The Haven

MISSION

To enhance the quality of life for individuals by encouraging independence, championing inclusion and advocating for individual rights.

VISION

Empowered individuals contributing and participating fully in the community.  

Serving more than 500 clients annually, The Haven, as it is now known, helps individuals with special needs from birth to senior-hood obtain the skills and tools they need to successfully transition into elementary school, gain post-secondary education, meaningful employment, community living arrangements and establish social connections and involvement within their communities.

The agency’s comprehensive programming includes an early childhood intervention preschool; a private school for children in grades 9-12 with a vocational focus; a high school program for public school students with a STEM focus; and programs for adults including occupational habilitation, workforce development, competitive and sheltered employment opportunities as well as community living in group homes.  

YOU CAN HELP WITH OUR CURRENT PROJECT - Classroom Update for Hands-On Employment Training

The Haven aims to help integrate people with disabilities into competitive employment.  We are currently raising funds to update an existing classroom located on The Haven’s campus, which will serve as a job skills training lab.  The room will be equipped with state-of-the-art teaching tools as well as areas and materials set up to simulate real life work opportunities within the community.  Through the hands-on experience provided by the classroom, persons with physical, development, mental health, sensory and multiple disabilities gain essential work skills.

A study done by the Center for Social Development and Education at the University of Massachusetts Boston found that only 44% of adults with intellectual disabilities aged 21-64 are in the labor force compared to 83% of adults in the same age group without disabilities. In addition, 28% of working age adults with a disability have never had a job. Florida ranks 39th out of the 50 states in employment rate for workers with disabilities. The Haven has made it our mission to change these statistics. We fully believe in providing adults with disabilities the opportunity to learn work skills, earn a wage and be integrated into the workforce.  The addition of the job skills training lab classroom will enable The Haven to prepare clients in a range of job and life skills areas.  Simulation areas within the classroom will include state-of-the-art teaching tools, including a smartboard with job training software for a hands-on experience and virtual reality videos set in a first-person perspective.   The classroom will be partitioned and materials will be purchased to set up real-life work experiences in the following areas: a grocery store; a bedroom/housekeeping area; a laundry facility; a coffee shop setting and a community helper station.  

YOUR DONATION MAKES A DIFFERENCE!  

There are more than 1.13 million Floridians with disabilities in the age range of 16 to 65 (the typical age group for potential workforce). Currently 62.9 percent of Floridians with disabilities are not in the workforce. As a group, this population faces staggering unemployment for varying reasons. What remains constant is that without gainful employment, many cannot lead independent and fulfilling lives. The Haven strongly believes that the employment training and skills building provided by the updated classroom, as well as actual employment opportunities, are a catalyst to economic progress.  

The Haven staff is uniquely qualified to provide the training and support adults with intellectual developmental disabilities (IDD) need to obtain meaningful employment that fosters community inclusion and personal independence.  As a direct result of the job and life skills training provided by the classroom, individuals will be able to obtain gainful employment within the community while earning a paycheck to further support their independence.  THANK YOU for helping our clients, residents and students!  By gaining hands-on experience in a classroom setting, they will actively develop and perfect the skills necessary to succeed in a job within the community.