Career Opportunity Centers

Horizon’s Career Opportunity Centers are designed to serve individuals with mental health and chemical dependency disabilities who have expressed a desire to enter or re-enter the workforce. Our goal is to assist individuals in maximizing their independent functioning, life satisfaction, stability and involvement in the community by providing competitive employment opportunities in partnership with the business, education and treatment communities.

Horizon accomplishes this in several ways:

VOCATIONAL SERVICES

The components and services of the Career Opportunity Centers are tailored to the individual needs of the consumer.

Comprehensive Vocational Assessment

A typical first step for an individual entering the Career Opportunity Centers is participation in a thorough assessment that identifies individual skills and positive work behaviors. The assessment also includes counseling to assist in the exploration of educational opportunities to match trainees’ skills and abilities with specific job requirements and functions. Specifically, the Vocational Assessment will identify an individual’s vocational strengths, weaknesses and interests through vocational testing and behavioral assessment.

Career Preparation

The assessment is followed by targeted training in vocational adjustment and job preparation skills. Specific job skills training may also be provided on the job.

Training in job-seeking skills includes:

• Resume writing
• Cover letter/applications
• Interviewing
• Stress management
• Effective job search techniques

Job Development and Placement

The professional staff at the Career Opportunity Centers work with each individual to secure placement in meaningful competitive employment. At this stage, the trainee and the counselor work together to:

• Identify job leads
• Match individual skills with abilities to specific job requirements and functions
• Respond to and develop job opportunities in the community

Job Club

Job club provides a highly-structured group approach to placement, combining instruction, positive reinforcement and direct consumer involvement in the job search.

Job Coach Services

Job coaching is available for individuals who require individualized, on-site support to work successfully.

Job Support Group

Job support group is for individuals placed in competitive employment to insure continued positive work adjustment. These bi-weekly meetings address topics 
such as dealing with authority figures; budgeting wages; dealing with co-workers; stress management techniques and social/leisure time management.

INTEGRATED VOCATIONAL SERVICES

The purpose of Horizon’s Integrated Vocational Services Program is to work collaboratively with treatment agencies to provide vocational and educational awareness to consumers with chemical dependency and those with co-occurring disorders within the community. The program also provides vocational screening and success skills needed to positively engage in meaningful education and employment opportunities.

The components of the Integrated Vocational Services Program are tailored to the individual needs of the consumer.

Description of Services

• Assessment, group and individual vocational counseling
• Individualized educational assessments and vocational interest inventories
• Linkage/referral to training programs such as Horizon Career Opportunity Centers; Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID); Horizon Initiatives, Inc.; GED and Educational/Training Programs, as well as other community vocational programs

Success Skills Groups

• Groups are scheduled to meet weekly and last for six weeks
• Topics covered during the six-week curriculum include the following:
  • Self concept and self estee
  • Symptom management
  • Stress management
  • Nutrition/hygiene
  • Budgeting money
  • Time management
  • Ethics
  • Relapse prevention

Criteria for Referral Eligibility

• Participant must be active in an OASAS-licensed outpatient facility
• Clean time is not a requirement for participation in the program
• Linkage to VESID services is offered to eligible individuals once they have reached at least one month of abstinence

SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM

The purpose of Horizon’s Supported Employment Program is to assist persons with chronic or severe mental illness with job placement and on-the-job training.
Upon receiving VESID approval, individuals receive one-on-one assistance before, during and after the job search process.  As consumers are placed in jobs, Horizon continues to provide job coaching services by learning the job with the consumer, assisting them at work and monitoring their progress during employment.

Our Career Opportunity Centers locations include:

Bailey LaSalle Center
3297 Bailey Avenue
Buffalo, NY 14215
Phone: 836.3247
Fax: 833.4420

Hertel Elmwood Center
699 Hertel Avenue
Suite 350
Buffalo, NY 14207
Phone: 831.1977
Fax: 831.1985