The goals of our Adult Learning Opportunities are to provide participants with the resources, motivation and skills to secure financial stability and permanent housing. All guests work with a case manager to assess their needs and strengths. They develop individualized goals to work towards.
There are two required programs for all guests. One is called our Rental Program, which reviews tenancy laws, as well as tenant rights and responsibilities. The program also offers basic budgeting education provided by Citizen’s Bank. The second required program is for guests who are unemployed and seeking employment. This program is called Work Practice Program. It offers resume and interview coaching, job search assistance, education and skill development for soft skills related to employment, and actual work practice experiences at the Haven or with one of our community partners.
We also require all guests to participate in an individualized weekly budgeting coaching meeting with a trained staff person. This helps guests learn to manage a budget by critically assessing their spending habits, and practice making revisions to their spending and savings.
In addition, we offer many programs throughout the year for guests. We group our programs into three categories: inner growth and development, general life knowledge and skills, and concrete skills for achievement. We offer a Financial Literacy Series that focuses on common topics such as how to resolve poor credit; self-esteem workshops; health and wellness programs; expressive arts and leisure opportunities; parenting support and education; literacy skills development for parents; and mindfulness programs.
The Upper Valley Haven works with many community partners to have the individual needs of our guests met. We refer many of our guests to physical health services, mental health services, substance abuse services, vocational rehabilitation programs, family support services, economic services resources, and veterans’ services, as well as other places. Our guests typically deal with many barriers to success, and our community partners work with the guests and us to remove these barriers.