Employment Services

Working with Our Employment Department

The Employment Department empowers individuals and offers opportunities that provide substantial benefits to employers and to the community. MV Advancements, employment consultants custom-tailor jobs, match individuals’ skills to jobs and provide ongoing support to individuals for successful and fulfilling long-term careers.

The advantages of bringing an MVA supported employee onto a workforce are many. Statistically, they stay at their jobs longer and have better-than-average attendance. Their safety-on-the-job records are high, and their training costs are low. Your workplace culture and public image will be enhanced by having a diverse workforce.

MV Advancements partners with Yamhill, Polk, and Marion County businesses at no cost to the employer to match workforce needs with individuals’ skills, strengths, and experience for successful hires and long-term employment.

Employer Support Services

  • One-on-one skills training
  • Job analyses
  • Adaptive equipment
  • On-the-job training
  • Onboarding support
  • Work-site analysis

Employee Support Services

  • Hard and soft skill training
  • On-the-job coaching and evaluation
  • Discovery assessments
  • Job development
  • Assistive technology assessments
  • Employment matching
  • Long-term on-the-job supports

If you want to find your next great employee, connect with an employment consultant.

Learn More

Project SEARCH

MV Advancements is partnering with Friendsview Senior Living Community to bring Project SEARCH, the nationally acclaimed nine-month internship program, to Yamhill County.

Project SEARCH provides employability training for individuals who experience intellectual and developmental disabilities by fully immersing them within a host business. Interns will learn job skills while working in various departments within Friendsview and in classroom-like settings from a skills trainer.

MV Advancements is now recruiting for our 2026 Project SEARCH Internship that will begin on the 6th of January.

The projected launch date of the program is January 1st, 2024. To inquire about available placements for Project SEARCH, please email Kelli Kobs at [email protected].

IS PROJECT SEARCH A GOOD FIT FOR YOU?

  • Do you have the desire to seek competitive employment, with assistance throughout the
    entirety of the internship and after the Project SEARCH program?
  • Are you at least 22 years of age at the time of application?
  • Do you meet the eligibility requirements for Oregon Vocational Rehabilitation Services?
  • Do you meet eligibility requirements for the State of Oregon Developmental Disabilities
    Services or Brokerage services?
  • Can you provide documentation for legal right to work in the U.S.?
  • Are you willing to participate in the program 6 hours per day, 5 days per week?

HOW TO APPLY TO PROJECT SEARCH

  • Attend the open house and ask questions of the staff and current interns.
  • Complete the application and submit it by the deadline.
  • Interview with the Project SEARCH committee.
  • Complete host business required drug, background, and health screening.

To read more about this exciting program please visit Projectsearch.us or watch these informational videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFj7Wfiinw4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjxzWw_6djM

You can hire motivated individuals to positively impact your business. Please visit the list of employers to see who’s taken advantage of this valuable opportunity.

STEPS TOWARDS EMPLOYMENT

If you experience a developmental disability and are looking for supported employment or you are a business looking for your next employee, MV Advancements can help. We do this by matching job seekers with a local business looking for hard-working, capable employees. We use a process of matching skills, abilities, and interests to the job. We also provide training and ongoing support that benefit both the employee and employer. For details on currently available services visit ODDS.

This is the process by which we learn about skills and interests our job seekers may have. Knowledge of these facts can guide us in helping them find successful employment.

During discovery, we may ask:

  • What do you do at home?
  • Do you have a job right now?
  • Do you volunteer?
  • What is your favorite activity or place?
  • What does your day look like?
  • What skills and interests do you have?
  • What do you dislike about your regular day?

After case management refers someone to complete a discovery profile, an Employment Consultant will spend time with the job seeker. This discovery process could take several months.

We support many job-seekers who are motivated to work but aren’t quite sure what kind of job they would enjoy and be well-suited to. Through Employment Path, these people can sample a variety of vocational settings while building essential skills in preparation for the world of work. This may include business touring and job shadowing, volunteering, exploratory work experiences and vocational training, community-based classes, or assessment for creative solutions in Assistive Technology. Referrals for this service are sent by Case Management.

Small-Group Employment is a skill-building option for individuals on their path toward employment. This service is time-limited.

This service assists job seekers to find employment in their community. An employment consultant assists job seekers with meeting and interviewing with local businesses that fit their employment strengths, interests, and employment goals. The employment consultant will contact businesses on the behalf of job seekers and keep them informed of the progress. Vocational Rehabilitation is the agency that refers individuals to MV Advancements for job developing.

Job coaching is a service job seekers use after they have been hired. MV Advancements wants and empowers new hires to succeed in their jobs. An employment consultant ensures clients have the tools and support necessary to learn job duties, facilitate reasonable accommodation if necessary, and provide employment counseling outside the workplace. This service is funded by Vocational Rehabilitation for 90 days after workers are hired.

Long-term or on-going supports help workers maintain their jobs. An employment consultant will visit the job sites, meet supervisors, and work with natural supports. MV Advancements also assist with retraining or training on new tasks. We want people to be successful in their new careers, and we maintain contact with employees and employers on a regular basis.

