by Stefanie Folkerts | Oct 22, 2024
Noah will share his experience creating income from his interests as an autistic man. Known online as NoahTheOtter, his YouTube channel continues to grow.
Have you ever thought about using the information that’s constantly floating around in your mind as a means of starting your own career? Listen to my tale of how I started uploading niche lists on a website known as Listverse, and eventually branched out to creating video essays on YouTube about media tropes and autism representation in popular media.
Presenter: Noah Snodgrass
Noah is a media analyst on YouTube who analyzes various tropes in movies, video games and TV shows, from talking about neurodivergent and mental health representation in media to discussing the overuse of various tropes in film. Whatever kind of media he’s analyzing, Noah is dedicated to his craft.
by Stefanie Folkerts | Oct 22, 2024
Everyone deserves tools to support their mental wellness, and in this course, we’ll dive into how mental wellness impacts every part of our lives—from how we work to how we connect with others. We’ll explore the importance of recognizing when our mental health needs attention, and how building strong habits can lead to more success and balance.
We’ll discuss what to do when someone we care about needs help beyond what we can offer. You’ll learn practical ways to connect them with the resources while offering support in a caring and compassionate way.
Finally, we’ll introduce simple, everyday practices that you can use to support mental wellness in yourself and others. By the end of the course, you’ll have a toolkit to help both yourself and those around you maintain strong mental well-being in your daily lives.
Heather Evans (she/her) is rooted in the intrinsic worth of all humans, and has had the joy and privilege of working for people with I/DD and their communities for over 20 years. She joins Wise with extensive experience in Supported Employment, from developing new SE Programs, Customized Employment, and leading teams to Legislative Advocacy, certifying direct service providers as Mental Health First Aiders and managing Organizational Development. She has provided technical assistance to organizations around Systematic Instruction, Customized Job Development, Mentoring Leaders, Mental Health First Aid, Person Centered Planning, Program Development, and several other best practices in Supported Employment. Heather is proud to have completed her Work Incentive Practitioner Credentialing Certificate from Cornell University and is excited to work with the BenefitU team.
by Stefanie Folkerts | Oct 22, 2024
Storytelling is an impactful way to spread awareness. People telling their stories adds depth to an issue that numbers can’t. This webinar will review storytelling as a form of advocacy, provide a way to put your story together, and share how to arrange your story for different audiences.
Presenters: Jenny Crook and Ryan Riggs
Jenny Crook (she /her)
Jenny has been in the field of employment since 2013, with roles as a job coach, employment consultant, and employment program manager. She obtained a BS in Sociology from Portland State University, with a concentration in Women’s Studies.
As a Senior Training & Technical Assistance Program Manager at Wise, Jenny trains for the Job Development and Marketing course of the WOA 100 Series, coordinates the WOA 200 Series, co-leads the Wise Webinar Series, and provides hosting support for a variety of events. As a person-centered planning facilitator, Jenny focuses on solutions when collaborating with partners in Washington and other states in the pursuit of equitable employment for all.
Nationally, Jenny served on the ACRE Board for five years, most recently in the position of Clerk. She has presented at conferences including APSE and Pac Rim on topics related to person-centered planning and customized employment best practices.
Ryan Riggs (he/him)
Born and raised in Phoenix Arizona, now located in Spokane Washington, Ryan Riggs is a passionate filmmaker and storyteller. He’s had the honor of working with many talented people throughout the years and has over a decade of experience in creative content production. From photography and graphic design to production and post production processes including animation, Ryan aims to use his creative talents to tell the story of Wise and the people Wise works with.
by Stefanie Folkerts | Oct 22, 2024
by Stefanie Folkerts | Oct 8, 2024
In today’s competitive job market, attracting diverse talent is more important than ever. This session will explore proven strategies for equitable recruiting and interviewing, including how to remove bias from job ads, streamline candidate evaluation, and ensure fairness at every stage of the hiring process. Learn how to design interviews that focus on skills and performance, rather than perceptions, and create a more inclusive environment for all candidates. Whatever your role in your organization’s hiring process, this webinar will provide practical tools to build a more diverse and high-performing workforce.
Presenter: Anne-Marie Lake
Anne-Marie Lake came to the field of Supported Employment in 2012 with a varied background in fundraising, marketing/communications, vocal performance, teaching and direct support/management. Anne-Marie holds a B.A. in Interpersonal Communication from Seattle Pacific University and is a Certified Employment Specialist through Highline College. Working in one of Washington state’s top providers of customized, integrated employment and transition services, she learned job development and job coaching, positive behavior support and person-centered approaches. Working successively as an Employment Consultant, Program Manager, Recruiter and finally Training Manager, she gained in-depth knowledge of the systems and processes that contribute to agency-wide success in the field. Her passion lies in training and developing staff so they can achieve best outcomes, promoting the career opportunities this field offers and bringing different groups together to work on joint projects that benefit those we serve.
Anne-Marie joined the Wise staff in 2023, and is using her experiences in direct service, management, and training as part of the WOA 100 training team, in county Technical Assistance systems support, creating and managing learning content, and helping agencies of all sizes develop training programs that will enable their staff and managers to incorporate best practices into their daily efforts.
