Employment First Massachusetts

Join us on Wednesday, October 8, at 12pm for the next webinar in our LifeCourse in Action series, Planning and Setting Goals for Employment.

In recognition of National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), this webinar will highlight how Charting the LifeCourse (CtLC) can be a valuable resource and tool for supporting employment. Join Tina Macy, employment supervisor of Regional Employment Services (Central/West) and Eliza Mallette, a person with Autism Spectrum Disorder who currently works as an administrative clerk for the Springfield/Westfield Area Office, as they walk participants through how to use a portfolio of key CtLC tools adapted specifically for planning employment.

LifeCourse in Action webinars are presented in English on Zoom with live, simultaneous Spanish interpretation.

Developing job opportunities and finding the right job match in an ever-changing economic environment places increasing demands on employment professionals. This 3-session online training series focuses on understanding employer needs and developing quality job matches.

In this training, you will learn about:

• employer networking

• marketing to employers and responding to objections

• using social media and other tools to market the job seeker

• identifying unmet business needs

• dealing with disclosure

• job carving and creation

You must attend all three sessions to receive a letter of completion.

Join us for this webinar to explore how artificial intelligences (AI) can enhance employment services. This session will provide practical tools and strategies for professionals, including:

• a beginner’s guide to using AI
• AI guidelines around privacy and safety
• common ways we use AI in employment services for people with disabilities
• techniques for refining prompts to achieve more precise results
• using ChatGPT for job matching, crafting cover letters, and optimizing resume keywords

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn how AI can transform your approach to supporting job and career seekers! This webinar is for any staff or educators who help people find or maintain competitive employment.

Questions? Email Kelly.Wanzer@umb.edu.

This 3-day training focuses on how work earnings affect Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), Medicaid, Medicare, subsidized housing, food stamps, and other public benefits. Included is a review of work incentives associated with each benefit and how they can assist individuals with disabilities to transition into employment or increase earnings without jeopardizing benefits. This training is geared toward employment professionals, case managers, and rehabilitation counselors.

• As a result of attending this training, participants will be able to:
• Differentiate between SSI and SSDI, Medicare and Medicaid
• Explain how earnings will impact cash, healthcare and other benefits
• Educate consumers about the rules and best practices to report income
• Describe how work incentives can help consumers to make a smooth transition to work
• Direct consumers to resources that can help address their employment and benefit related needs

Questions? Contact Berenise Reyes-Albino at Berenise.albino@umb.edu

Supporting individuals to be successful at their jobs is not as easy as it sounds. It requires many skills, including excellent communication, maintaining relationships with multiple team members (including employers), knowledge about accommodations and assistive technology, and effectively assisting people with various disabilities to learn and master new tasks.

In this training, you will learn about:

• best practices and strategies needed to support individuals in meeting their

employment goals

• the role of the job coach

• natural supports and social inclusion

• systematic instruction

• job maintenance and self-management techniques

• fading and behavioral support strategies

You must attend both sessions to receive a letter of completion.