ServiceNet Employee Now Able to Train Others as Human Guides

Maria Steriti, a senior job coach for the DBIS Program at ServiceNet’s Prospect Meadow Farm, is now able to train other employees as human guides, individuals trained to safely guide blind or visually impaired people. Steriti earned the training certification in order to better serve one of the individuals she works with.

“I look for ways to improve my capacity to achieve those goals, and this training made a lot of sense,” said Steriti.

As a job coach, Steriti works with 14 different individuals at Prospect Meadow Farm. She drives them to and from the farm, helping them complete projects and tasks. Afterward she takes them to different activities in the community depending on the day of the week. Some days they visit the Forbes Library, on others they go to museums, parks, recreation areas or even just the grocery store.

About a year ago, Steriti began working with AJ, who is visually impaired. When he first visited the farm, a staff member from the Commission for the Blind helped AJ orient himself at the farm. And while he is usually quite independent, it can be easy to lose orientation of the farm based on the size and changing nature of the space.

To best assist AJ, the Commission for the Blind sent a group of trainers to train Steriti and another colleague to be human guides for the visually impaired.

It didn’t take long until they both learned how to properly guide someone. The technique may seem simple, but the process can be more involved than one might imagine. Steriti learned that as a guide, you must think about a lot of details in your surroundings to make an environment more accessible for the person you’re guiding. Clear communication quickly becomes a necessity.

Because new or different staff might work with AJ in the future, Steriti thought it would be beneficial for AJ to ensure that staff can guide him consistently, so she decided to take the next step and become certified to train other employees as human guides.

After a month of training, readings, quizzes and an in-person class, Steriti can now train up to 10 other ServiceNet staff members at a time to be human guides themselves.

She hopes to start teaching a human guide class this summer to other employees this summer, in the hopes that they will be able to better serve the individuals they currently serve and any who may need the support in the future.

“My personal experiences with disability, within an ableist society, motivates me to do all that I can to remove obstacles and alleviate the many struggles our clients face,” said Steriti.