YAI
Yvonne started out as a Direct Support Professional at YAI in 1987. Today, she is the Acting Chief Program Officer, overseeing a wide range of programs, including residences, day habs, and socialization programs throughout New York and New Jersey. Yvonne is a tireless advocate for people with disabilities. She served as co-chair of the Residential Committee for the Bronx’s Developmental Disabilities Council, which helps support the rights of people with I/DD throughout the borough and beyond. Career highlights include collaborating to help multiple people with I/DD successfully transition from shared residences to their own apartments and helping to establish YAI’s first 24-hour nursing residence. She holds a master's in disabilities studies from the CUNY School of Professional Studies and a bachelor’s in psychology from Lehman College.
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YAI
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YAI was launched in February of 1957 out of a small school in Brooklyn, New York. Initially staffed by Co-Founders Bert MacLeech and Pearl Maze MacLeech alone, their pilot program served just seven people. According to Bert, from its very beginning YAI has been dedicated to providing innovative services for the I/DD (intellectual and/or developmental disabilities) community. MacLeech envisioned a “total life adjustment approach, emphasizing personal growth, social responsibility, employment goals, and the development of independence for the individual.” At a time when institutional living was the norm for people with I/DD, this vision was nothing short of revolutionary.