Skylands Earns Top Marks From New Jersey

The Skylands Center program has received the equivalent of  "all A's" on its annual report card from the state of New Jersey.

Like all community-based programs in New Jersey for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Skylands is licensed and partially funded by the state Department of Human Services (DHS)  Division of Developmental Disabilities  (DDD).

Each year the DHS issues a Report Card rating each program in three major categories.  In the recently released report card for  2022, Skylands received the state's maximum rating of three green stars in each category, for a rating of three green stars overall.

The three categories are:

• Compliance with state health and safety standards.

• Timely corrections of any licensing deficiencies.

• Timely reporting of critical events to DHS.

Ratings in the health and safety category are based on scheduled and unannounced inspections of our day habilitation center and two group homes by state personnel.

Skylands has a long history of receiving high evaluations from the state. The perfect score for 2022 was accomplished as staff were still dealing with the challenges of the Covid pandemic.  And that crisis came on the heels of Skylands'  conversion to the Medicaid Fee for Service financing system,  which required extensive training and adjustments by the Skylands community.

"We're not just surviving, we're thriving,"  said Nicole D'Ambrosi, executive director.

"And that reflects the commitment of Skylands staff  to the well-being  of the individuals we support." 

On the state Report Card, Skylands was listed in a tier of 57 community programs that served up to 50 consumers. Skylands was among 24 of those programs that earned three-star ratings.

The Day Center is Back!

There was no red-carpet walk, no photographers or preening celebrities, but this was definitely a grand opening for Skylands.

After 15 long months of a COVID imposed shutdown, our Day Habilitation Center in Hackettstown partially re-opened on July 12th.  

Residents of Skylands Center’s two group homes are once again boarding vans each weekday morning to be driven by staff members to the center for a day of structured activities.  Arrangements are now underway to resume our activities in the surrounding community, which are a popular part of the Skylands experience.

"The day program has always been a big part of our consumers' lives and they’re happy to be back," said Christian Ardila, who supervises the day program.

To minimize the risk of exposure during the COVID emergency, Skylands Center’s consumers did not leave their group home properties except for medical visits.  That meant keeping the group homes operating 24x7 every day and staff from the center have pitched in to take shifts at the group homes

"It's been a challenge, but one that everyone pulled together to meet," said Nicole D'Amrbrosi, Skylands executive director. "We're proud of our staff and delighted to see some of our consumers at the center again!"

Our greatest need at this time (and we’re not alone), is the recruitment of dedicated and passionate team members. We are hiring Direct Support Professionals and Van Drivers to join our team at Skylands Center. If you know anyone who would be a great fit with our family, please have them contact Skylands Center at 908-850-6440.                                                                     

We couldn’t be more excited to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic and start a new normal type of day at Skylands Center’s Day Habilitation Center.  Thanks to the whole Skylands community for staying positive and patient through it all. 

Skylands Standing Up To The Covid Crisis

As it has for the rest of America and the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has raised challenges and forced changes for the Skylands Center community.

 It's been almost a year since the pandemic hit with full force in New Jersey. This has been a difficult time of adjustment for staff and consumers as we stayed focused on the number one goal of keeping consumers safe and healthy.

 And we have some good news to share:

• As of mid-February, all Skylands consumers and staff are healthy. 

• The still hard to get COVID vaccinations are being administered to each of our consumers whose guardians have approved it. 

• Vaccinations have also been made available to all staff.

• Our early access to vaccinations was made possible in part by a special program introduced by Walmart in New Jersey, specifically for group home residents and staff.

Of course, the pandemic continues as a major health threat and Skylands continues with state-mandated health precautions to minimize consumer exposure to the virus.  These precautions include:

• Our Day Habilitation Center program in Hackettstown remains closed.

• With the center closed, residents of our two group homes in Fredon and Randolph are restricted to those homes and their surrounding properties, with exceptions for health care visits.

• Visits by our consumers to their family homes remain suspended, but staff has been helping families do visits through digital apps like Zoom and Face Time. 

•  Visits to the group homes by parents and guardians have recently been authorized by the state, with strict social distancing required. 

• All staff members and any visitors to the group homes must wear masks, have their temperatures taken and fill out a brief health questionnaire before entering either of the homes.

• We continue to follow state COVID guidelines for frequent hand washing and cleaning and disinfecting surfaces.

The willingness of Skylands staff to put the needs of our consumers before their own personal convenience has been a major asset for us as we move through this crisis.  Staff who normally work in the day center have been flexible about taking shifts at the group homes. 

