Employment First Massachusetts

Combining Work and Benefits is a self-paced online course available throughout January. It’s designed to help professionals support individuals who are considering work, returning to work, or unsure about employment due to concerns about benefits. Through four engaging lessons, the course covers key topics, like financial well-being, federal and state benefits, work incentives, and maintaining healthcare coverage. Participants will gain practical knowledge and tools to guide informed benefits planning conversations and help people make confident decisions about working while maintaining essential supports.

Join the Massachusetts DDS Autism Division Team and Aspiritech for an interactive session on recognizing and leveraging the strengths of neurodiverse talent. Learn practical strategies to create workplaces that are inclusive, innovative, and equitable.

Who should attend? HR professionals, hiring managers, support providers, and anyone committed to fostering belonging and improving organizational performance.

Ever feel stuck between big dreams and concrete next steps? In this interactive webinar, join Amanda Purchase from MA Central/West Department of Developmental Services (DDS), and Haran Phaneuf from Multicultural Community Services to discuss how to use the tools flexibly to clarify vision, identify what really matters, and map out meaningful, doable action steps.

Whether you are supporting others or charting your own path, you will learn how to use the tools like a conversation—not a checklist—turning ideas into action with purpose, creativity, and confidence.

LifeCourse in Action webinars are presented in English on Zoom with live, simultaneous Spanish interpretation. Please let us know if you have any disability access or language access needs to attend this webinar.

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.

Explore how the Charting the LifeCourse (CtLC) framework amplifies youth voices, supports family conversations, and guides formal planning for post-secondary success. Learn how CtLC tools foster collaboration and can be used to put the YOUTH into youth engagement.

Presenter: Rebecca Davis, Federation for Children with Special Needs

LifeCourse in Action webinars are presented in English on Zoom with live, simultaneous Spanish interpretation. Please let us know if you have any disability access or language access needs to attend this webinar.

The Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) and the Massachusetts Department of Developmental Services (DDS) are offering up to 25 employment support professionals from DDS provider agencies the chance to earn a free ACRE certificate through the College of Employment Services for Independent Learners (CESIL). This training is only available to DDS provider agency staff and provides an Association of Community Rehabilitation Educators (ACRE) certificate, a valuable credential in the field of employment services.

This comprehensive 40‑hour online course begins with a live kickoff webinar on Monday, March 2, 2026 at 9am ET and runs through July 31, 2026. Participants will gain knowledge of best practices and apply their skills through field‑based assignments.

This course is offered online and accessible 24/7, providing flexibility for staff to engage at times that best fit their schedules. The training format includes video presentations, knowledge checks, discussion forums, case studies, and assignments, along with handouts, worksheets, and templates to support day‑to‑day work. All presentations are captioned, transcripts are available, and instructors will provide guidance throughout the course.

Please note: Registration should only be completed by individuals who intend to participate fully and have the availability to complete the required 40 hours of training.

It’s more important than ever that job seekers are appropriately using their time to prepare and plan for entering or re-entering the workforce. Participants will learn how to coordinate and implement person-centered planning strategies during these challenging times. This 2-session online training series will cover strategies to assess job seeker’s employment goals, abilities, interests, and capacities.

In this training, you will learn to:

• identify personal and family networks
• develop vocational profiles and schedules
• evaluate situational assessments
• create 30-day placement plans
• use Discovery to identify vocational goals and maximize information gathering

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