The InVisionary
Like any other organization, InVision Human Services is broken down into many different departments. Each of our departments, and all of our team members – from those at our corporate and eastern offices, the homes of the people we support, and within our local communities – serve an essential purpose to our operation.
With the many unique functions and job duties our team members carry out statewide, it is imperative that we implement cross-departmental collaboration strategies – especially within our Residential, Community, and Employment Supports programs. These efforts ensure we stay informed in providing the highest quality of support to the people we serve. For team members Jay and Chad, collaboration came easy five years ago, and their strategies have set the precedent among collaborative efforts for many at InVision.
Jay Matteo began his career with InVision nearly ten years ago and has held a variety of positions within our organization. Starting out as a program supervisor, Jay then went on to help pilot the position of an awake overnight supervisor. Acting as the first team member to hold this position, Jay helped establish and outline its job description and responsibilities. Four years ago, Jay was promoted to his current position of a behavioral specialist – working on caseloads among both our Comprehensive and Signals programs.
Chad Applequist will celebrate his five-year tenure this upcoming July, and similarly to Jay, has held multiple positions at InVision. Beginning his career as a program supervisor, Chad was later promoted to a residential operations manager (ROM) in our eastern region – traveling weekly to our office in Reading while also maintaining a workload in our western region. A little over a year ago, Chad’s ROM duties shifted back to program operations within our corporate office.
Jay’s responsibilities as a behavior specialist focus on providing necessary support and education to people supported and direct support professionals (DSPs) to help navigate and understand behavioral challenges. This includes practices of positive approaches, offering skills and tools for managing and maintaining behavioral baselines, the development of support plans, and data collection and review. As ROM, Chad works to maintain the health and safety of those we serve by developing team members, leaders, and structure. Additionally, Chad oversees our program supervisors, who act as the heads of our support teams.
From the day Chad began his work with InVision, a collaborative working relationship was constructed with Jay – combining the efforts of our program staff and behavior specialists. These efforts were set in place between the pair for the betterment of their work, care, and support of the people we support.
Their methods were simple, yet effective: they developed a system where they included each other in all information sharing, traveled together, and never made decisions without the input of the other. Soon enough, the duo’s quickly established relationship was noticed among people supported, giving them more than one resource for questions, and confidence in a support system built of people who truly care for them. The benefits of such efforts warrant all members of a support team to be on the same page, but also aligned on the information, health recommendations, and solutions to challenges being presented to the people we support within their care.
Over the last five years, regardless of their position or geographical location, Jay and Chad have maintained the standards they set for themselves – leading with excellence, displaying our guiding principles, and positively impacting people supported and their colleagues alike. What started out as exploring a way to best work together has expanded into an approach that has been adopted statewide, as Jay and Chad encourage others to adopt these strategies for themselves. From management, supervisors, behavior specalists, health service teams, and DSPs, Jay and Chad have watched teams collaberate and grow together.
It all starts with a basic level of communication and connection, random check-ins multiple times a week, and keeping others fully in tune with everything occurring within the homes of the people we support.
“You have to build a relationship with your colleagues,” Chad said. “You have to be open to building the relationship, and open to trusting each other’s opinions.”
To which Jay added “You don’t have to be best friends with anyone, but you need to build a functioning working relationship. You have to be understanding of this regardless of your biases, because at the end of the day, we are doing this for the greater good of our programs and the people we support.”
The duo also recognizes that not everyone will have the same connection and background as their working relationship, and that it will not always be easy – sometimes these relationships can require a considerable effort.
“Jay and I don’t always see eye-to-eye,” Chad added. “All it takes is grabbing lunch and talking over what we need to discuss. And we always, always find a middle ground or give each other room to explain our perspectives on the situation. But we always do it together.”
Jay and Chad plan to expand these efforts at InVision by continuing to do what they are doing – staying unified in their approaches, helping others implement collaboration strategies, and by telling their story.