In the early days of the pandemic, when little was known about the virus and public apprehension was highest, all Skylands staff swallowed whatever personal anxieties they felt and reported for work to care for our vulnerable consumers.  

 "I'm delighted but not surprised at the way our employees have responded," said Nicole D'Ambrosi, executive director of Skylands Center. "We have a good team and that makes all the difference at a time like this."

A Thanksgiving Message That Applies All Year

Photo: Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com-USA Today Network

Paul Aronsohn took office last year as New Jersey's first ever ombudsman for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities and their families. On the Sunday before Thanksgiving 2019 he published a moving message of thanksgiving for the courageous example set by these individuals and for the selfless work of the professionals and volunteers who care for them.  Paul's message was published as a guest piece in The Record, a daily newspaper serving Northern New Jersey. You can read it by visiting this link.

Skylands Rolls with Meals on Wheels

The white van from Skylands is a familiar sight delivering food to Meals On Wheels clients in Hackettstown on weekday mornings.

The white van from the day program at Skylands is a familiar sight at the Hackettstown (NJ) Senior Center.

Four mornings a week the van rolls up to the center, driven by a Skylands Direct Service Staff member and carrying three Skylands consumers. This is our Meals on Wheels delivery   crew for the day and they'll spend the rest of the morning bringing meals to elderly residents of the community.   

First stop of the day is always the Hackettstown Senior Center, where the Skylands team picks up food prepared there by volunteers from the Visiting Homemaker Service of Warren County. Then our guys load up the van and start their deliveries.  

On a typical day they make five to seven stops. Most of the Meals on Wheels clients they serve are people in their 80s and 90s. Some live in private houses, others in the Heritage House senior citizen apartment complex. But the visit process is always the same.

Accompanied by a Skylands staff member, one of our consumers knocks on the door and presents the resident with a cold meal packed in a paper bag and a ready to eat hot meal in an insulated container.  Staffers encourage our guys to introduce themselves and engage in a little appropriate conversation with each meal recipient, even if it's just to say "you're welcome" when the recipient thanks them for the delivery.

One of our Skylands consumers waits for a Hackettstown senior to open the door for a Meals On Wheels delivery.

"The biggest benefit is that we're out interacting with the community," explains Christian Ardila, a 16-year veteran of Skylands who supervises the day program and manages the Meals on Wheels activity. "Our guys love doing it."

Twelve Skylands consumers volunteer to take turns with the Meals on Wheels deliveries. Christian explains that the experience is rich with learning opportunities.  They learn safe ways of getting in and out of the van and using an elevator. And they learn how to have polite and safe interaction with strangers.

Skylands staff also take turns driving and supervising the Meals on Wheels volunteers.  They're just as enthused as our consumers.

"The support of our staff is what really keeps our Meals on Wheels deliveries rolling," explains Christian. "Everybody looks forward to their Meals on Wheels day."

New Year's Greeting

To Members of the Skylands Family & Friends:

As we begin the new year, we can look back on 2018 as a watershed year for the Skylands program that left us well positioned for the challenges and opportunities in our future.

The singular accomplishment of 2018 was the successful conversion of Skylands to the new fee for service financing system mandated by the state. Mastering this complex system required our senior leaders to aggressively seek new information and guidelines to implement this fundamental change.

Staff members at our Day Habilitation Center in Hackettstown and at our group homes in Fredon and Randolph were trained and stepped up to the added responsibility of digitally documenting in detail the services they provide in order to bill Medicaid, as the new system requires.

Best of all, this major transition was made with no disruption of services to Skylands consumers. That's because Skylands staff, as always, remained focused on the overall goal of providing the best possible quality of life to the consumers who depend on us.

So we'd like to extend our personal thanks to Skylands Staff and to the volunteer board members and other friends of the program whose help we know we can continue to count on in 2019.

Thank You and Happy New Year!

Nicole D’Ambrosi, Executive Director
Timothy Donovan, Assistant to Executive Director

The Skylands Board:
Richard Gottardi, President
Bruce Brackett
Stephen Filipow, Treasurer
Sheila Gottardi, Secretary
Janet Kimble, Vice President
Joan Mach
Joseph Mach
Nancy Richardson

Welcome to the Skylands Website

Skylands Center has created this website to expand communications with the families of our clients, friends of the program and anyone who would like more information about Skylands and its services.

In this News and Views section we will provide updates on news about Skylands and on issues that affect us and the autism services community throughout New Jersey and the nation.

We hope you will explore what Skylands has to offer by spending a few minutes exploring the website. And if you have comments or questions, please click on the Contact Us section to communicate directly with the agency.

- The Skylands Board