Employment Services

Finding and retaining a fulfilling job with a living wage is a critical step on the path out of homelessness and poverty. Project Place offers supportive transitional employment through three small businesses that help homeless men and women obtain on-the-job training while stabilizing their lives.

Clean Corners…Bright Hopes is an outdoor maintenance service that has contracts in business districts and neighborhoods throughout Boston. Employees are responsible for trash and graffiti removal, seasonal planting, sweeping sidewalks and event set up.

Project Pepsi is a Pepsi vending machine business that has over 80 accounts throughout greater Boston. Employees are responsible for filling machines, minor repairs, product inventory, customer service, and the administration of the business.

HomePlate, Project Place's newest social business venture, employs homeless individuals to market a line of wholesome, quality, homemade foods in the Boston area. Our initial products include chili (meat and vegetarian) and cornbread sold through a pushcart operating in the Downtown Crossing Area. Employees receive supervision from the HomePlate chef in food preparation and distribution, as well as training in customer service and sales. Our chili is also available for corporate affairs.

All participants receive six-months paid employment for up to 40 hours a week in a supportive work environment that includes on-the-job training and supervision, case management, weekly recovery and life skills groups, job search training and placement services, and aftercare support. Fifty homeless men and women are employed through these three businesses annually.

Job Training

Project 90 is a job training internship program that gives participants the opportunity to become accustomed to the world of work while gaining the experience they need to compete in today’s job market. In this 90-day program clients attend eight hours of classes a week and learn resume writing, interview skills, and other tools to get and keep a job. Clients also work sixteen hours a week at a paid internship to gain on-the-job experience in a variety of positions including child care teacher, cook, maintenance worker, classroom aid, and administrative assistant.

Participants receive job counseling and placement services, case management, computer skills training, and aftercare supports. Forty homeless individuals are served through Project 90 each year.

The Mellon Administrative Center for Training and Support (Mellon ACTS) our newest program was initiated through a grant from the Mellon Charitable Giving Program. The program will provide business skills training for individuals interested in working in an office setting, combining customer service and computer training with intensive wrap around support services. The program will be especially suited for women, paying attention to the particular issues homeless women face as they work to rebuild their lives. Mellon ACTS serves 40 individuals a year providing paid training in-house and in real employment situations, workshops and intensive classroom. Clients who successfully complete the program will be eligible to take the test for their Professional Customer Service Certificate from the National Retail Federation & International Customer Service Association.

Community Reentry for Women (CREW) Project Place and the South End Community Health Center have partnered with the Suffolk County House of Corrections to provide a continuum of community reintegration services to female offenders with the goal of reducing recidivism. Project Place will be responsible for providing 50 female offenders with job training classes and follow-up career services.

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Housing

Betty’s Place offers transitional housing program for homeless women. Housed in the YWCA’s Berkley Street residence, the program can accommodate 15 women at any given time. The women who come to Betty’s are leaving behind a life of abuse, addiction, and chaos. Through case management, workshops, trainings, and other supports, residents work to move into permanent housing and live a stable, independent life. In addition to these on site services, Betty’s provides each resident with a room of her own in a safe, clean environment, two meals a day, and access to all Project Place programming. The average length of stay is six months.

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Adult Education

Project Place believes that the key to long-term career success is education. In an effort to provide Project Place clients with a high quality educational experience that uses evidence-based best practices, we have an Educational Specialist on staff. Through the provision of formal and informal educational assessments, counseling, and classwork, our Educational Specialist helps Project Place clients develop personal learning plans that utilize their strengths and interests as a means of ensuring educational and professional success.

We are pleased with the ways in which our new approach offers our clients educational services in a more substantive way, and are confident that this innovative model will better equip our clients to attain their educational and professional goals. This year we anticipate that our Adult Education program will serve 100 clients enrolled in our job training programs.

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Computer Training

It has become increasingly clear that at least basic computer literacy is a requirement for anyone trying to compete in today's job market. As a result, our Computer Lab has become an indispensable service provided by Project Place, utilized by over 100 homeless individuals each year. Lessons include understanding of Microsoft Word, Excel, Publisher and use of the Internet. Math, History or typing tutor software is available, and the lab is utilized by our Adult Education and Job Training programs to integrate curriculum with computer skills. All clients can access the computer lab during drop-in hours for job and housing searches.

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Case Management

Since 1967, Project Place has had a strong history of providing case management, and relies on these services to provide the essential support and coherence to all of our programming. A comprehensive in-take and needs assessment are conducted when a client first enters the agency. From that point on, case management services focus on referrals to outside resources, work readiness, life skills, childcare, housing, and other topics that help clients maintain an independent life. Two hundred clients receive ongoing case management through our structured programs each year, and over 800 referrals are made yearly for homeless individuals seeking services on an as needed basis.

Comprehensive Homelessness Intervention Program (CHIP) As part of Boston's Homelessness Prevention Initiative, CHIP provides intensive discharge planning for incarcerated females, followed by case management and mental health services upon reentry into the community. The objective of the CHIP service model is to prevent this vulnerable population from experiencing homelessness.

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Basic Services

The Homeless Resource Center at Project Place offers several basic services that provide clients with some of the first supports homeless men and women need to overcome poverty and return to self-sufficient, productive lives. These supports include a hot lunch program, voicemail, storage lockers, and mailboxes. Over 400 individuals a year utilize these services.

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Career Services

Project Place's Career Services department was created to focus solely on career development, employer relations and best practices for retention. We provide career services starting at intake and extending two years beyond graduation. Through the provision of Career Coaches, individuals in all programs receive intensive preparation and support for job placement and advancement.

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How to Access Services

If you think that you or someone you know could benefit from our services you can stop by to visit us at 32 Rutland Street in the South End, or call or email Caitlin O'Brien to set up an intake appointment. Participants must have 3 months of sobriety before entering our programs.

Caitlin O'Brien, Director of Client Services
Project Place
1145 Washington Street
Boston, MA 02170
Tel: (617) 542-3740
Fax: (617) 542-3860
Email: cobrien@projectplace.org

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