Napa Valley Support Services

Imperial way program (iw) assists in employment training for individuals with developmental disabilities. Iw focuses on jobs in the Napa community that are fully integrated into typical community settings. Due to remote settings there were challenges in these transitional employment models and community needs increased. Janitorial, litter abatement, and yard maintenance are just a few examples of jobs people with developmental disabilities supported by the imperial way program were employed at in fiscal year 2021-2022. Since many of the jobs we Support people in are fairly low risk nvss continues to Support people by providing safe opportunities so people can continue working. Due to covid-19 our buildings remained closed during the initial half of the fiscal year, and slowly transitioned to limited in person activities. The imperial way program continues to create alternative options to continue providing Services and supports: such as providing remote classes, technology trainings (examples include: virtual fieldtrips, bingo games, lunch socials, spanish, meditation and much more) and meeting with people for walks and to socialize outside.

Napa personnel system (nps) focuses on measured employment objectives for individuals with all types of disabilities. Our program participants at nps continue to work in essential jobs despite the difficulties of hiring through he pandemic and nps staff continue to Support them with employment objectives. Survey efforts indicate that nps continues to meet its efficiency, effectiveness and satisfaction goals: 50% of referrals were placed in jobs within 90 days of referral; 75% within 120 days and 100% within 180 days of referral. Everyone was contacted within five days of referral and 90% reported they were satisfied overall, with the hours they work and with the Support nps provides to them.

The brown street gallery (bsg) program continues to create alternative supports to manage the challenges of covid -19: like calling for wellness checks, supporting people to understand how to be safe, providing on-line class through zoom classes (examples include: virtual fieldtrips, bingo games, lunch socials, spanish, meditation and much more) and meeting with people for walks and to socialize outside. Some individuals were able to return to program in person on a limited basis and allowed for the creation of some new gallery pieces. As conditions of covid change the program creatively adapted to meet the requirements in a safe way. The transmission rate of coivd-19 in Napa county and throughout the united states remains high. Having an intellectual and developmental disability is the highest independent risk factor for contracting covid-19. People with intellectual and developmental disabilities are also six times more likely to die from covid-19 than other members of the population.