behavioral specialist

residential manager

registered nurse

therapeutic staff support

direct support professional

Looking Upwards

Everything sounds great when you first start here if this is the type of work you're aspiring to work in. The job itself is great, you get to work with individuals and watch them improve their lives/independence in the process. You make a real difference in their lives. The work also can be very easy if you have the personality/mindset for this type of work. The pay isn't great but it's decent for a starting position. The benefits are good too (in terms of health insurance, dental etc). So why is this rating so low you may ask?

Well upper-management will do everything in their power to make sure you hate your job and they will do everything they can to stop you from even being able to do your job the right way. The company's only concern is saving money and getting paid. If a person supported doesn't want to go out anywhere, they will effectively try everything to force that they do even though it violates their independence not because it's healthy for them but because that's how they will get billed for them. 

Your availability does not matter. If you are hired at the availability of working certain days and are unable to work certain days, they'll change that on you without even discussing it first just because they can. It doesn't matter if you need a specific day to watch your kid or a specific day to work another job, they simply do not care. But to add insult to injury, this doesn't even financially benefit you because while you are now working inconvenient days, they still have the audacity to cut your hours - again without discussion or warning *even if you were hired at a certain amount of hours*.

But you may be saying to yourself, ok well why not go to HR? They're there to help you against being unfairly treated right? Nope, wrong, they are completely and utterly useless, you may as well complain to a brick wall about your grievances because you might get a better response. They will literally ignore the main points of your complaint and form strawmen arguments around the smaller points you have mentioned. They will even try to gaslight you and try to convince you nothing was done wrong on the other end. They will hurl random fine written policies in your face to justify the poor behavior instead of doing the right thing even when these policies contradict the actions committed against you.

Ok, so you tried to do everything by the books. You care about the people you support, you don't want to quit, you're great at your job but you can't afford to lose hours of work and you can't work a certain day and they're forcing you to. So now what, you have a decision to make. Quit or suffer so you can still help those you support. But as a wise man once said, you can't pour from an empty glass so sadly the best choice is to quit.

Oh and P.S if you do decide to work here, make sure you call out as much as humanly possible. Lie you're sick, take vacation days. Take the day off just because you don't feel like it. Absolutely abuse their PTO policy to the max. I mean literally call out just because you got a bad vibe from the weather. Why you may ask? They don't pay out their PTO so you'll be screwed out of every dime you saved up.

Also I have seen too many people get screwed and pushed out of here because they stood up for themselves. So don't bother, just be a lap dog and everything will be okay as long as you're okay with being unfairly treated.



What is the best part of working at the company?
The best part of working for this company is the people — both the participants we serve and the colleagues by my side. There is a sense of purpose here that is hard to put into words. On even the most challenging days, you walk away knowing you made a difference in someone’s life, and that feeling is truly priceless. The sense of community, the support, and the heart that everyone brings to this work makes it like no other place I’ve experienced. It truly takes a village, and I am grateful to be part of this one.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Like any job, there are moments that can feel overwhelming, such as when staffing is short or scheduling changes come last minute. However, I have found that leaning on your superiors and communicating your needs goes a long way. They listen, they respect your boundaries, and they work with you to find solutions. Remember, no one can read your mind and everyone’s boundaries are different — the key is simply using your voice.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
With a full event calendar that includes evenings and weekends, special events, art studios, community gatherings, and outings to places like the YMCA and beyond, there is always something meaningful happening. Participants have the opportunity to engage in activities both together and on their own, fostering a sense of independence as well as community.
The culture is one of movement and connection. You will find yourself out in the world alongside the participants, building real relationships and making real memories. There is a sense of freedom in the work, and the organization supports that by providing resources like a company van to ease the demands of the job.
It is a culture that celebrates life, embraces variety, and puts people first. If you thrive in an environment that is active, community driven, and full of heart, you will feel right at home here.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Honestly, there is no such thing as a truly typical day — and that is what makes this work so special. Each participant is uniquely different, and the day is shaped around them and what they need. It begins with pickups at their homes, and from there the day unfolds. Some participants like to start with a morning coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts, a breakfast out with friends, or a quiet morning at one of our art studios. Others may have appointments to get to, errands to run, groceries to pick up, or a movie they have been wanting to see.
Some days are guided by the event calendar, full of planned activities and group gatherings. Other days, participants choose to go off calendar entirely and follow wherever the day takes them. Some love a structured routine and thrive on knowing what comes next. Others are wonderfully whimsical and keep you beautifully on your toes.
At the heart of it all, every day is about honoring what each person wants and needs. You are not just a staff member — you are a companion, a support, and sometimes the best part of someone’s day. If you love variety, flexibility, and genuinely connecting with people, you will never find yourself watching the clock here.

I worked as a job coach in the vocational department and had a mixed experience overall.

On the positive side, the organization treats clients and participants with respect and dignity. Coworkers are welcoming, supportive, and genuinely helpful to one another, which made for a collaborative environment.