A few key success takeaways include:
Most importantly, the duo’s efforts have resulted in individual success stories for those we serve, as believing in the system and supports they receive clears a path for them to become their best selves. Terry, a person supported by InVision for the last 12 years, has faced many adversities throughout his life. Over the past few years, Terry has persevered and shown incredible growth. Having been a part of Terry’s support team for seven years to date, Jay implemented his collaborative efforts with Chad into Terry’s support plan to ensure Terry had the means necessary to make meaningful life changes.
The hard work Terry has put in to turning around his behavioral difficulties, budgeting and saving money, coping skills, and getting along with his support team, have led to a happier and healthier life. Terry is now an active participant in activities he would have previously rejected. He enjoys being out in his community, and thanks to InVision Foundation, is a season pass holder of tickets to Kennywood where he loves to go and enjoy time with his support staff.
In honor of March’s commemoration of Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, Terry was recognized by his local county with a 2025 improvement achievement award – celebrating Terry for the strides he has made within his personal life and as a valued community member. Upon receiving this award, Terry expressed pride in himself and even wrote an acceptance speech thanking his staff for their support in this accomplishment.
“I think it’s really awesome for Terry, even just to hear him talk about everything that came afterward,” Jay shared. “It’s a big deal for him and I want to keep the momentum going as long as possible.”
With routines set in place for things like work and laundry, Terry is making a conscious effort to continue focusing on the positives in his life. He loves the new printer he got for Christmas, is looking forward to upcoming home renovations, and enjoys eating eggs every morning for breakfast. His advice to others is to “take one day at a time and always talk to staff when feeling upset!”
Congratulations, Terry! Your friends at InVision are so proud of you and look forward to all the accomplishments in store for you in the future. A huge thank you to Jay and Chad for their dedication to the people we support and their teams, and for leading by example for the betterment of our programs.
With the many unique functions and job duties our team members carry out statewide, it is imperative that we implement cross-departmental collaboration strategies – especially within our Residential, Community, and Employment Supports programs. These efforts ensure we stay informed in providing the highest quality of support to the people we serve. For team members Jay and Chad, collaboration came easy five years ago, and their strategies have set the precedent among collaborative efforts for many at InVision.
The Inception of Jay and Chad’s Collaboration
Jay Matteo began his career with InVision nearly ten years ago and has held a variety of positions within our organization. Starting out as a program supervisor, Jay then went on to help pilot the position of an awake overnight supervisor. Acting as the first team member to hold this position, Jay helped establish and outline its job description and responsibilities. Four years ago, Jay was promoted to his current position of a behavioral specialist – working on caseloads among both our Comprehensive and Signals programs.Chad Applequist will celebrate his five-year tenure this upcoming July, and similarly to Jay, has held multiple positions at InVision. Beginning his career as a program supervisor, Chad was later promoted to a residential operations manager (ROM) in our eastern region – traveling weekly to our office in Reading while also maintaining a workload in our western region. A little over a year ago, Chad’s ROM duties shifted back to program operations within our corporate office.
Jay’s responsibilities as a behavior specialist focus on providing necessary support and education to people supported and direct support professionals (DSPs) to help navigate and understand behavioral challenges. This includes practices of positive approaches, offering skills and tools for managing and maintaining behavioral baselines, the development of support plans, and data collection and review. As ROM, Chad works to maintain the health and safety of those we serve by developing team members, leaders, and structure. Additionally, Chad oversees our program supervisors, who act as the heads of our support teams.
From the day Chad began his work with InVision, a collaborative working relationship was constructed with Jay – combining the efforts of our program staff and behavior specialists. These efforts were set in place between the pair for the betterment of their work, care, and support of the people we support.Their methods were simple, yet effective: they developed a system where they included each other in all information sharing, traveled together, and never made decisions without the input of the other. Soon enough, the duo’s quickly established relationship was noticed among people supported, giving them more than one resource for questions, and confidence in a support system built of people who truly care for them. The benefits of such efforts warrant all members of a support team to be on the same page, but also aligned on the information, health recommendations, and solutions to challenges being presented to the people we support within their care.
