Person-Centered Training Services With a Mindful Approach
Person-Centered Thinking goes beyond a mindset.
It's a skill set.
Changing how we think is essential to achieving Person-Centered Practices. If people are going to gain or regain positive control over their lives, then those supporting the person need to have a person-centered approach and mindset. This begins with how we think.
Person-Centered Thinking is the foundational mindset that enables those who support others to deliver services that are organized and consistent with Person-Centered Practices.
Person-Centered Thinking Training
Person-Centered Coach Training
Person-Centered Thinking Trainer
Electronic
Person-Centered Description
Easily create continuity of support with this web-based record of essential human information about the person.
Real Results from Person-Centered Thinking Training
“I just wanted to let you know that yesterday I did an activity with a person I support where I asked her the “7 questions you should be able to answer for each person you support.” And the feedback I received from her was powerful.
I’ve been working with her for about 4 months now, and that was the most she’s opened up. She even shared a situation from the past which gave her a lot of relief. So I just wanted to say thank you for the awesome training, and I am looking forward to using different PCT strategies!
Hope this story proves useful in broadcasting your training and its ability to be effective.”
– E.R., PCT Training Student
Person-Centered Practices represent the ideal methodology of delivering services and supports that respect the person’s autonomy and promotes a life of their own choosing in their own community
Whether it is because of a disability from birth, accident, or just the aging process, at some point, we may all need support from others. However, this can lead to a loss of positive control or autonomy in our lives. Person-Centered Practices help ensure the person remains the focus of these supports. We all want to retain our autonomy. We want a life of our choosing, lived out in a place of our choosing, surrounded by people of our choosing.
About the Curriculum
IntellectAbility has partnered with TLCPCP to provide tools and training that empower, educate, and inform those responsible for protecting, maintaining, and restoring health, wholeness, and good quality of life.
For a more detailed look at the Curriculum, please contact us below!
Meet Our Person-Centered Services Staff
Our Person-Centered Services Mentor and Trainers are all credentialed with The Learning Community for Person-Centered Practices and deliver this curriculum.
When you successfully complete any of these trainings with IntellectAbility, you will be officially recognized with The Learning Community.
Elizabeth Hunter
PCS MANAGER
Elizabeth has 13 years of experience working in the field of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. She has worked at the provider level, providing community access and supported employment services, most recently as the Executive Director at Cross Plains Community Partner. Elizabeth led several initiatives ensuring students have transitional and post-secondary employment first opportunities utilizing customized Person-Centered strategies. She serves on the board of The Georgia Learning Community. Elizabeth joined IntellectAbility in September 2024.
David Toback
PCS MENTOR
David has nearly 16 years of experience working in the field of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. He has worked both at the provider level and the state level as a training and project manager for GA Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD). David has experience in transition initiatives for those moving from institutional to community settings and also worked as a SIS interviewer for many years. He is a certified Person-Centered Practices Mentor and Person Centered Thinking Trainer by The Learning Community for Person-Centered Practices.
Johnathon Crumley
PCT TRAINER
Johnathon has nearly 20 years working in the field of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. For many years he was the Vice President of Operations for a large Support Coordination agency in Georgia. Concurrently he worked as a Supports Intensity Scale (SIS) senior trainer with AAIDD, working in both the US and Canada. He is a certified Person-Centered Thinking Trainer by The Learning Community for Person-Centered Practices. He has been with IntellectAbility since 2013 and is currently its Chief Operations Officer.
Debra Davis
PCT TRAINER
Deb has over 20 years as a Registered Nurse working with vulnerable populations, including those with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Mental Illness, and Aging. She is an Certified Developmental Disabilities Nurse and a Registered Nurse Trainer for the state of Illinois. She has been a member of DDNA for 14 years and served as the president of Central IL DDNA for 10 years.
Rick Strickland
PCT TRAINER
Rick Strickland has close to 50 years of experience working with individuals with disabilities. From 1985 to 2016, he assumed a leadership role at a “cutting edge” agency providing Person-Centered supports. The organization moved from a traditional segregated facility-based program to a fully integrated, community-based, person-centered organization. Rick has presented at numerous state and national conferences and, in 1995, founded Creative Resources, a consultation and training organization that has provided training and consultation to over 75 organizations, including the Council on Quality and Leadership, University of Georgia, Georgia Department of Adult Education, Qlarant, IntellectAbility, and Support Development Associates. His insights come from 50 years of firsthand experience spanning an array of settings, including national consultation organizations, large state-operated programs, and small community-based non-profit organizations. His humor and down-to-earth style will entertain, educate, and delight you.
