Empowered Pathways

In 2022, WERC at Empowered Pathways offered job training programs which included computer training, job interview skills, communication skills, soft skills for the workplace. We also continued teaching virtual platforms such as ZOOM and WebEx. WERC sercices are tailored to each individual's needs and address barriers to employment such as transportation, childcare,education, illness and physical disabilities. In addition, our Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Services continues to be an effective process for resolving family and community conflicts. We expanded our ADR services to include Family Group Conferencing, also known as Family Group Decision Making, provides families with an alternative and less Antagonistic method of working cooperatively with Social Services, Juvenile Justice systems, educational institutions, family court, and other disciplines. This process gives families experiencing high conflict or engaged in a process where they are compelled to surrender their parental rights or custody, the choice to enter a more empowering, respectful process where their voices are heard, and agreements are cultivated by the family and extended family members. In December 2022,we created two traing videos for Oneida County Department of Social Services to help launch the family group conferencing process. The videos explain the Family Group Conferencing process and the casereferral process. We continue to provide services to schools in Oneida and Madison Counties, including our School Attendance Mediation Process (STAMP). Our referrals for Schools services increased by 25% in 2022.Our child custody/visitation mediation cases and small claim mediation cases doubled from 2021 to 2022. This is due to the implementation of ADR initiative a statewide project through the Unified Court System in which the Courts send parties to mediation at their first court appearance to see if an agreement can be reached out of court. This initiative has been very successful. Our Youth Services Program provides intervention for juvenile offenders and youth struggling with interpersonal conflicts. Our Project STAMP (School Tardiness and Attendance Mediation Program) is an early intervention initiative in which trained, experienced mediators bring the students, school counselors, and parents together to work out a plan to resolve the student's school attendance problems. School Attendance Mediations are student-centered and goal focused. The mediation begins with the student's perspective of the attenance problem, which is a critical element of the process. This service continues to expand. In 2022, 120 families were served through Project STAMP.