clubhouse – Academy at Glengary, Inc.

Academy Tour During COVID-19

Joanne Campbell — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 19:34:01 +0000

The Academy at Glengary has implemented all CDC protocols and is now operating during regular hours 8am – 4pm, Monday thru Friday, with a full range of services and opportunities for members. The following video tour was produced by the Academy multimedia team and provides a glimpse into our daily operations during COVID-19.

Academy Offers Technical Skills to Statewide Coalition

Joanne Campbell — Tue, 12 Nov 2019 19:49:30 +0000

On November 8,, 2019, the Academy joined ten other mental health Clubhouse programs in Miami for the Second Annual Florida Clubhouse Coalition (FCC) Conference. This year’s conference was hosted by Key Clubhouse of South Florida. It was a wonderful opportunity to share strategies, best practices, and future goals – not to mention plenty of fellowship – with colleagues from across the state of Florida. Regions represented included Ft. Myers, Ocala, Gainesville, Orlando, Sarasota and Lakeland.

Members and staff from the Academy were instrumental in Conference preparation as well as workshops. Our Arts & Communications Team provided lanyards, printed nametags and programs for the event. The new FCC logo was also designed by the Academy. At the Conference, John Robinson and Garrett Laue of our Multimedia Team, unveiled the new FCC website, designed and managed at the Academy. William McKeever and Rima Ghalieh discussed recent achievements and future advocacy efforts in Tallahassee.

The Academy is one of seven accredited mental health Clubhouse programs in Florida, with five additional Clubhouse programs on the track to accreditation. The vision of the FCC is to establish an accredited Clubhouse program in every one of Florida’s 67 counties!

Florida’s Newest Clubhouse Visits From Ocala

Joanne Campbell — Fri, 01 Nov 2019 19:54:34 +0000

The Florida Mental Health Clubhouse movement is expanding. We were pleased to welcome Leda Pérez, José Torres and Diana Williams from the Ora Clubhouse in Ocala, who made the three-hour trip to Sarasota recently. They spent the day working in our teams, sharing ideas and discussing plans for their new endeavor. Diana enjoyed our Multimedia Team, José kept busy in Culinary, and Leda worked in our Business & Technology Team. The Ora Clubhouse will become the twelfth Clubhouse program in the state of Florida.

The Ora Clubhouse is a new initiative through NAMI of Marion County. Our guests Leda, José and Diana are an inspired group, filled with the excitement of starting a new program. Their Clubhouse will provide adults pursuing mental health recovery with opportunities for friendship, skill development and employment. We wish them the best, and look forward to following their progress in Ocala. We hope to return the visit to the Ora Clubhouse once they are up and running, and fully functional.

Academy Forges New Partnership with DVR

Joanne Campbell — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 18:23:10 +0000

We recently made the five-hour trek to Tallahassee with colleagues from Miami, Gainesville and Ft. Myers in representation of the Florida Clubhouse Coalition. Our purpose: Meet with Ms. Allison Flanagan, Director of the Florida Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR). Ms. Flanagan extended a warm welcome to the Clubhouse Coalition, with hopes of strengthening the partnership with Clubhouses across the state of Florida. Also in attendance were Ms. Heather Servais, Assistant Bureau Chief of Field Services and Carmen Dupoint, Supervisor of Employment Programs.

DVR is a division of the Florida Department of Education. The Mission of DVR is “to help people with disabilities find and maintain employment and enhance their independence. The Vision of DVR is “to become the first place people with disabilities turn when seeking employment and a top resource for employers in need of qualified employees.” For more information: http://www.rehabworks.org

Earlier this summer, the Academy was approved by DVR as a provider of Supported Employment Services in Area 5. This new partnership will provide vital resources in helping our members achieve and maintain competitive employment.

Clubhouse International 2019 World Seminar

Joanne Campbell — Fri, 11 Oct 2019 14:57:46 +0000

The World Seminar 2019 was hosted by Clubhouse International, a worldwide network of more than 300 mental health Clubhouses operating on six continents. Over 400 attendees at World Seminar 2019 represented 22 countries and 25 U.S. States. The six-day Seminar provided an opportunity to share best-practices as developed by Clubhouse International’s Clubhouse community.