We support some of the most reliable, skilled and motivated employees who add incredible value to the places they work.

Residential Services

Living the Best Life

Having a secure, supportive home life is crucial to the success of all people. MV Advancements offers person-centered service for individuals and five locations to choose from. Each home is operated by dedicated and caring staff committed to providing safe and healthy living environments. Our goal is to empower individuals to be as independent as they want by offering social interactions, outings, volunteer opportunities or employment so they can live their best life.

Services for supportive living can also be offered to individuals living in their own homes. Individuals choose residences according to their level of need, their desire for independence, and how involved they are in the community.

Supportive Environments

Our homes are all fully accessible and offer private bedrooms. Each group offers 24-hour comprehensive support, and privacy for residents when desired. Residents are provided with the necessary support required for each situation. While for some this means 24-hour care and supervision, for others it may only be 24-hour staffing.

Available Assistance

  • Apartment-style living or independent living
  • Financial management
  • Transportation
  • Grocery shopping assistance
  • Support for medical appointments

Every individual MV Advancements serves creates a plan that details what their needs are, how they want to live, and any desires they have. Each plan includes goals for self-fulfillment and improvement and is revisited annually.

Home Support Details

For people that choose to live independently in the community we have staff available to provide supports in a variety of areas. These services can include assistance with grocery shopping, personal shopping, healthy options decision making, banking, medical appointments, medication management and vacation planning. Regular safety and medication checks are performed for people who self-administer their own medications. All people receiving Supported Living Program services are provided with a 24-hour access phone number to staff.

A secure, supportive home life is crucial to the success of people. MVA-owned and operated housing options offer support while encouraging independence and social interaction.

We do keep an “Interested Parties” list. If you are interested in one of our homes, please let us know.

Medicaid pays the cost of care. Residents make basic room and board payments. Each person has a private room they are able to decorate any way they wish and open common living areas. Also included are healthy planned and prepared meals.

Residents are very active in their homes and community. They attend local sporting events, concerts and community dances. There is opportunity to attend the residents chosen religious service or place of worship. Out of town trips are also planned, the Oregon Coast is always a favorite destination.

Each home has 24-hour awake staffing 7 days a week. A medical coordinator is available to each 24-hour program to serve as a liaison between the home and the doctors’ offices.

We are more alike than we are different. It is amazing to see people embracing, and being embraced by the community.

Day Support Activities

Thriving in the Community

DSA supports adults experiencing intellectual and developmental disabilities to thrive in their communities by promoting social inclusion and individual growth. MVA operates DSA programs in Yamhill, Polk, and Marion counties. Individuals, along with their families and advocates, are consulted to develop a person-centered plan for service delivery including their schedule, goals, and preferred activities. Any combination of services in groups, or one-on-one is available.

Goal-Oriented

DSA aims to support individuals in:

  • Developing self-esteem and self-worth
  • Increasing social, recreational, and leisure activity levels
  • Teaching individuals effective ways to interact in their environment
  • Providing opportunities to enhance positive community impact and involvement through volunteering and/or service projects

Activities Include

DSA provides customized supports specific to individual interests and abilities.

  • Painting, sculpture, and other art experiences
  • Independent living skill instruction
  • Personal fitness and hygiene activities
  • Relationship-building activities
  • Social events and celebrations
  • Gardening and landscaping projects in local parks
  • Participating in a club at the local library or senior center
  • Volunteering in the community
  • Tours and visits to local museums and historical sites
  • Technology and social media use

Participants enjoy a sense of accomplishment, personal reward and contribution to their communities thanks to these activities, from volunteering at local non-profits to weekly learning opportunities. Individuals maintain or expand their adaptive skills, independence, integration and participation in the community by being part of this program.

The best part of working here is the way you feel when you come to work. People light up when they see you and genuinely are so happy you are there. It makes you feel like you are part of something bigger than yourself, you’re making someone’s life better, making someone happy just being there that day and that makes this job like no other.

Supported Living Services

Skill Building with Supported Living

Supported Living is about assisting individuals live more independent lives.

Our primary goal is to empower individuals in building self-confidence and skills to live their best life. Our supports include assisting and teaching meal planning, medication management, banking, grocery shopping, doctor appointments, and transportation.

We also help to support people to build authentic and interdependent relationships by encouraging community involvement, assisting with hobbies, interests, and meeting with friends.

Essential Skill Building

  • Communication
  • Interpersonal skills
  • Decision-making
  • Problem-solving
  • Creative thinking
  • Critical thinking
  • Assertiveness
  • Self-Advocacy

Types of Activities

  • Grocery Shopping and Cooking
  • Cleaning and Organization
  • Self-care
  • Managing Time
  • Managing Money
  • Socialization
  • Hobbies and interests
  • Technology

Individuals with developmental disabilities want the same things that we want. This includes leaving their parents’ home to live their own lives in their own way.

FAQs

We can help you look for a home but do not usually have one available. We work with you wherever you are living now!

Each person has their own individual needs and we do our best to work with whatever that may look like for you.

As a representative payee, we help make sure your bills are paid on time or grow your savings.