Progress Center for Independent Living

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Progress Center's Organizational Chart

Organizational Chart - Graphical view

Text based Organization Chart

Who is employed at Progress CIL, and what they do.

Staff photo taken at the 2008 PCIL Annual Meeting

It should be said that while we follow job descriptions, everyone does a little bit of everything when necessary.

Independent Living Team

Anne Gunter - Independent Living Advocate - Information and Referral
The Information and Referral Advocate provides answers to your disability related questions. If we do not know the answer off hand, we will likely know where to find the answers for you.

Michael Hasler - Independent Living Advocate - Information and Referral (Part-time)
The Information and Referral Advocate provides answers to your disability related questions. If we do not know the answer off hand, we will likely know where to find the answers for you. This part-time advocate works at our South Satellite office in Blue Island.

Jennifer Scheffler- Independent Living Advocate - Make Medicare Work Project Coordinator
The MMW Project Coordinator performs disability-related education and outreach pertaining to the Medicare Modernization Act’s prescription drug programs (Part D) and state programs. The project coordinator provides trainings, conducts outreach meetings with service providers and consumer groups, assists media campaign and program evaluation, and relays resource information. Beginning in Spring 2008, the Project has a new focus to target education efforts specifcally to the deaf/hard of hearing communities and to persons with mental illness.

Sara Capetillo- Independent Living Advocate - Employment
The Employment advocate recruits and interviews applicants referred to the VR110 Program by a DHS/DRS Counselor. She trains VR110 interns on the philosophy, history and values of Independent Living and also provides job specific training, employment readiness services, and peer counseling to other DRS consumers who request employment related training and support.

Home Services Team

- Home Services Team Coordinator
The Home Services Team Coordinator overviews everything happening in the Home Services Team, as well as providing direct services to consumers and participating in long term systems advocacy projects.
Art Johnson - Independent Living Advocate - Community Reintegration
The Community Reintegration Advocate assists consumers that qualify for our program in leaving nursing homes (or other similar institutions) and return living in their own communities, if they so desire. As there are several areas of assistance needed for a successful "escape", this advocate coordinates between all PCIL employees involved, along with other providers, as appropriate.

- Indepedent Living Advocate - Community Reintegration/IHDA
Our CR/IHDA advocate performs the same basic duties as our other Community Reintegration staff. His base of operations is our South Satellite office in Blue Island.

Kourtnay Harris - Independent Living Advocate - IHDA/Housing CR
This advocate works directly with consumers in nursing homes throughout suburban Cook County who are seeking affordable, accessible housing as part of their reintegration into community through our Community Reintegration (CR) program. The IHDA/Housing CR Advocate will assist consumers in locating housing, completing housing applications, and providing skills training.

Naketta Kirkland - Independent Living Advocate - Personal Assistance
The PA Advocate works with consumers so they learn PA Management skills. They also do recruitement of PA's and maintain a list of potential PA's for referral.
Manuel Gonzalez - Independent Living Advocate - Personal Assistance
The PA Advocate works with consumers so they learn PA Management skills. They also do recruitement of PA's and maintain a list of potential PA's for referral.

Nancy Ferreyra - Independent Living Advocate - Latino Home Services
The PA Latino Advocate assists the other advocates in providing services to the Latino community in Spanish. This person also does outreach to service providers and community groups.

Carrole Mardis - Independent Living Advocate - Emergency Backup PA Program
The Emergency Backup PA Advocate collaborates with her counterpart at Access Living to provide Emergency PA services to select Home Services consumers in Chicago and the suburbs. This program is a pilot project offered through Illinois' Division of Rehabilitation Services (DRS).

Martha Cooper - Independent Living Advocate - Home Again Program
The Home Again Advocate works with the Home Again partners to assist seniors 60 and older reintegration services similar to those offered through our Community Reintegration program. This program is a pilot project offered through Illinois' Department on Aging (DOA).

Advocacy Team

Mark Karner - Director of Advocacy
The Director of Advocacy is responsible for overall coordination and tracking of systems advocacy efforts by center staff, consumers and volunteers, as well as related community education on disability issues. He is also responsible for assisting and monitoring individual consumer advocacy.

Larry Biondi - Advocacy Coordinator
The Advocacy Coordinator will directly assist staff members in working with consumers on individual advocacy issues. The Coordinator also works under the supervision of the Director on systems advocacy efforts, including interacting with local municipalities and business to ensure compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Sam Knight - Community Organizing Advocate
Our Community Organizer is responsible for leadership development and organizing people with disabilities and their supporters to create systemic changes in the areas of housing and other community based services in suburban Cook County. He is a lead member of Progress Center's Membership and Outreach Committee. He also helps consumers advocate on a local, state, and national level on issues critical to the disability community.

Deaf Services

Carol Nemecek - Deaf Services Coordinator
The Deaf Services Coordinator provides services to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community, whether directly or by assisting other Progress CIL staff. She also is in charge of the ITAC TTY distribution program at our Center.

Additional Programs

George Terzakis - Director of Business Programs
The Director of Business Programs implements outreach programs which link PCIL’s peer-based disability expertise with positive outcomes for businesses. These outcomes include: fostering reasonable accommodation, employment and retention strategies for people with disabilities, and/or those who are caregivers for someone with a disability; providing the full range of independent living services to employees with disabilities referred through Employee Assistance Programs; providing information and referral to appropriate community resources; providing training for employers and EAP professionals to increase their understanding of both lifelong and acquired disabilities so they are better able to apply this knowledge as a hiring and retention strategy for maintaining a productive workforce.

Kim Borowicz - Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC) Project Coordinator

The ADRC pilot project , a collaboration between PCIL and AgeOptions, the Area Agency on Aging, began in September 2007 from a grant from the Illinois Department on Aging. The Suburban ADRC aims to be a single, coordinated system of information for all persons seeking long term services and supports, regardless of age, disability or income. The Suburban ADRC will be accessible via fax, phone, TTY, email, the web, and our existing offices. In addition, the Suburban ADRC will create an opportunity for joint advocacy between aging and disability networks.

Administration Team

Diane Coleman - Executive Director
The Executive Director is at the helm of our office. She is in charge of everything that goes on, focusing particularly on administrative areas such as contract management, Center's direction and philosophy, etc.
John Jansa - Program Director
This person directly supervises all direct service staff members and also prepares and submits activity reports to our funders.
Lucille Burns - Office Manager
This person is in charge of paying the bills, managing contracts, supervising payroll and making sure the office has what it needs to function without a hitch.

Marie Mister - Front desk / Administrative Assistant
This person welcomes people to the office, answers the phone, and provides support to the Exectuive Director.
Don Delgade - Program Assistant
The Program Assistant is in charge of maintaining the actual paper files kept for consumers. He also assists with data entry and minding the phone.

Other

Don Walker / Eugenia Hernandez - Center Personal Assistants: The Center Personal Assistants are in the office to assist staff members and visitors with tasks that they would do for themselves if they didn't have a disability. The Center PA also assists with general maintenance and upkeep of the premises.