direct support professional

case manager

mental health technician

custodian

support specialist

Pioneer Center

a typical day at work looked like:
Clocking in, debriefing with team, incident reporting, behavior tracking, goal tracking, administering medications, transportation, meal prepping, hygiene and grooming, some education, one on one in community, behavioral crisis monitoring and reporting, communicating with guardians, maid duties, to say the least.

what you believe you learned:
I can love what I do and never work a day in my life :), non profits need more financial support, non profits consolidate their funding, non profits could be more transparent

management:
Ever changing right now. Pleasant experiences with most office staff and lower management. The lower management is there to help you be successful, but you'll have to stand out if you are going to be recognized by the higher ups. Human rights are important and from what I have heard during my time there that should also apply to the employees in terms of wages, internal investigations, and work/life balance. Following the chain of command is highly encouraged. I can't personally speak from a managerial position, but I heard  there are expectations and I see them sacrifice a lot. Upper: There seems to be a direct focus on the face of the organization right now. Lower: Dedicated to their field and willing to adapt. Much forgiveness while I was there with a shift towards zero policy while I was leaving.

workplace culture:
There is a need for people with the heart for this field. And then there is a desire to make a paycheck. So you may hear some juicy gossip. Communicate your needs. House supervisors are very down to earth and can be pulled aside when not busy. Some office staff have an open door policy. Much higher ups require an appointment first and can be strictly business oriented. Nurse trainers are very understanding and forgiving. QIDPs and Behaviorists want to work with the DSPs to implement the right plan. Every house supervisor is dedicated to this field and proper training. All employees are welcomed with open arms, but should be open to constructive criticism. Guardians are 100% supportive of organization and direct care staff and open to questions.

the hardest part of the job:
Sometimes you might feel like you or your organization isn't meeting the needs of the individuals. That can really bring you down. Sometimes there is a stigma within the community and you will feel like you have to advocate for your individuals, your position, and your organization. Sometimes you need to decompress. Communication is important and I promise the house supervisors and most up to 1 year or more employees will listen to you. 

the most enjoyable part of the job:
Building rapport and making a difference. There is always something new to learn and adapt to and must be met with an open mind and open heart. I absolutely loved doing that :).

Overall:
If you're looking to pursue a passion and you think this is all or nothing then they will promise to make you successful here. For others, this may be a stepping stone towards health care and/or special education and they will get you trained. Overall, you will be sad to leave. I absolutely enjoyed my residents, most staff, and environment.

I loved working at Pioneer Center because the clients made it worth it. I do think there is room for improvement though from management. I was overworked and doing multiple people's jobs on top of my own. It was supposed to be a short term solution, but ended up being long term due to lack of staff hired. Everyone in my position was extremely burnt out from the paperwork and getting called in for behaviors. I had some trouble working here at the beginning as well because I was treated very poorly by some of the DSPs. I though it was a hazing at first, similar to a Frat hazing, because of how much I got bullied. Eventually, things calmed down, and I made friends. I will say that the clients made it worth coming into work every day, but the workload was just too much too manage, which made me get very sick from stress and burn out. I think if they had a better system, it would work out a lot better. I personally just needed more support in this role. The reason why I quit was to focus on school though. It's not because of anything stated above, believe it or not. I wanted to continue to work as a DSP in the group homes, but HR said that I could not due to accommodations for my disability, which did make me upset because there were a handful of clients that I worked very hard with to mitigate some of their maladaptive behaviors.

A typical day as a dsp, can be anything from bus driving, cooking, passing meds, outings, and personal care. The clients are great! I really enjoyed driving the bus and taking the clients on outings. This job gives you a sense of purpose and community. 

While the job itself is a great one, management needs a lot of help. People dont leave jobs, they leave bad bosses, low pay, and toxic work environments. If they hired higher qaulity, more experienced management, I think people would stay longer. 

High staff turnover is the reason Pioneer is always urgently hiring. I have seen a complete turnover of IDD upper management and supervisors in my 3 years at Pioneer. People with no previous IDD or residential experience are given supervisor positions out of desperation, and aren't properly trained. 

I think Pioneer would be able to hold on to their employees by addressing issues in a non aggressive way, and listening to staff who raise concerns. Telling staff what they think and how they feel, does not make for a trusting work environment. 

Micromanagement can hinder productivity and cause unneeded stress and frustration. Trust and communication is also important when fostering a positive work environment. A simple please and thank you can go a long way and including your staff during big changes would be very beneficial. 






Worked here for almost two years.  The plus to the job is the client's I had on my case load, majority of my co-workers, and the benefits.  The negatives to the job were over worked, underpaid, no time to take any time off, management making quick decisions, and micro-management of employees.  When I first started, the training was extremely poor, everything is on the computer and not really explained very well.  My supervisor, at the time, was awesome.  Very understanding, open door policy; however, she had her plate full to train, and the other case managers had a full case load, plus additional cases.  So, they were over worked and really didn't have the extra time to train.  Basically, you trained yourself.  Through my time there many changes.  Upper management could never give you a direct answer on how they wanted you to do things.  A ton of paperwork, never enough time to complete it, had to work at home a lot and then when directors changed you were told that you couldn't work from home, and couldn't have any overtime.  So much paperwork that it took time away from working on goals with the clients; however, the billing department made it very clear that you needed to bill for your client's.  Therefore, working all the time and never enough time to take any vacation time.

