The Dr. Piper Center for Social Services Inc. (DPCSS) is a United Way partner agency and a not for profit 501 [c] 3 organization. Our mission is to enhance the social and economic well being of those 55 and older and make a positive impact in the lives of children with special needs, the frail elderly and our communities through the Foster Grandparent, Senior Companion, Faith In Action and Senior Employment Programs.

SENIOR EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM LEE COUNTY HAS A POPULATION OF 228,965 FOR PEOPLE 60 AND OLDER; 107,362 MALE AND 121,603 ARE FEMALE. OF THE 60 AND OLDER POPULATION THERE ARE 17,742 BELOW POVERTY LEVEL AND 27,343 BELOW 125 PERCENT OF THE POVERTY GUIDELINE ACCORDING TO THE 2017 FLORIDA COUNTY PROFILES BY THE DEPARTMENT OF ELDER AFFAIRS. WITH THE ECONOMIC BREAKDOWN, THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA IS 4.1 IN JULY 2017. LEE COUNTY'S UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN JULY 2017 IS 4.2. ACCORDING TO THE STATISTICS SUPPLIED BY THE AGENCY FOR WORKFORCE INNOVATION, LEE COUNTY ZIP CODES 33901, 33905 AND 33916 STILL HAS THE HIGHEST UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN THE COUNTY. 22.5% OF THE RESIDENTS IN THIS AREA ARE 55 AND OLDER AND 100% OF THIS AGE GROUP IS LOW-INCOME SENIORS. THE COMMUNITY DISADVANTAGE INDEX COMMONLY USED TO SUMMARIZE THE GENERAL SOCIO- ECONOMIC CONDITIONS OF AN AREA CONSIDERED ZIP CODE 33916 IN LEE COUNTY AS THE MOST DISADVANTAGED IN THE COUNTRY WITH A SCORE OF 10, THE HIGHEST POSSIBLE CDI SCORE. CDI RANKS 33901 AND 33905 A SCORE OF 5. MANY OF THE 55 AND OLDER, LOW-INCOME APPLICANTS OF THE SENIOR EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM ARE DISCOURAGED JOB SEEKERS WHO HAVE GIVEN UP HOPE OF FINDING A JOB. OTHERS, FOR VARIOUS REASONS, HAVE BEEN OUT OF THE JOB MARKET FOR YEARS. THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO NEED TO WORK TO SUPPLY THEIR BASIC NEEDS. WHAT CAN THEY DO TO CHANGE THEIR SITUATIONS? FOR SOME IT MAY BE A MATTER OF CHANGING THEIR ATTITUDES AND THE WAY THEY PRESENT THEMSELVES TO EMPLOYERS. IN MOST CASES, HOWEVER, WHAT THEY NEED IS TRAINING. THIS TRAINING COULD START WITH TECHNIQUES TO REBUILD SELF-CONFIDENCE AND COULD INCLUDE LEARNING, NEW OR UPDATED SKILLS, PERTINENT TO THE LOCAL JOB MARKET WITH THE INTERVIEWING AND OTHER TECHNIQUES THAT WILL PREPARE THEM FOR A SUCCESSFUL JOB SEARCH. FOR THE TRAINING TO BE SUCCESSFUL, IT MUST BE DESIGNED AROUND THE NEEDS OF THE PEOPLE TO BE TRAINED. THE OLDER WORKERS AMONG US WHO WANT AND NEED TO WORK SHOULD HAVE ACCESS TO THE TYPES OF TRAINING THAT WILL HELP THEM COMPETE AND BE SUCCESSFUL IN A TECHNOLOGICAL SOCIETY. THROUGH THE SENIOR EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM, LOW-INCOME SENIORS ARE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO COMPETE IN THE JOB MARKET. BUT FOR THOSE WHO ARE REALLY HAVING DIFFICULTY FINDING A JOB, WE ALSO OFFER SKILLS TRAINING TO BECOME STIPEND VOLUNTEERS THROUGH THE SENIOR COMPANION AND FOSTER GRANDPARENT PROGRAM. THEY WILL BE ENROLLED IN THE PROGRAM EARNING STIPEND AND OTHER BENEFITS WHILE SEEKING PERMANENT JOB OPPORTUNITIES. A FOUR (4) HOUR MONTHLY IN-SERVICE MEETING IS PROVIDED TO SENIOR COMPANION AND FOSTER GRANDPARENT VOLUNTEERS TO FURTHER ENHANCE THEIR SKILLS. THE DR. PIPER CENTER FOR SOCIAL SERVICES, INC. ENHANCES EMPLOYMENT AND VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES FOR SENIORS 55 AND OLDER AND PROMOTES THEM AS A SOLUTION FOR BUSINESSES SEEKING TRAINED, QUALIFIED, AND RELIABLE EMPLOYEES. OLDER WORKERS ARE A VALUABLE RESOURCE FOR THE 21ST CENTURY WORKFORCE, AND THE DR. PIPER CENTER IS COMMITTED TO PROVIDING HIGH-QUALITY SKILLS TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE TO PARTICIPANTS. THROUGH A COMPREHENSIVE CASE MANAGEMENT AND SKILLS TRAINING WORKSHOP LOW-INCOME SENIORS ARE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO COMPETE IN THE JOB MARKET. A COMPREHENSIVE CASE MANAGEMENT PROVIDES ASSISTANCE AND ACHIEVING OPTIMAL EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES FOR LOW- INCOME SENIORS, WHICH INVOLVES ASSESSMENT, COUNSELING, TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES, SERVICE STRATEGIES AND COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIP WITH COMMUNITY AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND BUSINESSES. A COMPREHENSIVE CASE MANAGEMENT ALSO ADDRESSES BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT GOALS AND PROVIDE ASSISTANCE TO LOW-INCOME SENIORS TO MANAGE IF NOT ELIMINATE THOSE BARRIERS. THE SENIOR EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM MATCHES OUR MISSION OF ENHANCING THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC WELL-BEING OF SENIORS BY PROVIDING THE OPPORTUNITY TO UPDATE AND/OR GAIN USEFUL EMPLOYMENT SKILLS AND VOLUNTEER TRAINING. A TOTAL OF 125 LOW-INCOME ENROLLEES WERE ENROLLED IN THIS PROGRAM AND 82.36% WERE SUCCESSFULLY PLACED IN THE SENIOR COMPANION PROGRAM, FOSTER GRANDPARENT PROGRAM AND OTHER JOB PLACEMENTS. THE PROGRAM OUTCOMES ARE AS FOLLOWS: 1. 47.5% OF PARTICIPANTS IN THE SKILLS TRAINING WORKSHOPS ARE SUCCESSFULLY PLACED AND RETAINED. 2. 90% OF PARTICIPANTS IN COMPUTER CLASSES ARE ACTIVELY SEARCHING AND APPLYING FOR JOB OPPORTUNITIES ONLINE. 3. 100% OF PARTICIPANTS HAVE TOTAL SATISFACTION WITH THE AMOUNT OF THE SUPPORT RECEIVED.