Adriane Mota
PCT TRAINER
Adriane has worked in the service industry since 2007. Starting as a one-on-one personal assistant, she transitioned to working in a day program as an Instructor, Supervisor, and Program Director. As a Program Director, Adriane led teams at five program sites, serving over 200 people and collaborating with the five Regional Centers across Los Angeles County in California. In 2022, Adriane became a certified Person-Centered Thinking Trainer with The Learning Community for Person-Centered Practices (TLCPCP). Adriane joined IntellectAbility in 2024 as a Person-Centered Thinking Trainer and is currently a Person-Centered Coach Trainer candidate.
Andreia Hutcheson
PCS SERVICES ADMINISTRATOR
Andreia is an Army wife, mother to three children, and a veteran. She’s a volunteer with the Florida Soldier and Family Readiness Group and an advocate for positive change. She began her work with IntellectAbility in July of 2023. Her professional experience is rooted in the service industries, where she can problem solve, collaborate, and be of service to others. This experience allows her to work with many different people within the human services industry, ensuring they get the best experience possible whilst learning about Person-Centered Thinking.
Emily Lane
PCS SUPPORT REP
Emily Lane has been providing technology and administrative support for lntellectAbility’s Person-Centered Services since 2020. She regularly assists in facilitating virtual trainings and works with both trainers and coaches throughout the process of credentialing. She is also currently a student and is anticipating graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology in 2023. Emily is currently a Person-Centered Support Representative for lntellectAbility.
Stephanie Saylor
PCS SUPPORT REP
Stephanie Saylor brings over 10 years of experience working with technology and people, primarily in retail environments, where she honed her skills in management and team development. Known for her focus on skill building, Stephanie has a proven track record of fostering strong team dynamics and enhancing operational efficiency. In September 2024, she joined IntellectAbility as a Person-Centered Support Representative, where she helps assist with Person-Centered Thinking training. Stephanie is passionate about empowering individuals and teams to achieve their full potential.
Frequently Asked Questions
Person-Centered Thinking training is an 18-hour training delivered live via Zoom. It is an interactive training held in a virtual classroom environment. Typically, this training is delivered over three consecutive, six-hour days but is also available for custom scheduling based on client preferences.
Yes. IntellectAbility is bound by The Learning Community for Person-Centered Practices (TLCPCP) to ensure that students meet the minimum requirements to receive a certificate for completing this virtual training. Participation for the entire 18-hours is one of these requirements.
No. Person-Centered Thinking training is a virtual, interactive training experience and requires the learner to engage in small group activities and other interactions with the trainer.
Yes. The Person-Centered Thinking curriculum used by IntellectAbility trainers is that of The Learning Community for Person-Centered Practices (TLCPCP) and is consistent with CMS Person-Centered standards.
Person-Centered Thinking is an essential pre-requisite to successful planning or facilitation. Without the right mindset, skillset, and perspective, writing and implementing person-centered plans and practices will be largely ineffective no matter the planning product or method.
Yes. IntellectAbility provides a certificate of completion for anyone successfully completing virtual Person-Centered Thinking training.
Yes. The Person-Centered Thinking training effectively supports all kinds of person-centered planning approaches and methods such as: Facilitation Planning, Maps, Profiles, Charting the Life-Course and others.
Yes, IntellectAbility’s Person-Centered Services Mentors work with qualified trainer-candidates to develop Person-Centered Thinking Trainers that meet the prerequisites and high standards of The Learning Community for Person-Centered Practices (TLCPCP). This training consists of both virtual class time and on-site training observation by an IntellectAbility Mentor.
Person-Centered Coaches are specifically trained in the application, proper use, and implementation of the person-centered skills learned in Person-Centered Thinking training. Coaches receive additional training to provide front line support to those within their agency. They can not only offer troubleshooting assistance but also help the agency keep the momentum of the person-centered efforts going and help change the culture of the agency or entity. IntellectAbility highly recommends the use of Coaches to maximize all person-centered initiatives and endeavors.
Those seeking to become a Coach should have:
- A strong commitment to person-centered approaches
- A solid willingness to work with others to ensure proper application of person-centered approaches
- A strong desire to provide ongoing support to others in the application, proper use, and implementation of person-centered approaches
- A firm belief that EVERYONE should be supported in a way that is significant and meaningful to that person
IntellectAbility can assist the client in the selection of Person-Centered Coaches.
Person-Centered Coach training takes 6 months. Coach Trainees meet one Friday a month for six months and complete homework between meetings.
Becoming a Person-Centered Thinking Trainer takes between 6-8 months. Trainer-candidates meet on Mondays with a Mentor for 14 weeks to prepare, while completing homework between meetings. They then schedule two rounds of live, onsite demonstration trainings to be delivered under the supervision of a Mentor. The time between preparation and demonstration is used for review and rehearsal.
The curriculum is extensive and requires the support of a co-trainer to deliver the demonstration trainings. Trainers should continue to train in pairs even after credentialing until they have been approved by a Mentor to deliver the training alone.
