The DSP Chronicles
Nancy Beatty at ACT Is A DSP
Who is About Making A Difference
 Nancy enjoys a visit to the mall
with her friends
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Nancy Beatty is a Direct Support Professional (DSP) at Alternative Community Training Inc. (ACT) in Columbia, MO. She works in ACT’s Community Integration day program and her guiding principle day in and day out is: “Who I am makes a difference.”
Nancy, 53, is our featured Direct Support Professional in our March DSP Chronicles.
Michelle Saunders is the Program Director for Community Integration and works with Nancy daily and says this about her: “I would describe Nancy as the anchor of our Community Integration day program. She gets things going each morning and greets consumers and family members as they arrive. She communicates necessary information regarding consumers and any needs for that day. She follows the rules to a tee and is very pleasant to be around. Many consumers ask to be in her group just because they like her and appreciate her caregiver qualities. She is a great DSP.”
You'll enjoy getting to know Nancy Beatty and you can CLICK HERE to read her story.
Maine Is Newest State To Utilize CDS
As Part Of Its Workforce Development
Maine’s Developmental Services system is adopting the College of Direct Support (CDS) statewide to develop and train its Direct Support workforce of approximately 7,000.
Some 125 agencies across the state serve and support a population of approximately 5,000 persons, said Paul Tabor, Maine’s Developmental Services Training Coordinator. He said that nine pilot agencies are in the early stages of implementing the web-based curriculum into their training programs. Tabor also serves as the CDS statewide administrator.
 Paul Tabor |
Maine has had a statewide curriculum of 45 hours of classroom training since 2002. That curriculum has been required for Medicaid waiver services since 2008. Maine has used the “train the trainer” model for its classroom training. “We had been using the same curriculum statewide since 2002 and it was good and consistent, but it needed a major updating and we knew it would be expensive and in another five years it would have to be updated again,” Tabor said.
So in late 2008 Maine Developmental Services began looking at CDS. “We were aware of CDS (Tabor is on the CDS National Board of Editors) and Office Director Jane Gallivan asked me to call around the country asking state directors about the CDS. All I heard was that it’s great, so I told our folks here that maybe it’s time we seriously examine it.”
Gallivan asked Program Manager Bill Hughes to convene a study group in 2008 with four representatives of the statewide provider association plus Hughes and Tabor. “In February 2009 Bill Tapp came to Maine to do an overview of CDS with about 35 representatives of provider agencies, consumers, and DSPs followed by breakout groups discussing pros and cons,” Tabor said. “The results of those discussions were followed up by the original group of 6, which led to the May decision to go with CDS.”
Once the decision was made to go with CDS, a curriculum committee composed of agency trainers began meeting to identify the CDS lessons that would be required in Maine. “We decided to integrate some of our classroom training along with the CDS because we had some specific areas we wanted to cover thoroughly and we wanted to make sure that we still had conversations mixed in with our training,” Tabor said. “We made a commitment that we would not require more than 45 hours for the combination of online and classroom learning.” He said the breakdown is 33 hours of online training with CDS and 11 hours of classroom time.
Starting in July, the usage of the CDS will become mandatory statewide beyond just the nine pilot sites.
“This is the dawn of a new era in Maine,” Tabor said. “The folks in the pilot sites are really excited about starting with the CDS.”
He then explained why the state selected CDS.
“CDS contains such a wealth of information, and its 24/7 availability is a big advantage for us,” he explained. “When budgets are tight and you have staff shortages, it’s hard to pull everyone together to meet for training. Plus, CDS is a nationally and internationally recognized curriculum and it’s portable statewide, so we decided that by investing in CDS we’ll be getting a lot more bang for our dollars.”
The committee assessing the CDS listed the following benefits in moving to the CDS:
· The CDS provides ongoing upgrades and a consistent training package that is recognized nationally. The Research and Training Center on Community Living (RTC) at the University of Minnesota is the designated National Regional Training Center on Community Living for people with developmental disabilities. The RTC coordinates the writing of the courses. In addition, the curriculum can be modified, wherever possible, to Maine standards, so it becomes Maine’s College of Direct Support Curriculum.
· Because the cost is based on the number of consumers served in the system, the curriculum can be made available to anyone in that consumer’s life. This means that not only DSP’s but individuals served, family members, mentors, board members, respite providers can all access the program.
· CDS offers a wide range of training opportunities beyond the core curriculum, including a training program for supervisors.
· The certification provided to the DSP from the CDS is portable.
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The CDS Administrator’s Forum, which is free and includes a complimentary lunch, is open to anyone who wants to learn more about the CDS online curriculum and the Learning Management System. The Forum will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, April 11, and registration at the hotel will begin at 9:30. People should consider registering in advance for the Administrator’s Forum by contacting Michelle Kael at 1.877.353.2767 (toll free) or email her at 
corporate retailer Lands’ End have joined together to create a new “CDS Company Store” from which you have access to the complete line of products offered by Lands’ End with the CDS logo emblazoned on all of the items you choose to order.