For the unhoused or those otherwise struggling, life’s most routine things often are anything but.
A safe, comfortable place to lay your head at night, food to get you through the day, medical help, a compassionate ear to listen, support and practical guidance are things that should be givens for everyone—but in many cases aren’t.
The staff at David’s House in Galveston helps clients with the support they need to break through the barriers that keep them stuck in challenging situations and move forward. And now, David’s House with the help of the University of Texas Medical Branch can offer support with one of the things that can turn everything around—finding a job.
UTMB’s job-readiness program brings recruiters from the medical branch to David’s House to help clients there prepare to find employment.
“We come once a week over the course of four weeks,” explained Clara Brown, UTMB’s associate director of workforce development. “The first week we were there, we did just a meet-and-greet because I wanted them to have an opportunity to get to know us and ask questions about what they could expect over the next several weeks.
“And then we dove right in the following week and did resume writing and then professional presence and interviewing skills,” she said. “And then we wrapped it up and did mock interviews where they had the opportunity to really put into practice everything they've learned over the past month, and we could provide them additional feedback based on that mock interview.”
Also included were topics such as proper handshaking, presenting oneself in a professional way and the art of the elevator speech.
The program came about when David’s House Executive Director Lee Norton recognized the need to help people find not only jobs but sustainable jobs that offer more stability and potential than the plethora of seasonal work available in Galveston during the tourist-y months.
“In Galveston we have so much seasonal employment, and most people who have been unsheltered or homeless get that seasonal employment where employers use them for a couple of months and then they don't need them,” Norton said. “So, I wanted them to focus on jobs that they could turn into a career.”
Norton met Brown earlier this year through Dr. Kathleen Murphy, associate dean for Global Health & Community Engagement at UTMB who is on the board of Galveston Housing Plus, the parent organization to David’s House.
"When Dr. Murphy reached out about the opportunity to partner with David’s House, my answer was an immediate yes,” said Philesha Evans, UTMB’s vice president of human services. “She requested a job readiness in-service for the residents, but I knew we could do so much more.
From there, Evans asked Brown and Tony Morris, director of talent acquisition and staffing, to work with Murphy to create something meaningful for the residents.
And things took off from there, Evans said.
“I recently heard someone say that the best way out of poverty is through a job,” she said. “While I agree with that, getting a good job is easier said than done, especially when you have the chips stacked against you and feel like you’re constantly climbing uphill.”
“What the residents at David’s House need is a second chance, and our HR team is able to equip them with the skills and confidence they need to turn chance into reality,” she added. “Even if they aren’t hired at UTMB, we are now a part of their stories and journey back to stability."
Brown and Morris worked with Norton to determine specifics around what the need was and how UTMB could help fill it.
“I gave her [Clara] my vision, and she put together a program that was something I'd never seen before,” Norton said. “I just wanted them to get job skills, be more confident with mock interviews and all, but it turned into something better than that, something greater than I could have ever expected. And I am so happy.
“This is the first time that I've seen something happen where an entire HR department was willing to come and talk with our residents and give feedback,” he said. “I've been doing this type of work for 14 years and worked for some of the biggest organizations that provide services for the unsheltered in Houston, and I have never had an organization of this magnitude come and do as much as Clara and her team did.”
Considering that UTMB is the area’s largest employer, partnering with David’s House in this way is a natural fit, said Brown, who wanted something more than a one-and-done engagement, looking instead for an opportunity to create relationships in a supportive environment.
“We really have this obligation to care for the community that we serve,” she said. “And getting members of our community back into the workforce, it's possible that we've provided them with skills that they can take and get a sustainable job anywhere.
“Our hope is that we can get them connected at UTMB,” she added, “but regardless of where they find employment, we are allowing individuals an opportunity and providing them with the skills and resources to really lift themselves up and back into being a contributing member of the community in which they live.”
Taking part in the program doesn’t come with any promises other than participants coming away better prepared to launch a job search. But some already have applied for positions at UTMB, and the recruiters involved in the program will be sure their resumes make it into the right hands for consideration.
The UTMB employees taking part recognize that each person’s story is important and deserves to be heard—especially when those stories reflect the determination, grit, grace and resilience of people overcoming challenges like poverty, abusive relationships, addiction and homelessness.
So more than just the technical aspect of it all, the service is provided with a sense of kindness and compassion that respects participants’ dignity, humanity, skills, potential and the unique qualities that make each one who they are.
And that makes all the difference, according to Lee.
“Our population, because of trauma, their confidence level is low,” he said. “Most of the time they get very nervous in interviews, and they just feel less than. But they come through this program and their confidence level has been boosted.
“What UTMB has brought to our residents is truly a life-changing experience for them, for someone to believe in them from an HR department,” he added. “And I am not joking when I say that after those four weeks, they seemed … new.”