Today, as the CDP Program Director, she is retiring from DDI with 40 years of dedicated service to the agency.
As the Director of the Children’s Day Program, Mary has spent her tenure at DDI evolving into the leader she is today. As she assumed increasing responsibilities within the program, Mary always held a strong belief in her staff members. She is proud of the environment she has created for the staff to flourish and do the best they can for each other and for the students.
She has had the pleasure of being part of the innovative evolvement of the program, including the creation and implementation of initiatives such as the Transition-Education-Employment Model (TEEM) approach, which supports students in strengthening their self-esteem, communication skills, social skills, and job skills; the Practical Assessment Exploration System (PAES) lab, used to assess a student’s competitive work potential and interest level, while simultaneously exploring various jobs, using real tools, and developing proper work behaviors; and most recently, the work being done to provide the students’ education through distance learning during these challenging times. Mary credits a great deal of the program’s success and achievements to her team and their ability to evolve together as people who are inspired by purpose. “The work we do here is important and has value. Together, we have accomplished so much for the benefit of the kids and their families,” commented Mary.
Mary has also played an integral role in many agency-wide activities as a key member of the Senior Management team. She has fostered the professional growth of managers across multiple programs with the creation of the Leadership Institute, a five-module training series to enhance workforce supervisory skills, enabling her to share her expertise with staff members agency-wide.
We congratulate you, Mary, on 40 years of dedicated service. Thank you for your unwavering devotion to bettering the lives of others and fostering a creative, motivating environment for students to learn and staff members to excel.