’ success. Anneliese, Joliese’s mom, is the Administrative Assistant to Dr. Alexopoulos, the notable head of the specialized services division at New York Presbyterians adult inpatient unit. Anneliese was involved at every step of Joliese’s progress, from Microsoft and QuickBook certifications to paid peer instructor. We first met Joliese and her mom two years ago. She was referred by Access-VR. Her counselor felt The Center’s courses and demeanor was a good fit for Joliese’s goal of upgrading her career from a retail job at BBB to using computers in a health, educational or office environment. Less stress, more money, job satisfaction, and security. In the past two years Joliese has achieved a remarkable array of milestones: Microsoft certification in Word, Powerpoint, Excel, Outlook, and QuickBooks. Extensive paid experience teaching students with a variety of disabilities. Improved driving skills and obtained a passport. She volunteers at N.Y. Presbyterian Hospital, teaching seniors how to use the computer Her future plans include air travel, income, tax courses at Sunys’ Empire College and her own apartment. Congratulations Joliese!
Profiles In Courage
Gwen, Toniquas’ amazing mom, did most of the talking at intake; how she fought with the public schools’ counselors over Toniquas diagnosis and referral to the Hallen School in New Rochelle. She felt the counselor’s assessment was wrong, that her daughter was capable of “normal” classes. She lost the argument. But Gwen didn’t give up. Her training as a guard at Rikers’ Island taught her patience. Toniqua surprised us — she excelled in our student-centered “flipped” classroom model. She had a personal trainer; she learned at her pace. For the first time, she was in charge. She grew stronger; confident, more verbal with every test she passed. Within weeks Toniqua achieved Microsoft certifications in Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Excel. (These are the most often asked for credentials by employers on Indeed.com) Then, she studied and passed her Microsoft Suite Master exams required for NYS Ed teaching license. Following her peer instructor internship and New York Licensure, the Center hired Toniqua in 2018. The first thing she bought with her first paycheck was dinner with her mom! This year, the Hallen School hired Toniqua to teach keyboarding and Word part-time.
Profiles In Courage
Daniel was referred to the Center by the Foundation for the Blind. A graduate of Westchester Community Colleges’ Cyber Security program, he was hired to teach introductory computer classes to our students and JAWS/NVDA and MTA to our staff. We teamed Dan up with Eric to develop a quiz about hardware and software basics to access new students from Westchesters’ High Schools. The assessments would be attached to their Acces-VR’s applications for future assistance along with a keyboarding test. As you could imagine, there are some unique challenges for the blind instructor to teach a sighted student, but Daniel is special; he has an excellent memory, above-average intelligence, and his dads help to learn software/computers since he was three. With assistance from a fellow instructor, the student begins with the home page. Dan walks them through the functions from memory. Dan envisions a time when Artificial Intelligence (AI) (Alexa/Siri) is sufficiently developed to take over! Dans’ career in cybersecurity is taking off. He just got accepted to John Jay College in Manhattan. Congratulations. Dan – you’re definitely going places, glad we could help you on your journey.
