Blog

Hello all – I hope you and your family are having an enjoyable summer. As always, things are busy here at NHTC as we stay active and enjoy the many wonderful events and community activities which Spearfish has to offer during the summer months. You will see many of our persons supported out and about at events like Spread the Tunes on Wednesdays, shopping at the farmers markets on Saturdays and just generally getting out and having fun in our community.

One great example of this came this past month when the SD Amateur Baseball association hosted NHTC persons supported at the Spearfish Sasquatch game on June 28^th. Attendees were treated to the game, food, hats and the evening was topped off with fireworks. We are incredibly grateful to our sponsor, Mr. Daryl Deneke, District 8 commissioner for SD Amatuer Baseball, who facilitated and made this evening possible at no cost for all attendees from NHTC. It was a terrific evening, and many wonderful memories were made. We are grateful for the generosity of Mr. Denneke, Mr. Eric Schmidt, General Manager for the Spearfish Sasquatch and of course, SD Amateur Baseball for making this event possible.

Another wonderful event happening during July was the annual fishing event at Brady Pond hosted by Mr. Tom Brady, a longtime supporter and contributor to Northern Hills Training Center. Persons supported were invited out to fish and have lunch through the generous support of Mr. Brady. Attendees were hosted across mulitple days out at Brady Pond and had a great time despite the warm temperatures Mother Nature provided us on those days.

In other NHTC news, we continue to move forward with our strategic planning information gathering, through focus groups and online surveys. All parents and guardians can expect to receive a link to an online survey in the coming weeks which will serve as a vehicle for you to provide input to me and our board as we determine the goals and direction of Northern Hills for the future.

Finally, we strive for consistent communications with all of our families and friends. Keeping our contact list up to date is always an ongoing effort. If your mailing address, phone number or email address have changed, please send me a note to update our records. You can always reach me at [email protected] to provide any updates to your information.

I hope the summer season continues to be one of enjoyment and relaxation for you all. Take care all!

Check out some photos from our 2nd Annual Best Bike Ride Ever. On June 7, we had quite the crew take off on wheels through Spearfish as a way to celebrate the individuals we support, a healthy lifestyle and our beautiful town. Thanks to James Ager and all the thoughtful volunteers for organizing this awesome new tradition, and the BHSU Triathlon Team and Spearfish Bicycle Collective for working with our NHTC family on bike maintenance and safety. We are already looking forward to next year’s event!

Happy June to you all from NHTC!  I want to thank all of you for stopping by, sending supportive notes and being incredible advocates for the persons we support, and the programs we provide.

Over the past month, we have been addressing necessary changes identified in our recent Division of Developmental Disabilities policy review. This compliance review highlighted the need to revise our long-standing system of medication administration training and delegation. Following this regulatory directive, the administrative team has undertaken significant procedural changes. In the coming weeks, NHTC will introduce a new role for a small group of professionals, titled “unlicensed medication aides,” who will be responsible for administering medications to our persons supported. The addition of these roles is cost-neutral within our budget; additionally, it does not increase the number of total full-time staff for NHTC.  These roles are being culled from within existing vacancies and efficiencies found within staffing across programs. These aides will be directly supervised and monitored by our newly hired full-time registered nurse, Ms. Julianne Blakeman, whom we welcomed to our team just this week. We plan to implement this new system gradually to minimize disruptions. Our goal is to enhance oversight and accountability in our medication administration processes, resulting in better care for those we support. If you have any questions about this new system, please feel free to reach out to me or our Director of Medical Services, Blythe Heinbaugh.

As we move forward with these system changes, you will also notice some physical updates happening in our main building and the Fred Romkema Center. We are using some of the remaining federal COVID funds to enhance our paging/intercom and audio-visual systems in both buildings. Additionally, window film is being installed to provide heightened security and privacy, along with the added benefit of heat reflection, which will help keep our buildings cooler during the summer. We are also doing some painting and general sprucing up to ensure the buildings reflect our dedication and passion for the people supported by NHTC. Stay tuned for more updates!

Finally, I want to share that NHTC is moving forward with rebranding our organization. What does this mean? We are seeking a new name for NHTC that will reflect both its legacy of service and our vision for the future. With this change, we want to honor the history of those who came before us while moving forward with growth in mind. NHTC is currently gathering ideas for rebranding, and I encourage you to contact me with any suggestions. We look forward to announcing our new brand name to our persons supported, their families, and our entire community.

The hours for NHTC main building will be changing for the summer months. The intent of the summer schedule is to provide a cost-free incentive to our hard-working staff so they may enjoy a bit more of the summer with their families.

