The Direct Support Professionals are essentially the gears that keep the College Experience and Living Resources, Inc. in motion. If the individuals we work with are the heart of our agency, our dedicated DSPs are the veritable arteries that pump energy within the people we support. Unfortunately, the passion synonymous with human service work does not always equate to a livable wage.
Our field has a high turnover rate, and some employees are forced to work second jobs to provide for themselves as well as loved ones. Just as much as we support these talented individuals, they return the favor many times over just like at the event within the New York State Capitol on Monday, March 25, 2019.
The individuals of Living Resources, Inc. traveled with staff to the Capitol Building for another #bFair2DirectCare Rally where they were joined by the collective passion of hundreds of DSPs and individuals with disabilities from around New York State.
Our Media and Activities Liaison, Jesse Saperstein (featured in one of the photos) represented the College Experience as well as our students who were committed to class during the rally. A second photo shows our Associate Executive Director, Steve Klein posing with those we happily serve.
Here at Living Resources, however, we are pleased to confirm the turnover rate is far less than other agencies, and we have been able to supply the staff with occasional bonuses to remind them that we recognize their unrelenting diligence with helping our individuals reach their potential. Our individuals and staff will continue fighting the good fight at such rallies. We wish to ensure that our staff has incentives to stay around for as long as possible and create consistency in the lives of those they serve.
The War Room in the Capitol Building was filled with chants such as, “Save our Staff!” and speeches from those immersed in the human service field. One of the most poignant posters features Franklin D. Roosevelt who lived with Polio-induced paralysis for most of his life while hiding the disability throughout his entire presidency. A quote of FDR reads, “By living wages, I mean more than a bare subsistence level – I mean the wages of a decent living.”
What comes after graduation? Many College Experience students, in fact most, choose to remain in Albany. They maintain friendships with their fellow and former graduates, form romantic partnerships, and some get married.