On a cold Wednesday in November, The Guild School’s kitchen is a whirlwind of activity: one student pops a pan of cheesy pigs-in-a-blanket into the oven while another cleans up the countertops. More student chefs are putting the finishing touches on a second tray, taking care to wrap each appetizer just right.

In October, The Guild celebrated National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). NDEAM reflects the importance of ensuring that people with disabilities have full access to employment and community involvement. Throughout the month, the national #NDEAM campaign aimed to educate the public about disability employment issues and celebrate the many and varied contributions of America’s workers with disabilities.

Whether we’re in the middle of the action, hanging out on the sidelines, or watching from home with friends, sports foster community-building and a healthy sense of competition. The connection between sports and positive life outcomes has been well documented.

As part of Direct Support Professional Recognition Week, each day last week we highlighted a different DSP and asked them a series of questions. Read on to get to know two more members of our incredible DSP staff!:

Abenaa Kwabena, Residential Assistant - Framingham House

When did you start working at The Guild?

Meet our DSPs!

In honor of Direct Support Professional Recognition Week, we're featuring DSPs throughout the week so you can get to know The Guild’s incredible staff members! Read on to learn more about two of our outstanding DSPs:

Norman Rutinwa, Teaching Assistant

Thank you for joining us on April 14th for Suitcase Stories: Voices of The Guild, as we heard four Guild staff share their experiences as immigrants to the United States. The feedback was heartwarming:

"Thank you for sharing such powerful stories. As a fellow African, I agree we need to share our stories for others to know and appreciate our differences."

International migration affects everyone whether you are a newcomer to the U.S. or a relative, friend or colleague of immigrants. How we view and understand diverse backgrounds is profoundly influenced by the stories we hear, as well as our own interactions with people from around the world.

It is easier to have your own bias, prejudice and categorize someone to an already defined box without hearing their side of the story. “You only know my name - which you even struggle to pronounce right sometimes – but you don’t know my story.”

Our 2019-2020 Annual Report is here!

You can read the report online  or download a PDF for printing and emailing.

In the report, you will find stories about The Guild and the COVID-19 pandemic, our commitment to social justice movements, how The Guild School is transforming, and employee achievement.

In the high-turnover field of human services, The Guild has invested extraordinary resources in recruiting and retaining direct care staff members, including raising base wages, adding retirement benefits, and providing premium healthcare benefits. The result has been the stabilization of The Guild’s workforce and a remarkable advantage of diversifying the team with recent immigrants who represent at least 24 nationalities of origin.

On August 6, 2020, CARF International announced that The Guild for Human Services’ adult and youth programs have been accredited for a period of three years.