Feb. 11, 2008 — For some senior citizens in the territory, sitting in a rocking chair in the shade of a gallery isn't their retirement plan — they are actually gainfully employed through a federal program, and love it.
One of those seniors is 83 years young George Williams, who shows up at Elena Christian Jr. High by 5:30 a.m. weekdays doing maintenance to get the school shining bright and looking nice and neat for the opening at 6:30 a.m.
"I hope to have Mr. Williams' energy when I reach his age," said Willard John, principal at Elena Christian. "I really admire and appreciate him."
Some of those seniors have been enrolled in the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), which has been around more than 35 years. Through this Department of Human Services program, low-income seniors age 55 and older are given training and assistance in gaining employment.
The mission of SCSEP is to promote ways to have economic self-sufficiency regardless of age. SCSEP promotes older workers to businesses looking for trained and qualified workers.
"The older worker is very reliable and valuable," said Valerie Daniel, assistant director at SCSEP on St. Croix. "They are always willing to go the extra mile at work."
Enrollment priority in the program is given to people over age 60, veterans and qualified spouses of veterans, since the number of participants enrolled is limited. Preference is also given to minority, limited English-speaking people and those who have the greatest economic need.
In the program there are slots for 137 individuals territory-wide. On St. Croix, the enrollment is filled with 64 senior citizens. The allotted number for the St. Thomas-St. John district is 73 spots. On St. Thomas 47 seniors are enrolled, with 15 new applicants waiting on notification of personnel action (NOPA), said Cindy Rollins-Williams, director of SCSEP on that island.
Ideally participants meet the goal of SCSEP and get an unsubsidized job before the 27-month program limit is up. When someone is finished with the time limit, the slots are opened up for people on a waiting list.
Once accepted in the program, participants take tests to find out their educational status. If individuals test below an eighth-grade level, they are directed where to go to get their skills, such as reading, up to par. If they test beyond the eighth-grade level, they receive a certificate that enables them to go on to earn their GED. To prepare and improve skills for GED testing, they can go to adult education classes at the Theodora Dunbavin Center. SCSEP covers the training cost.
Participants may go to on-the-job training and classroom training and start to collect an hourly salary at minimum wage. Classroom training is provided in areas such as back-to-workforce training, resume writing, computer training and how to handle an interview.
In addition to providing part-time, work-based training, the program has a goal of placing participants in unsubsidized jobs.
Hugh Payne went through the program and got work as a job coach and job developer. In his position he finds out what seniors can and can't do, or what they love to do. He refers them to training classes and on-the-job training in the community for the jobs they like to do. Payne had worked as an assistant vice president at a brokerage firm in Washington, D.C., and as an office manger for Service Master.
"I love what I do," he said. "It is great working with senior citizens — we're like one big family."
A number of host agencies employ the seniors, such as Head Start and the Homemakers program with the Department of Human Services. SCSEP also works closely with the Department of Labor.
Participants usually work an average of 20 hours a week. They work in a wide variety of community-service activities at non-profit and public facilities, including daycare centers, senior centers, schools and hospitals.
These community-service experiences are meant to serve as a bridge to other employment positions not supported with federal funds. Some of those employers in the territory are Continuum Care, Landmark Society and Prenatal.
"Some of the host agencies and private-sector employers have asked us to please send more seniors to them," Daniel said.
In addition to training, wages and meaningful employment, the enrollees receive an annual physical examination and personal and job counseling.
"We do a followups after employment and provide assistance when needed," Daniel said.
Adds Rollins-Williams, ""We have seniors who want to go back to work and are marketable. We just need to market them in the private-business community."
The seniors who participate in the program are homemakers looking to re-enter the workforce, people who aren't ready to retire or those who need extra income.
"They are a workforce that is already trained with life skills and ready to work, " Daniels said. Older workers provide a valuable resource to the needs of a 21st-century workforce, she said.
"Seniors are responsible, reliable, punctual, experienced and hard workers," Rollins-Williams said. "And they are employable."
For more information, call Valerie Daniel at 772-9811 on St. Croix or 774-0930 on St. Thomas.
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