The NADSP E-Badge Academy has provided dozens of AHRC NYC frontline workers and supervisors with the opportunity to partake in a nationally recognized and accredited professional development program. On November 3, AHRC NYC executives, statewide leaders, friends and families gathered to celebrate the achievements of 44 people who have earned their successes through the E-Badge Academy courses.
“It is a tremendous blessing for all of us who have successfully completed the NADSP -based academic pilot,” said Matthew Halder, Community Support Supervisor at AHRC fisher day Center in Harlem. “This program has equipped us with various strategies, methodologies and developmental skills to implement in a sustainable and effective way to achieve AHRC New York City’s mission.”
New York Leading the Way
Lindsay A. Murry, Project Manager at AHRC NYC, has spearheaded AHRC NYC’s involvement in the E-Badge Academy for more than three years.
She said, “The NADSP program elevates the status of these professionals by improving practice standards, promoting system reform, and advancing their knowledge, skills, and values. Our graduates have demonstrated incredible dedication, balancing their learning journeys with the demands of work in life. We celebrate not only your credentials, but the passion, perseverance, and professionalism you bring to your roles every single day.”
Kathy Brown, NADSP’s Regional Manager of E-Badge Academy Operations, said that more than 3,000 certificates have been issued to New York-based DSPs and frontline supervisors, leading the nation.
“If you tell people what you do for a living [as a DSP], you still have to explain what it is, right?” she said. “You deserve the recognition and the understanding of the hard work that you do this is about your knowledge and your skills and your ethics and the certificate proves it to your organization, proves it to other organizations, and we are proving it across the country.”
Transformative Experiences
Participants in the E-Badge program speak of the transformation they have seen not only in their own work and philosophies, but also in the way the people they support respond to instruction and suggestions.
“I have this new level of confidence in my work. I felt like I was able to do more and provide like real quality support for the people that I support,” said Kembelyn Diaz, Community Support Professional at Brooklyn Transitions Day Services, part of EBS-Brooklyn. “One of the things I’m most proud of is that I have the people that support direct their own activities,” explaining that she has helped empower the people she supports to lead classes pertaining to their personal passions, such as physical fitness and language instruction.
Scott Diaz, a Direct Support Professional at AHRC NYC’s Munson residence in the Bronx, began the E-Badge Academy courses in 2022, seeing change within himself and how he works with residents. “Through my learning, I’ve gained more professional confidence in myself as a qualified, competent DSP, knowing that the skill set I have is beneficial to those who I support. The big lesson that comes to mind immediately is the fact that the work that I do matters, but I’ve seen a positive shift in the behavior of the people that I support.”
