PRS has been providing mentally-ill adults in Northern Virginia with job and life skills training for five decades. Now it's time to go to Washington. (Reached for comment, Mr. Smith said "Yeah, do it.")
The nonprofit opened the DC Recovery Academy this week in a former charter school in Southwest to provide skills training to 60 young adults with mental illnesses and substance use disorders. PRS president/CEO Wendy Gradison (third from left) was approached two years ago by the DC Department of Mental Health. Mentally-ill young adults had been getting skills training and support through day programs and supported employment in DC but not in a way that integrated both services to help transition them into paying jobs or getting back to school. The seven-month pilot is being completely funded by the District.
PRS went through a major shift a few years ago when it realized that many of the young adults attending its day programs weren't transitioning to life in the real world. The organization designed a curriculum of 12-week classes from scratch to help its clients hold down jobs, attend school, and cope with daily responsibilities like paying bills. The shift worked, with 66% of clients who wanted to work getting jobsand 86% keeping the jobs for over a year. The DC program, which will employ two of PRS's veteran teachers, will focus specifically on employment and school for people 18-35.
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