Target Community & Educational Services is dedicated to enhancing the lives of individuals with disabilities through quality, community based residential, vocational, recreational and family support services.
For further information
about our programs, please call us at
410-848-9090 or 888-831-3476, or contact
Dr. Tom Zirpoli, President/CEO.
Target Community & Educational Services, Inc., is certified as a Community Rehabilitation Program by the Division of Rehabilitation Services (DORS). Target is also licensed by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to provide employment services for those individuals who require lifelong supports.
In partnership with businesses in both Carroll and Montgomery Counties, Target provides supervised work and volunteer opportunities for individuals and small work crews. Qualified applicants are matched with employer needs, resulting in a productive partnership between the individual and the business. To ensure the quality of these services, Target requires that our employment and training programs are individualized and consumer driven.
Target’s vocational staff believes in creating an environment that is responsive to the vocational needs of the individual and conducive to continuous personal development. To create this environment, we strive to find meaningful employment, volunteer, and life skills experiences for all of our individuals. Qualified applicants are matched with employer needs, resulting in a productive partnership between the individual and the business.
To empower the individuals we serve
To maintain ethical business practices
To respect the worth and dignity of the individuals we serve
To provide efficient and effective services that are valued by consumers and the community.
All of Target's vocational programs have been designed to incorporate a comprehensive, individualized approach for each program participant. This approach assists individuals in making informed choices regarding their vocational goals and objectives.
The State of Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's Developmental Disabilities Admiistration (DDA) defines supported employment as "community-based services that provide the supports necessary for individuals to obtain and maintain work in the community. Supports may include job skills training, job development, vocational evaluation, and ongoing job coaching support." It is Target's belief that competitive employment enriches the consumer and the community as a whole.
Target's Vocational Department offers an array of services that help individuals with disabilities attain competitive, community-based employment. Volunteer opportunities provide ways that these individuals can give back to their community. From these experiences, these individuals gain valuable life skills. Target's services include:
Vocational Evaluations: Focused, Itemized, Exploratory,
Community BasedSupported Employment: Job Readiness Skills, Job Development, Job Coaching & Follow-up Services
Transitional Employment Services: Job Club, Job Placement,
Job Coaching & Follow-up ServicesDay Habilitation Services: Vocational, Academic, and Life Skills
Post Secondary School Transition Programs
Carroll County
Montgomery County
For more information about these services, please contact Lonyta McClain, Director of Vocational Services for Carroll County at 410-848-9090 or contact Scott Bonney, Director of Vocational Services for Montgomery County at 240-632-1434.
Target Community and Educational Services, Inc., is certified and funded by the Division of Rehabilitation Services (DORS) to do vocational evaluations. This program is designed to help individuals identify the type of work that they desire and are capable of doing. The evaluation process ultimately determines the nature and intensity of the support services that the individual will require. For more information, please contact Jackie Poist, Rehabilitation Manager, at 410-848-9090.
Since 1987, Target has assisted individuals with disabilities in finding and maintaining competitive employment. Target demonstrates vocational supports by acting as an advocate for each consumer, encouraging active participation in the job development process and by providing hands-on job coaching. For more information, please contact Jodi Bonner, Supported Employment Manager, at 410-848-9090.
Target works in unison with the Division of Rehabilitation Services (DORS) to offer individualized assistance in acquiring and maintaining competitive employment. Job Club provides structured help in the job search process; job skills training; work etiquette; and job retention. Once employment is obtained, job coaching will initially be intensive until the consumer is successfully established in his/her position. Once a retention phase is established, job coaching services will gradually phase out, allowing the consumer to work independently. For more information, please contact Jackie Poist, Rehabilitation Manager, at 410-848-9090.
Target's Day Habilitation program provides an individualized and structured approach in assisting individuals with developmental disabilities. Individuals who may not be candidates for competitive employment will benefit from the opportunity to learn and enhance upon their daily living, academic and prevocational skills. This goal is met through individual and small group activities as well as educational, recreational and volunteer opportunities within the community.
Target's new Vocational Education Center enables individual to explore and practice these concepts by offering a computer lab, a library, and classrooms. The center's large multi-purpose room allows individuals the opportunity to work on contractual work and provides space for leisure time activities and trainings. For more information, please contact Andrea Neilson, Day Habilitation Manager, at 410-848-9090.
Target Community and Educational Services hosts a Post Secondary Graduate Transition Program in Carroll County and another in Montgomery County. Though the programs vary slightly from county to county, the goal of both programs is the same: to offer learning opportunities to students with disabilities who will be leaving the public school system and to help them gain the skills necessary to make a smooth transition into the work force.
Carroll County's Post Secondary School Transition Program was developed in conjunction with Carroll County Public Schools, Carroll Community College, and The Arc of Carroll County. Generally speaking, the program lasts for two years or until the client reaches the age of 21. This program's purpose is to provide each participant with an individualized program that teaches the practical and academic skills necessary to enter the work force and live independently.
Classroom instruction, provided by all four organizations involved, takes place at Carroll Community College. Educational instruction, including computer skills, communication, physical fitness, etc., is generally provided by teachers from both the college and the Carroll County Public Schools. Target specifically provides experiential and practical learning including personal finance management, personal hygiene, food preparation and healthy eating, home maintenance, and cleaning skills. Target also focuses on vocational skills and strategies, including job development and interview skills, on-the-job communication, applications, resumes, and conflict resolution.
For more information on the Carroll County Post Secondary School Transition Program, please contact Debbie Vana by email or at 410-848-9090.
Montgomery Country's Graduate Transition Program (GTP) is a collaborative effort between Target Community and Educational Services, Montgomery College, and Potomac Community Resources. The GTP is a four semester, two year program that offers individuals with developmental disabilities a comprehensive education promoting independence, productivity and inclusion.
Based on the Rockville Campus of Montgomery College and roughly modeled around the community college's academic schedule, the GTP is divided into a morning and afternoon session, with a period in between the two for students to eat lunch and socialize. The morning session focuses on academic subjects such as keyboarding, math skills, computer skills, current events, and communication skills. In the afternoon session, students will work specifically on practical vocation skills such as executing a job search, assessing vocational skills and interests developing interview techniques, and obtaining and maintaining employment in the community.
For more information about the Montgomery County Graduate Transition Program , please contact Carla Czecha by email or at 240-632-0551.