Photo Credit: Gwinn Nelson
In addition to appreciating his service to the community he loved, Ron was our friend. He served for almost four years as our Government Liaison Officer, overseeing contracts providing people with disabilities well-paying jobs. We were privileged to get to know him and work with him. Heartfelt sympathies to Ron’s family, many friends, and colleagues.
On behalf of us at HSI-WARC,
LaVonne Brooks
Pictured: Michael Brueggert (left) and James MacNamara of High Sierra Industries, Inc. represent many HSI employees responsible for making more than 600 face shields donated to Washoe County schools.
Jimmy Breslin, HSI Community Development Officer, with the help of Kurt Thigpen, incoming WCSD Board of Trustee member, delivering 600 face shields to Washoe County School District’s Administration Office.
iCelerate – High Sierra Industries (HSI) has been long-time professional partners with the school district by providing professional development training for the special education department and teacher aids. HSI provides learning methods and positive techniques using behavioral reinforcement for students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).
“Learners use a variety of senses when absorbing information. The face shields provide an extra layer of protection for educators and students throughout the day during in-person learning,” says LaVonne Brooks, CEO iCelerate – High Sierra Industries.
“I am so grateful to HSI for this donation,” says Kurt Thigpen, incoming WCSD Board of Trustees. “I’ve talked to many teachers and students who were asking for face shields and I know this donation is going to put a lot of minds at ease and keep folks safe.”
Team members with HSI’s iWork job training and employment program cut and assembled the 600 face shields. While practicing safe workplace protocols, in addition to our contract work, HSI also found a way to give back and help our community, most importantly, to those students and teachers to help keep them safe while they teach and learn.
Thanks to a grant from The Nell J. Redfield Foundation, we were able to purchase the raw materials for making the face shields. They were delivered to the Washoe County School District who will distribute them.
Pictured: Kurt Thigpen, Trustee-Elect for Washoe County School Board
Good evening everyone,
We can certainly say that 2020 so far has been a very unusual year. We are happy to announce the reopening of Jobs and Day Training Programs at HSI will begin on July 6. In keeping with Governor Sisolak’s recommended phases for reopening and the challenges of keeping everyone healthy and safe we will be engaging in a conservative reopening schedule as it pertains to numbers of people in the building at the same time and in the same area. Have an expectation that programs, facilities and hours will be adjusted to maintain all pandemic protocols. We anticipate phasing people served back into our programs in small groups over the next 6 weeks.
As you have had to adjust to all the changes in your life, we have had to as well. First, planning a safe close down while remaining viable, then doing business remotely, now planning to reopen. Modifying our program models so we can begin services safely and positively is our priority. We have experienced the loss of much of our manufacturing work so there will be a new program offering that includes job and employment skills development, pin-point skills assessment and training opportunities. While this new program will be an unpaid JDT program, we are excited to offer it. Also, a major change for both the new job skills development program and former iChoose Day Habilitation Program, program sessions during the day will be 4 hours instead of 6+ hours. Offering morning and afternoon sessions will help to accommodate more people given the limitations of available space. It’s different, we know, and we want it to be fun as well as safe!
As we reopen and evolve through our phases, employees and service recipients will be impacted in various ways. We are currently in the process of assessing interest and confirming program placements with our service recipients and their support teams. We will follow up with additional information and next steps for employees – be on the lookout for an invite to a virtual Microsoft Teams meeting on Friday, June 26, at 9 am. Hope everyone will be able to join!
Thank you all for your dedication and understanding. Stay safe!
Sincerely,
LaVonne Brooks
Hi all,
This is a quick status update and follow-up to the prior communication that discussed some safety measures. Thanks to those of you who have brought your questions, concerns, and ideas to our attention; it really does help us keep our communication lines open as the situation evolves so we can work through this better together.
We are currently working on program re-design and operational plans for phased reopening, which we will be submitting to Aging and Disability Services for review next Friday. Phases will be aligned as much as possible with the Governor’s most recent 4-phase plan for our state; more information will be shared as things solidify. Per last messaging, we will remain mostly closed until at least June.
While we plan and prepare for reopening, we will have very limited on-site operations running in the interim. These will be limited to essential: production work, administrative support (e.g. payroll, accounting, and executive functions), and preparation activities by program managers. Through this, we will continue to address questions and concerns to the best of our ability as we work to plan and maintain safe environments. Please continue to keep communication lines open so we can discuss and adjust as needed.
As we plan our reopening, we will be applying the CDC guidelines covering Covid-19 preparation and response for Long Term Care Organizations (see link below). These guidelines cover safety measures such as Infection Prevention and Control to: reduce facility risk, protect workers and people served, respond to exposure concerns, and implement or strengthen business practices to keep our work and service environments safe. CDC guidelines are an extensive and helpful resource, and we encourage interested employees to refer to the CDC Guidelines for Long-Term Care Organizations.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/long-term-care.html
We’ve also included another CDC link to assist us as individuals to cope and stay well as we meet these challenges and start to reintegrate into the community.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/index.html
After our phased reopening plans are submitted to the State and finalized, we will share that information with you, including details about each phase of reopening along with the associated positions and compensation available. Training and education around organization and job-specific changes will also be provided as a part of our reopening preparation.
Thank you for your continued patience with all the changes as we navigate these uncharted waters!