Timothy Santiago, a 29-year-old Bronx resident with Autism Syndrome Disorder (ASD), joined our Advance program because he wanted to get a job as a Math tutor and work near home. Math was his favorite subject in school, was fascinated with problem solving and works on math problems everyday even today, and had worked as assistant to his Math college professor. Timothy has a High School Diploma, but he did not graduate from college.

Once in our Advance program, Timothy began offering Math mentoring service at his local library, but  he got few customers and soon realized that was not a stable job. Since he had no prior job training, our Advance team provided job readiness: interview and application preparation, and he attended workshops: communication skills, conflict resolution, and others to prepare him for the workplace. Knowing that Timothy wanted a job near home, the team helped him search for jobs in his community. One opportunity caught Timothy’s attention: a temporary part-time Customer Service Associate position  at his local Walgreens. And thanks to the Advance team, he got it!

Timothy was hired last September 22 and is earning $15/hr. To ensure success, the Advance team provided him on-the-job coaching to help him learn his responsibilities. Only weeks  later, Timothy’s manager informed our team that Timothy had exceeded her expectations and offered him a permanent part-time position. now that Timothy is stable in his job, Kenneth Wright, His Job Coach, visits him  once per week. As of Nov. 15, Timothy works 12 hrs./week and is looking forward to moving to the next level!

Submitted by Goodwill NYNJ Advance Bronx:

Ganesh Jagdeo, Employment Specialist

Kenneth Wright, Job Coach

Marset Messam, Job Developer