direct support professional

intervention specialist

shift manager

special education teacher

residential assistant

QSAC, Inc.

What is the best part of working at the company?
You have a job where you will struggle as long as you work here 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The union consists of employees, from what I’ve seen that have their own agenda and rarely get much benefit from them. There’s practically no annual raises I might’ve got some cents on the dollar since I’ve been  employed  here and they hire out side people with a higher pay rate. Which  leave employees who’ve been here with no incentive to stay. 
There’s  no support, management and upper management have favorites. The minute you report any thing internally most of the time it’s ignored.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
There’s a decent mixture how ever there’s a demographic of west Indian culture whom are pouched upon and pandered .

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Depending on if you work residential and day hab your day can be different. In residential you work your 8-9 hour shift and you’re rarely allowed to take a break or get food. If you are allowed you adhere to the rules which mean you’ll take out residents with you whom have a multitude of disabilities and or level of supervision. Doesn’t usually equate to an easy day out side  to get food or have an experience. You can be hit. Have property damaged and have permanent injuries with little to no compensation. Some days are good and the residents have a good time the heart warming aspect of that can make it worth it.

I would set up my classroom wait for my students to arrive
I would assign staff to students and assign myself to a child, If new staff came into my class I would give them a very detailed outline of about my students, how this classroom works and the dos and donts for the entire building including my class. I would give them a tour of the building showing them where everything was and letting them know the specific procedure such as fire drills and what needs to be done if one were to happen. After the students come in all the staff are assigned to students and are to help them with homework and then start in on bookwork. Once the students bookwork is done then the student is able to go into free place they can pick an activity and then the person that is assign to them is to engage with that student and students that join in, we also made it a point to try and get the students to interact with one another and also with the staff. When it was snack time all the students are joined together and they eat their snacks together and this helped for the students to interact better. They would clean up themselves and if they need help with lets say the vaccume we incourage them to ask. The other staff is there so I can teach them how to work with the students and learn with the hands on approach as well as trainings.

At Qsac, I worked as a classroom special education teacher and supervised up to 6 teaching assistants during the school day.  I generated various programs, based on ongoing assessments, that I assigned to myself as well as to teaching assistants to teach via various methods including discrete trial training and total task training etc.  Applied behavior analysis was the primary teaching method of the school, as it has much empirical evidence of its effectiveness.  I worked with various ages from 5-21 teaching academic, social, behavioral and job skills.  My teaching assistants and I collected data and graphed regularly.  My teaching assistants and I also provided crisis intervention as needed to ensure the safety of the student, other students and the staff.
     At QSAC, I learned to collaborate with supervisors, parents and teaching assistants to provide safety and a quality education for my students.  Mangement, at QSAC, was very hands on and structured.  The hardest part of the job was intense episodes of aggressive behavior, which made it difficult to ensure consistent materials and implementation of teaching.  The most enjoyable part of the job was making a difference in the lives of the students for which I provided services.

A typical day at work is preparing the classroom to received the special needs children. Teachers and assistants would then take receive the students from the bus and help them to unpack. We would help those who need bathroom assistance, This would all be followed by breakfast.
    After breakfast they are separated into groups working on their IEP, which includes learning colors, numbers, shapes, and prepositions, phonics and then there is a break for gym. The students would then have lunch and free play. The students would end the day with painting, stories and arts and crafts. The students would board the bus.
    The students would be tracked by the teachers and teacher's assistants on their progress. Excellent and detailed notes would be taken on each student. 
     I learned that I am able to manage a classroom of eighteen students (or a class of twelve, eight or six students with special needs).
     The hardest part of the job is when the students have to leave at the end of the semester, after forming a bond with them. The most enjoyable part is seeing the progress the students have made, which is also satisfying.


      The management team is very supportive. They go above and beyond what is expected to make the staff feel accepted.

As an office manager work starts at 8:00. Heavy phones are typical for your morning start.  Van arrivals with individuals start around 8:30 am so the day starts to move. You will need to keep track of attendance with the individuals as well as the staff. You will submit a report regarding both by 10:30. You must make sure all visitors sign in upon arrival. You must page for all incoming calls. You should also follow the Staff schedule so you know where staff are assigned. All temporary have a sign in and out sheet that must correspond to their swipe in and out times. Van's must be signed in and out by the driver. All pouches with van information and supplies must be complete. All incoming mail and outgoing mail must be disbursed to the correct staff. Head count sheets must be completed and submitted by the end of the day. All head count sheets must be scanned and saved in a transportation folder. Assist superviors as needed.

