clinician

special education teacher

occupational therapist

direct support professional

clinical support staff

Woods Services

Before I started my job, I was excited because Woods seemed like a great company to work for. In the orientations and trainings, the company truly knows how to put on their best facade, promising professionalism, and top notch care to their residents. However, when you actually begin the job, you will ask yourself “what did I just get myself into?” The company promises on the job training to new staff and that is one of the many blatant lies they tell. New staff will mostly be told “figure it out”, by their co workers, and supervisors do not even know what’s going on half of the time. You will find yourself repeating the same thing over and over again, and find yourself very frustrated. The residents are always mistreated by staff, the way they are talked to and handled, their families would be VERY upset so see half of the things that go on behind closed doors. You will find that a majority of your co workers, are extremely unprofessional, and disrespectful. Yes, woods is so desperate to hire ANYBODY. The good co workers you do find, keep them close, cause they are as rare as a diamond. Cant forget to mention that a bunch of the supervisors have their favorites, and will let those “special” people get away with the most ridiculous of things! If what I wrote wasn’t infuriating enough, I got a lot more to share! Each resident has their own shower bins, these bins (SHOULD) contain, deodorant, a tooth brush, a bar of soap, and tooth paste. It is a rare occurrence that these bins are stocked properly, most of the time you will always have items missing or all items missing, making it 10x harder to care for your client since you will be running around like a chicken with no head, to find stuff. Be prepared to have days where it’s just you in your building/unit because your co workers decide not to show up, or they go “for lunch” and return hours later. Team work is basically non existent at woods. There is probably so much more to say, but if you are looking to apply here, don’t. If you are a new hire, run. This place is an absolute joke, and it’s truly a shame for these poor residents and for all of the good workers who do go above and beyond. Also, this is a very difficult and challenging field of work, and what they pay, is very low for all that we do. Hope this helped! 

The benefits are pretty good after a 6 month probation period. However residential counselors are expendable and many are lucky to survive 6 months. There is a reason the turnover is 30-40% each year requiring continual and ongoing hiring. Actually there's a whole training center that hosts orientation on a bi-weekly basis. 

The job itself is what you make of it, there are good people and bad that work here. Those that care for the clients and those there just to do the bare minimum and get there pay-check. The major problem is that the Upper Management (Woodlands Program) is more concerned about presenting the facade of excellence than attaining it. This is to the detriment of both clients and staff. I was forced to discipline and at times terminate staff that, in my belief, cared to much and were perceived a liability because they may rock the boat and shed light on the high level of abuse that is prevalent. I started as a CCW and witnessed this first hand. After promotion staff obviously were not so open about it but i was aware. I took concerns to upper management and they were essentially discarded. 

Good place for a paycheck but if you want to make a real difference forget it. Bureaucracy is rife and the Directors care more about the funding than the clients. 

A typical day at work is majority of the time smooth. I work with people with disabilities. I go into work with my mind set for my clients nothing else matters. I work with fulfilling their wants and desires. I try to make them as happy as possible which isn't so hard because everything they want is easy to give such as my time, my smile, my effort, and my love. I learned that I was put here for a special reason for my clients because it isn't always easy working with non-verbal people but its the fact that I take the time to get to learn them day to day. Sometimes I feel like my co-workers aren't as  sincere about their job as I am (most are) but just some aren't . I feel like some people are just there for a pay check but I think in this field those intentions are all the way wrong. The hardest part about my job is sometimes not knowing what is wrong with my client, especially if they are in pain or upset. I say that because I want to always make sure they are always okay and when they are non-verbal its like playing charades with them and it might get frustrating to them because I am taking too long. The most enjoyable part about my job is going in with a smile and leaving with a smile. I tend to smile all day because there isn't anything to not smile about! I go in there taking care of people I love so much and I know that they love me back and what isn't to smile about that it's the most amazing feeling ever.

What is the best part of working at the company?
There is no best part of working with this company. They are very under staffed and as such, the residents (clients) are not receiving adequate care. There is a systematic neglect of people's loved ones at Woods Services. Very poor quality of care especially in the clients' home/resident. The staffing ratio of clients to staff is nothing good to mention. Sometimes, only 1 staff to more than 5 clients (kids that need intensive care). ....

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Very poor staffing. Staff are not going for employment at Woods Services because of very low compensation and pay rate. The work load does not commensurate with the salary or pay rate.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Very bad working environment. The is a systemic neglect of people's loved ones (clients) due to under staffing. The staffing ration for staff to client is very bad. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Every day is a very difficult day to work at Woods. Staff often call off due to lack of adequate staffing to catter for the kids. During my time at Woods Services, many staff quitted because of bad systemic bad work practices and underpayment of staff.