However, there were several ongoing concerns that impacted job satisfaction. Compensation practices felt inconsistent and unclear—my pay rate was changed after I requested a transfer to another department, and hours were frequently cut or canceled at the last minute if a participant was absent. While flexibility is expected in this field, it became difficult to plan my days when I was sometimes asked to stay late or lost hours without notice. My schedule eventually dropped from 32 hours to just 12 per week.

Sick time and PTO policies were confusing and frustrating. Even with accrued sick time, I was told to use PTO for illnesses like the flu. The online system to submit requests was disabled, requiring additional paperwork for approval, which delayed access to earned time off.

There was also no structured training. I was expected to meet job responsibilities without guidance, as my director postponed training in anticipation of hiring a second person. When I reached out with professional questions, I often received no response. The career specialist role seemed ineffective—I was never introduced to her and wasn’t even aware of her involvement during my time there.

If you consider working here, I strongly recommend getting all details about your training, rate, hours, and time off policies in writing before you start.







This job has enabled me to become a better worker and focuses on what weaknesses I had and improved upon through strong teamwork and support. My typical day at work is that I do not dread coming in due to the fact I will always smile and enjoy what I do best which is helping the lives of others and guiding my coworkers in the right direction whether professional or personal.

Over the years, I had grown from being a quiet person to a person who is able to speak what is on my mind and what needs to be done whether improving morale of my coworkers or supporting the needs of my patients. It gives me great satisfaction and confidence to mentor and communicate effectively with upper management staff, physicians and nurses as well as community leaders through charity events. I managed to work extremely well under the hardest situations through the lives of my patients by keeping focus on the medical proxies and training that I have received. I am well respected in this company and they have seen my hard work pay off over the years and am glad that this company enabled me to be more motivated to do better in my life.

The hardest part of the job is that we had undergone many cuts from the state budget and have worked our way around it. Even though it may seem to be a struggle, I guide my team to think differently and not focus on the stresses of the job and instead motivate them to have fun at work and off work.

This place just takes people supported money. They do not give the actual support the people support deserve,  which would be a one to one. They never have enough staff for the amount of people supported , staff are always overworked and underpaid and the demand they ask are unrealistic . they want staff to have case notes of certain people supported also take out people supported to the same weekly activities and on top take daily notes on the activities that were at. Also in the same token u have to remember everything about the person u are with for medical reason such as allergies, behaviors  ect.and we had to deal with ratio that are illegal making people supported fail cause of poor paling in the company. A lot of position are made up on the spot to justify the pay raise they give,which is not much cause they are pre set raise and once u reach the max that's it for the rest of the time while u work there or move up to earn more.  and when u have a higher position u have the tile of 5 jobs in one wich over stresses the employees.

If you are highly educated and dedicated I suggest that you think twice before applying for this Agency. 
During the many years that I worked at Looking Upwards what I learned is that hard work and dedication to the people that you are supposed to work for does not matter for this company, their main goal is how many hours can you bill and squeeze out from the people that you support. 
The administration is for the most part clueless to the day to day work that goes around their programs, their policies are mainly ignored and dismissed. 
Their executive director is tone deaf and shows lack of integrity, that is also followed by administrators and a lot of the directors around the agency. 
Most staff is burned out, over worked and undertrained. 
There are better places to work than Looking Upwards. 

Focusing on the child one on one by bringing them out into the community. Working towards their goals and pursuing their interest. Through this job, I have developed a lot of compassion and experience by working with both children and family.
My management is the supervisor of the program and he is available and approachable if I need guidance. I have to work and develop a plan with the child's parent and they are in charge of their child's plan, etc. 
The hardest part of my job is not knowing the exact schedule of when I am going to work. The most enjoyable part of my job is working with the kids and see how much progress they make.    

What is the best part of working at the company?
The best part of working at looking upwards is the people we support and the coworkers that are so helpful and being able to bring the people we support into the community and help them with their daily living approach.  

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
that we need more people to help make this company move smoothly. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
amazing just like the people we support on a daily basis

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
activities of daily living. grocery shopping and appointments and being able to go and do amazing things such as trips, rides and places of interest for the people we support.

It takes a special kind of person to do this job. It is not easy. You are working with individuals whom have a difficult time expressing their feelings, some may not even communicate in ways that you are used too. This job has opened my eyes to see how people get treated when going into nursing homes or group homes, except where I work, we view the folks we support as family. We are one big family and we treat everyone with respect and do everything we possibly can to make the folks lives great.

depending on what shift you work you would have to assist the residents with their daily activities, such as showering, dressing, feeding. drive the residents to day programs. participate in day programs with those who stayed at the house. take them out in the community. when they had appointments, you would take them. do laundry. give out medication. the most enjoyable is the bond you build with each resident.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Behavioral specialist 6 salaries reported	$23.58 per hour
Residential manager 2 salaries reported	$63,440 per year
Registered nurse 1 salary reported	$38.00 per hour
Therapeutic staff support 4 salaries reported	$23.00 per hour
Direct support professional 1 salary reported	$21.98 per hour

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