The Academy at Glengary, a three-year accredited program of Clubhouse International, was invited to make presentations at three workshops, an institute and a plenary session. We were busy! The Academy was represented by Academy members Paul Hennekes and Carla Guiffrida, Board President Joan Geyer, and staff members Joanne Campbell and William McKeever. It was an unforgettable experience.

The Academy is committed to the pursuit of excellence in all areas of operations. We follow the guiding principles of the 37 International Standards for Clubhouse Programs, which act as a bill of rights for members and a code of ethics for staff.

Learning and Sharing with Hope Clubhouse

Joanne Campbell — Fri, 13 Sep 2019 16:06:08 +0000

On Tuesday, Carolyn Robinson, Christine Watkins, John Robinson, Ben Burnside and Paul Hennekes made a trip to Hope Clubhouse in Fort Myers. We really enjoyed the opportunity to see how a more established, accredited Clubhouse operates.

Hope Clubhouse of Southwest Florida incorporated in 2007 and opened its doors in 2010. Serving approximately 250 members each year, Hope Clubhouse holds a three-year accreditation with Clubhouse International. Over the years, Hope Clubhouse has built a strong employment program, as evidenced by the high number of Transitional, Supported and Independent Employment placements for its members.

We are fortunate to have clubhouse colleagues nearby in Fort Myers, and look forward to future opportunities to share experiences. We learned a lot from our visit and appreciate the warm hospitality of Hope Clubhouse members and staff.

Cross Pollination with Hope Clubhouse

Joanne Campbell — Thu, 18 Jul 2019 18:23:09 +0000

We enjoyed two visits this past week from Hope Clubhouse of Southwest Florida. Their second visit included the gift of a variety of plants and seedlings that will improve our garden. Plants included sweet potatoes, wild coffee, mint, Brazilian spinach, pigeon peas, tamarind, chia and ktuck. Tree seedlings included banana, dragon fruit, papaya, moringa (“Tree of Life”), jack fruit and last but not least, the peanut butter fruit tree.

Hope Clubhouse excels in gardening and the “Farm to Table” approach. We hope to emulate their success!

The Academy shares periodic member/staff visits with Hope Clubhouse. We are lucky to have a sister clubhouse program in our region. We plan to send a team down for a visit in late summer.

The Academy Joins Forces in Tallahassee

Joanne Campbell — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 13:00:00 +0000

The Academy joined the Florida Clubhouse Coalition for a day of advocacy at Florida’s state capitol in Tallahassee. Eleven Florida Clubhouse programs leveraged their voices in support of a $1.5 million “Workforce Development” budget request with the Department of Children and Families.

If approved by the legislature, funding will be distributed equally among Florida Clubhouses and provide increased employment opportunities for adults living with mental illness. This budget request is also part of Governor Desantis’ Budget Recommendations for Fiscal Year 2019-2020.

Academy members Scott Ehrenpreis and Izzy DeMartine, Board President Joan Geyer, and Director William McKeever joined Clubhouse colleagues from Fort Myers, Gainesville, Lakeland, Miami, Orlando, Pinellas Park and Sanford. It was a day filled with camaraderie, public speaking and advocacy

Academy Finds Camaraderie in Miami

Joanne Campbell — Fri, 25 Jan 2019 14:00:00 +0000

Academy Director, William McKeever, had the good fortune to stop by Key Clubhouse during a recent trip to Miami. He was welcomed with open arms by members and staff, who shared their diverse experiences of recovery.

Founded in 2008 as a grassroots organization, Key Clubhouse is a vibrant community, filled with hope and a range of wonderful opportunities for its members. Key Clubhouse is currently accredited by Clubhouse International and a member of the Florida Clubhouse Coalition. We send our congratulations to Debra Webb and all of our colleagues at Key Clubhouse!