Non profit organization that serves special needs. I arrange the medical appointments as well as correspond with transportation to get individuals to various medical off campus appointments as well as assist nursing staff and case managers with essential paperwork needed. I've learned a great deal about various insurance policies and how to obtain referrals, as well as having thorough communication skills between various medical offices/ specialists and guardians. Management is mostly hands on and thorough with what is expected in staff positions as well as guided by strict office policies and procedures. Hardest part of the job is enjoying what I do but I also understand that I cannot advance further and learn more skills or acquire reasonable compensation for years put into company. I thoroughly enjoy meeting and interacting with our residents as well as doing the best I possibly can to help them with their appointments. I treat every appointment as though it is my own and I give every attention to the smallest details presented to me. 

Woods Services has been a good place to work for the past year. A typical day at Woods has been to clock in, interact with the clients by assisting with personal living and develop routines for clients who need further assistance if they lack the necessary skills. Management for the most part has been good to me. They have been willing to answer any questions I've had in regards to how to better serve the clients. Many of my coworkers are more than willing to assist with crisis situations and are the most colorful bunch to be around. The hardest part of the job is when you deal with clients who are continually physically aggressive and the amount of time the position takes away from your social life. The most enjoyable part of the job has been learning how to interact with the clients and seeing how different each client was. Learning that just because they have an developmental disability does not mean they conform to one way of acting and have feelings too. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
The best part of working here is the supportive upper management and the strong emphasis on work-life balance. I also value the opportunity to work closely with my clients and take pride in seeing their growth and progress over time

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
One of the more stressful parts can be managing multiple clients who all need attention at the same time.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
I appreciate the balance between structure and independence. The clinical director provides clear direction, but I’m trusted to carry out interventions effectively. The team is also very supportive, which makes the work environment strong and collaborative.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
My day usually starts with reviewing emails and my schedule for meetings with parents or insurance providers. Then I move into direct client work. For each client, I complete two individual sessions, two group sessions, and at least one parent training session per week, while also collaborating with the team to maintain consistency in care.

I've worked here for years in various positions, and I do love the clients and most of the employees and management. I do overall enjoy my job and working here... But it really depends on your department, building, and position whether you have a good work experience here. You have growth opportunities within the company, but the pay across the board is not good and they're always reluctant to increase it. They give us cost of living increases, but it's not enough. You work here because you love the clients and you love what you're doing. Unfortunately most people here have to work a lot of overtime or have a second job to live comfortably... So it all depends on your needs in life. The benefits are good, though... Health insurance is great, 403B contribution/match, and you can get tuition reimbursement and even work on your degree through programs here. Behavioral clients are also challenging, but (depending on your building!!!) there is a good teamwork environment to handle these challenges.

Not a good place to work because Executive management and above reflects  primary one culture/race, and representation matters. 

I worked at Woods for approximately 5 years. I stayed throughout this time in order  to make a difference in the lives of the individuals that are serviced there. However, due to the cultural insensitivity that occurs frequently within executive management and above,  I had to end my tenure. Being in management, I thought my representation would be significant. It was not. No one knew who I was or the instrumental role that  I played in developing a community base agency. I was kept in the shadows purposefully by leadership. As a result, credit and promotions was given to another person who reflected the dominate executive leadership culture/race.  

All in all, I write this review not to bash Woods Services but to bring awareness to leadership to “do better” with inclusion of all people to executive leadership positions, REPRESENTATION MATTERS! Let advancements be based on merit and nothing else.  


Woods will paint a picture of how nice this place is but in reality it is horrible. Training/orientation will not properly prepare you for your exact position because everything is unpredictable. You are underpaid for the amount of work you have to do, the company let the clients run out of control. Easy to be accused of here and the clients will always win. You'll be lucky if clients dont bad mouth, throw things, and actually cooperate with you. The founder of woods will not be happy of what is going on here if she was alive today. Use this job as a part time job, try to work overnight, and definitely have a back up plan. Dont make a career here. Background checks is too much for a job that is paying you 11 dollars a hour. Woods will hire anyone but what they need to do is hire specifically trained individuals who can probably deal with these clients. This is a whole other world of security. There is better paying jobs out there which require less work and less stress. A lot of people do overtime here, wont catch me doing that. Breaking my back and stressing aint worth it for this place.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Clinician 4 salaries reported	$51,750 per year
Special education teacher 3 salaries reported	$47,667 per year
Occupational therapist 3 salaries reported	$70,333 per year
Direct support professional 3 salaries reported	$14.63 per hour
Clinical support staff 1 salary reported	$18.20 per hour

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