Pioneer Center is run without regard for the overall good of the employees. There is a lot of favoritism played between managers and employees, and among managerial staff and upper level supervisors. It was encouraged that employees report on coworkers behavior, putting employees in an uncomfortable situation with colleagues as well as supervisors. Compensation was low and work load was high, and there was a lot of micromanagement going on as a result of poor overall foresight into the running of programs. I felt that I was not given a voice at the agency. Overall with changes being made within the company during the time there, I didn't see much opportunity for advancement or job stability. The program I was part of was particularly poorly managed, leading to me working long hours that weren't conducive to my client base's schedule, so 4-5 hours a day without any productivity was normal. During that time, I was expected to sit around at the office with nothing to do and was unable to work from home to take calls or do paperwork, despite it not being a position in which a client may show up unscheduled.

The behavioral health division is a complete disaster. The current regime utilizes fear and punishment as a means of "motivating" staff to meet productivity standards. Those who question and suggest improvements are titled as "strong personalities" and are eventually forced out. No matter how many complaints are made to Human Resources nothing is done. Turn over is a huge problem here and it seems that both HR and senior directors are aware of what is causing this but are "powerless" to make changes due to the perceived power/influence of this particular regime has. 

Despite the terrible morale and hostility, I found my colleagues as the saving grace of my experience there. There are many talented staff who are compassionate and dedicated but are burning out quickly. Despite the abuse, they still provide their clients with the greatest respect and quality of care. I wish the management in behavioral health would recognize their employees' work and dedication. Hopefully, the new CEO will take immediate corrective action in order to SAVE the agency.

Pioneer Center purchased the McHenry County Youth Service Bureau (YSB Woodstock), that serviced the behavioral health needs of children, adolescents, teens and families since the 1970s.  Within a matter of time, Pioneer Center mismanaged funds, went into severe debt, and completely squashed any remnants of help for the underprivileged children and their families in McHenry County.  Despite the pleas of staff (many with BA, MA, PsyD, and PhD degrees) that many problems exist - Administration looked upon those who spoke out as a problem employee. The staff was amazing as they greatly cared about their clients.  However, Administration continually barked at staff to herd the clients (those in need), into Pioneer's services like cattle and for the staff to bill, bill, bill.  Believe it or not, there is a quota that needs to be met by a mental health therapist to meet every month.  Then how did you mismanage funds?

Loved the clients and coworkers. Management could not be trusted and were disengaged. Never knew where they were when needed.

Lack of employee encouragement, acknowledgement, respect, inclusion into operational and process improvements. Disinterested management who seemed put out when emergencies arose. Decreased moral.

Low pay for highly skilled employees saddled with many responsibilities. There were some good DSP’s while others were clueless and seemed to just babysit.

Client Workshop was closed. Big mistake. Clients lose out. Work program was non-productive in the placement and client training to gain the skill set for employment with able clients.

Computer access is great but unless you train them properly, what is the point!

Upper and Middle management is more interested in sports, exercise and community inclusion at the expense of client intellectual growth and proper etiquette with coping skills.

Unfortunate.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Knowing we are working for a great cause and working with wonderful, dedicated co-workers.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Sometimes the deadlines are close together.  In addition, the Pioneer employees work in separate buildings, so we depend on email a lot.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
We work hard but have fun doing it. Overall, Pioneer has a many positive qualities and continues to be committed to our clients and staff.  The staff support each other and are proactive since each new day is not the same is the one before.  There is a genuine effort to address challenges and create a more inclusive and supportive environment.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
This answer depends on the department you are in.  The staff working with the clients have a much more active and variable day than HR, Finance, and IT.

But, this place is a mess. I've worked places with high turnover, but I've never seen anything like this. Its bad when the dsps quit, but when higher ups start dropping like flies, its kind of scary. Nobody seems to know what they are doing. Some of the supervisors are questionable. 

The clients are great. It's them who ultimately suffer when they lose their staff. They deserve better. I do believe Pioneer center serves a great purpose,  I just think they need to get it together. 

This job is very unmotivating. No work/home life balance. No merit raises. Even when you're off the clock you are answering texts and emails. You can work here for 15 years and you will make the same as someone coming in off the street with no experience or med training and be expected to train them. Plus, they get a sign on bonus. Where is the motivation in that?

Again, it's sad because the clients are ultimately the ones who lose out. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Direct support professional 13 salaries reported	$19.53 per hour
Case manager 2 salaries reported	$24.38 per hour
Mental health technician 5 salaries reported	$17.80 per hour
Custodian 8 salaries reported	$17.25 per hour
Support specialist 7 salaries reported	$16.50 per hour

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