This Company isn’t the best and isn’t the worst. Good for someone starting out in the DD population; good for a college student. The people we serve are awesome and you build a great relationship with them; they heighten my day. Some staff are not supportive or team players however it’s no big deal. The work load is doable however repetitive need better plans for the Individuals we support. Work life balance is pretty good with a chance to do a lot of overtime if needed. This company is extremely understaffed which is a downfall; management staff have no clue on how to better crisis situations and support staff. They don’t help or take part in getting to know each individual needs or the needs of the staff. There is a lot of child’s play in some locations and favoritism. In all honesty it’s best to keep to yourself and do what you have to do “remember your purpose.” 

QSAC's after school program in whitestone is an amazing place to work. It's flexible for college students, it requires training to become an amazing therapy assistant, it offers plenty of room for growth and advancement, and there is a great sense of comfort. It makes me feel like my co workers and supervisors are my family. I've learned how to treat and take care of those of disabilities. It made me appreciate those who are less fortunate, and made me want to provide a great atmosphere for them. Management is amazing. They push for us to be great at what we do. My co-workers are level headed, easy to talk to, and great encouragers. The hardest part of the job is when there is hardly any staff for a day, and there are so many kids and paper work to complete within the span of three hours; but I always seem to get it done. The most enjoyable part of the job is when I first get there, excited to see my consumers and staff. When we join together and play a game with all of he children and seeing everyone smiling and happy.

A typical day at QSAC was not healthy for my growth as an upcoming administrator.  I came from being in a professional environment and at the time of my employment the agency was a lacking this skill set. 

I learned that taking on a new challenge allows you to find out how  good you truly are verses how good you think you are.   The workplace culture at that time of my employment at QSAC was unprofessional.  

The hardest thing about my job at this time of my life was to find out my truth about me for example what type of administrator I truly was.  My test was either to adopt their culture of work ethics or remain professional.  The challenge was to stay at the job and try to share my talents with them to help the agency improve their culture.  

I can not recall an enjoyable time of the job when I was employed there.  I can say from that job I have maintained at least 3 friendships with people in management till to date and we all have respect for one another.

I work at the day school as a teacher’s assistant.  I work side by side with the classroom teacher in a 6:3:1 setting.   I am fully certified as a NYS Teachers assistant and I have experience with individuals diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental disabilities.  I also have experience in implementing the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).  My ABA training includes implementation of the following principles and procedures; discrete trial training (DTT), task analysis, chaining, reinforcement, implementation of behavior treatment plans, extinction, functional communication training and reinforcer assessment. For the past year and a half I have been in the Transition program at the day school.  In that program not only do the students cover the basic DTT, they also work on Vocational, pre-vocational and office skills as well.  All in preparation for them to graduate at the age of twenty one.  
I am also fully trained and certified in Crisis Prevention Intervention (CPI).

Either as a teacher, assistant, supervisor, office manager, there is a lot of room for improvement in creating a  supportive work environment. The statement of of you will be joining a passionate community of professionals and staff who support each other can be misleading because you do not get support from other staff because the majority engage in high gossip, staff worries more about other peoples personal life than the children, some will bully and try everything to bring you down or to the side. As someone stated the good ones are punished and the ones who don’t care are rewarded or favorite. Low pay and extremely high work loads. You are tired by the summer.  People come and leave after they see that there is no structure, extremely unorganized, there is no consequences to staff members that call out A LOT, a lot of things are hidden under the rug, burn out is high, if you are good at what you do you are targeted, and you just feel unanimated to come to work. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Direct support professional 114 salaries reported	$18.07 per hour
Intervention specialist 47 salaries reported	$56,064 per year
Shift manager 47 salaries reported	$19.72 per hour
Special education teacher 52 salaries reported	$77,500 per year
Residential assistant 25 salaries reported	$43,000 per year

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