Over the last five years, regardless of their position or geographical location, Jay and Chad have maintained the standards they set for themselves – leading with excellence, displaying our guiding principles, and positively impacting people supported and their colleagues alike. What started out as exploring a way to best work together has expanded into an approach that has been adopted statewide, as Jay and Chad encourage others to adopt these strategies for themselves. From management, supervisors, behavior specalists, health service teams, and DSPs, Jay and Chad have watched teams collaberate and grow together.
It all starts with a basic level of communication and connection, random check-ins multiple times a week, and keeping others fully in tune with everything occurring within the homes of the people we support.“You have to build a relationship with your colleagues,” Chad said. “You have to be open to building the relationship, and open to trusting each other’s opinions.”
To which Jay added “You don’t have to be best friends with anyone, but you need to build a functioning working relationship. You have to be understanding of this regardless of your biases, because at the end of the day, we are doing this for the greater good of our programs and the people we support.”
The duo also recognizes that not everyone will have the same connection and background as their working relationship, and that it will not always be easy – sometimes these relationships can require a considerable effort.
“Jay and I don’t always see eye-to-eye,” Chad added. “All it takes is grabbing lunch and talking over what we need to discuss. And we always, always find a middle ground or give each other room to explain our perspectives on the situation. But we always do it together.”
Jay and Chad plan to expand these efforts at InVision by continuing to do what they are doing – staying unified in their approaches, helping others implement collaboration strategies, and by telling their story.
The Success of Collaboration
Organizations such as our own are always changing and evolving for the better, and our team members do the same. Throughout their time working together, Jay and Chad have seen many successes organization-wide and continue to see progress to this day.A few key success takeaways include:
- Increase in collaboration among team members within our programs
- Decrease in turnover at a supervisor level
- Internal staff promotions
- Strong, trusting relationships with people supported
- More people supported involved in our Employment Supports program
- Supervision reduction among people supported
Terry’s Achievement Award
Most importantly, the duo’s efforts have resulted in individual success stories for those we serve, as believing in the system and supports they receive clears a path for them to become their best selves. Terry, a person supported by InVision for the last 12 years, has faced many adversities throughout his life. Over the past few years, Terry has persevered and shown incredible growth. Having been a part of Terry’s support team for seven years to date, Jay implemented his collaborative efforts with Chad into Terry’s support plan to ensure Terry had the means necessary to make meaningful life changes.The hard work Terry has put in to turning around his behavioral difficulties, budgeting and saving money, coping skills, and getting along with his support team, have led to a happier and healthier life. Terry is now an active participant in activities he would have previously rejected. He enjoys being out in his community, and thanks to InVision Foundation, is a season pass holder of tickets to Kennywood where he loves to go and enjoy time with his support staff.
In honor of March’s commemoration of Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, Terry was recognized by his local county with a 2025 improvement achievement award – celebrating Terry for the strides he has made within his personal life and as a valued community member. Upon receiving this award, Terry expressed pride in himself and even wrote an acceptance speech thanking his staff for their support in this accomplishment.“I think it’s really awesome for Terry, even just to hear him talk about everything that came afterward,” Jay shared. “It’s a big deal for him and I want to keep the momentum going as long as possible.”
With routines set in place for things like work and laundry, Terry is making a conscious effort to continue focusing on the positives in his life. He loves the new printer he got for Christmas, is looking forward to upcoming home renovations, and enjoys eating eggs every morning for breakfast. His advice to others is to “take one day at a time and always talk to staff when feeling upset!”
Congratulations, Terry! Your friends at InVision are so proud of you and look forward to all the accomplishments in store for you in the future. A huge thank you to Jay and Chad for their dedication to the people we support and their teams, and for leading by example for the betterment of our programs.
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March 10, 2025
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