Dear Colleagues,

On Monday, May 25, a man died right before our eyes.  He died in real time and on instant replay, over and over and over again.  He died not of a heart attack, a car accident or old age.  He died under the knee of a person, of four people, who swore an oath to protect him.

George Floyd was an African American man who had two daughters, several jobs, and countless friends.  He was one in a long line of men and women of color who have died under a knee, at the barrel of a gun or swinging from a tree in a “free” country. 

Since June of 2022, a group of Guild School students have spent each Monday morning working at Hale Education, a scenic, 1100-acre network of trails and swimming areas. During their shift, students roll up their sleeves and make an impact on Hale’s trail beautification, cabin maintenance, and firewood clearing projects. All students are paid each week for their efforts. 

September 10-16 marks National Direct Support Professional Recognition Week! On any given day, direct support professionals are asked to serve in a variety of roles: coach, clinician, family liaison, employment navigator, and chef, to name a few. They work hard to meet the needs of those in their care, and too often this work is underappreciated and undervalued. This week and every week, The Guild is committed to recognizing the skill, creativity, and work ethic of the amazing direct support professionals who are such a vital part of our community.

In late 2021, The Guild for Human Services was awarded a $19,130 grant from the Sudbury Foundation to support an online expressive arts therapy program for families of nonspeaking children at The Guild School. This spring, The Guild’s counseling department rolled out the program in conjunction with Lesley University’s Clinical Mental Health Counseling cohort.

The Guild for Human Services is pleased to announce it has received a $4,984 Allison Keller Education Technology grant from the Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism. The grant will support The Guild’s Vocational Services department in teaching students critical employment-based skills.  

The Guild for Human Services, which educates, encourages and empowers individuals with intellectual disabilities, recently was joined by members of the Concord Police Department to honor seven Guild School athletes who participated in the Special Olympics Area Games in Track and Field competition this summer.

May 8th-12th marked National Teacher Appreciation Week! Throughout the week, we celebrated our incredible education team with events and featured staff profiles on our social media pages. Check out highlights below, and follow us on Instagram and Facebook @guildhumanservices for full staff features:

Maria Esna, M.Ed, Classroom Teacher

After months of planning, The Guild’s vocational services department was excited to open The Guild School Store at the end of February. The store, which carries snack items, school supplies, crafts, toys, and more, is located in the administrative wing of the school campus.

February marks Low Vision Awareness Month, a time to recognize the challenges millions of people in the United States face with low or impaired vision. By definition, low vision refers to having a permanent vision impairment that prevents proper eyesight and makes everyday activities difficult. Most people in the United States with vision loss have a form of low vision rather than complete blindness.

Trauma-informed care is a framework for human service providers created to recognize trauma's prevalence and widespread impact. Given that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) disproportionately experience traumatic events, taking a trauma-informed approach is crucial for human service providers.