Effective June 3 through August 30, the hours of the NHTC main building at 625 Harvard will be 7:30 AM -4:30 PM, Monday through Thursday, and 8 AM – Noon on Fridays. The NHTC main building will be closed to the public after 12:00 PM on all Fridays. 

PLEASE NOTE: this change will not affect any services provided to the persons we support. The schedules for day services (Connections, Harvard, employment supports) will be exactly the same as they are now.  Your family member will not experience any disruptions to their day-to-day schedules due to staff working an alternative schedule.

Staff have the option to following an alternative schedule if they are part of the following teams: Directors, day/vocational supervisors, residential supervisors, MSA staff, specialists and finance office staff.  If staff follow an alternate schedule, they will be working extended hours on Monday through Thursday and working 4 hours on Friday AM. All work schedules will be between 7 AM to 5 PM, Monday through Thursday, and 7-Noon on Fridays. Please note not all staff will be following an alternative schedule.

NHTC will maintain a core team of staff in the building on Friday afternoons for any issues or emergencies that may arise. 

If you have any questions regarding this change, please feel free to contact us at your earliest convenience. 

Pie-In-The-Sky Award

Each month, the NHTC staff chooses a recipient for a cherished award in the company. The “Pie-In-The-Sky Award” is given in recognition of going above and beyond all expectations to fulfill the Purpose In Everyone (PIE). This month, Northern Hills Training Center proudly presents the award to:

Graham Wickwire

When Graham walks by, you know you are going to get a smile and a warm hello! Graham has a positive attitude and brings joy to those around him. He loves working with the people we support, and it shows every day in his work. Congrats, Graham!

2024 Pie-In-The-Sky Award Winners

• January: Rich Mulholland
• March: Jennifer Smolik
• April: Christine Green
• May: Graham Wickwire

On Monday, April 29, 2024, Northern Hills Training Center (NHTC) was presented with a $1,000.00 check from Risk Administrative Services (RAS).  The $1,000.00 will be going toward the purchase of a salt/sand spreader to address slippery parking lots.  Last year, NHTC was awarded a grant from RAS that went toward giving every employee a pair of slip-on winter walking spikes.  RAS has been NHTC’s Workman’s Compensation insurer since 2013 helping NHTC’s employees work in a safe working environment.  

Pictured from left to right are:  

Mark Weber, Maintenance Transportation Officer (NHTC), 

Jeff Jones, Business Development Manager (RAS),

Dr. Michelle Powers, Chief Executive Officer (NHTC), 

Ryan Aalbu, Chief Director of Operations (NHTC), 

Bret Green, Insurance Agent (HUB International), 

Theresa Parish, Ergonomics and Loss Control Specialist (RAS)

Greetings from the office of the CEO

A great many exciting things are happening here at NHTC, including celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, and welcoming the first day of spring! Thank you for letting me share a brief overview of some important news and events that occurred this past month.

One of the most important activities that happened this month was the first meeting of the Persons Supported Advisory Council (PSAC). Michelle Powers, CEO, and Ryan Aalbu, CDO, facilitated an hour-long listening session with volunteers discussing the scope of services provided through NHTC. This group will meet monthly on the 2nd Tuesday of the month, meeting in the FRC, at 1:00 PM.

As a result of Ryan’s promotion to CDO, we conducted a search for a new Director of Human Resources. This job opening closed on March 21st, and interviews are currently being conducted to find our next HR director. Please watch out for an announcement to come in next month’s newsletter regarding this position.

The 2024 legislative session ended in March. As a group, community support providers (CSP) across the state of south Dakota lobbied for full funding of the methodology used to provide the services and supports used by our persons supported by our programs. In the end, all CsPs were funded at 98%, which is certainly appreciated, and we thank our legislators for their work on our behalf, with the funding set for the upcoming year, now the work of budgeting and planning begins, as we seek to ensure we are meeting the needs of our persons supported in the best ways possible.

The annual meeting of the NHTC Advisory Council was held on March 18th, 2024, at Killian’s in Spearfish. At this gathering, Dr. Powers shared the year in review, covering demographics of persons supported by NHTC, our impact in the community through competitive employment and giving back, as well as our work in recruiting and retaining employees.

On a final note, mark your calendars as we will be honoring the 2024 HTC Employer, Patron, and Achiever of the Year on April 13th, at the Spearfish Convention Center. Be sure to check out next month’s column, as I will be sharing our honorees and winners!