YAI Staff

When Jeff Burke started a new job at YAI as a Floater in March of 2019, he was optimistic for the year ahead. His job required him to fill in at whatever program needed extra staff. He’d find himself in Brooklyn one day and in the Bronx the next. But there was no way to predict that by March of the following year, he would contract the novel coronavirus that had begun to hit New York.

For Monique Robinson, Assistant Supervisor at YAI’s East Tremont residence in the Bronx, supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) comes naturally. “My older brother has autism, so being around people with developmental disabilities wasn’t unusual for me,” she said.

Every year throughout September and October each region in the YAI Network hosts events that celebrate the hard work and dedication of the agency’s 2,225 Direct Support Professionals (DSPs). In addition to offering a day of food, music, and cutting loose with colleagues, these events also provide an opportunity for supervisors and peers to recognize outstanding DSPs for their service.

For Allen Cohen, YAI wasn’t just a place where he received support, it was a place where he found a second family and left a lasting legacy in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). “When Allen first came to YAI, there was still a lot of stigma surrounding people with I/DD,” said Bonnie Cohen, Allen’s younger sister. “But YAI saw his potential and he thrived because of it.”