Stay AWAY!!! - Direct Support Professional (DSP) SpArc Philadelphia Employee Review

Open Door environment Director will observe your skill set then hone it with the specific task you’re given. Good benefits Non complex ramp up period Respectful work/life balance

Employee relations can from time to time be a bit hostile.

Caring for the disabled is important and often overlooked work. Using art as a communicative tool enhances the quality of life for the program participants and staff alike. Day programs keep disabled individuals and their families in a place of stability. The human experience expands its previous definition when one is engaged in this work. By this, I mean that the paradigms of how I define my experience as a person with other people, were expanded well beyond what I had previously expected, and it has allowed me to grow in a number of ways. This work requires dedication from individuals with immense creativity and who care deeply about being an ally to marginalized populations.

The pay is too low to live on. Staff can only perform well if their needs are met, and unfortunately this is barely possible under the austerity of the wages at SpArc. This is partially the fault of the criminally low amount of funding that day programs receive, but it is not the only factor. I would recommend this job for people who know how to live below the poverty line and are serious about the importance of the work.