Community Guide Assistant (Activities Facilitator for Adults with Disabilities)

Are you a people-person who likes to stay active, try new things, and help others? If so, this position might be a great fit for you. Key skills needed are a strong work ethic, responsible professionalism, and emotional maturity, with a healthy dose of compassion. The Community Guide Assistant at ACAP supports and assists adults with disabilities in reaching their personal goals and developing community relationships in the Waukesha region.

“After 30 years at ACAP, I still love coming to work,” Lisa, Community Guide.

Wages:

Pay range is from $16-20/hour, 3-4 days/week, with some flexibility available in determining the work schedule. ACAP urges individuals who have just graduated, who have non-traditional work histories, or who have had breaks in their work history, to apply. We value a diversity of backgrounds in our staff.

Duties and responsibilities include the following:

• Assist Community Guides in the delivery of programs and program objectives.
• Support ACAP members as they participate in ACAP activities.
• Assist members with personal care needs, including washroom, meals, etc., as directed.
• Maintain clear communication with coworkers relative to member needs, scheduling, and any other issues that might come up.
• Engage as a peer with members, drawing members out, and promoting relational skills.
• Ability to handle written reports as requested or assigned.
• Other duties as assigned.

Essential Functions:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below represent the knowledge, skill, or ability needed.

• Support members who have a wide range of physical, cognitive, and developmental disabilities in their ACAP experiences.
• Consistently contribute to a positive workplace culture, with appropriately compassionate, collegial, supportive, and team-oriented attitude.
• Adhere to organizational processes, procedures, rules, and guidance.
• Strong communication skills, including the ability to work constructively through conflict.
• Personal cares as directed.
• Prepared to assist members and colleagues as needed, understanding that flexibility allows us to create our operational flow.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

Skills Requirements:

Language skills:

• Ability to read and effectively present information.
• Ability to speak respectfully and clearly to both members and coworkers.
• Other abilities:
  • Ability to solve practical problems and keep calm in busy environments.
  • Able to engage with members in a positive, upbeat, encouraging way.
  • Ability to take direction and feedback from colleagues well.
  • Ability to remember safety protocols, including for individual members.

Physical abilities:

• Required to stand, walk, and reach with hands and arms.
• Occasionally required to sit, stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl.
• Required to see, hear, smell, talk, and taste.
• Required to have sufficient physical strength to support vulnerable members in many kinds of situations, including providing personal cares.
• The ability to turn and twist for full visibility and as needed in personal cares.
• Frequent lifting and moving of items up to 25 pounds.
• Frequent lifting, pushing, pulling, moving, and holding of up to 50 pounds.
• Occasional lifting, pushing, pulling, moving, and holding of more than 50 pounds (i.e., transferring members from wheelchairs, providing personal cares, providing physical support to others).
• The ability to move fast to intercede in a situation in which a vulnerable member is endangered.

The physical elements of the position described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

Work environment:

• Active, busy, changeable work environment with committed, capable, fun, and creative colleagues.
• High level of job dedication that puts our members first.
• Occasional to frequent outdoor activities.
• Noise level is generally moderate.
• Occasional responsibilities outside of regular hours.

Education and/or Experience:

Preferred:

• Bachelor’s Degree (BA) in Therapeutic Recreation, Occupational Therapy, Social Work, Art Therapy, or a related field; or 2-3 years related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience with people with disabilities.
• Experience with Microsoft Office products.

Minimum:

• Work history demonstrating responsibility, integrity, and respect for others.