Dirigo and Seven Hills Rhode Island create new job in Warwick

Dirigo and Seven Hills Rhode Island have partnered to create a meaningful job opportunity at the Dirigo Center in Warwick for Sabrina Howard, who started as a Logistics Support Specialist on August 25. The role shows how disability services partnerships can turn existing workplace tasks into paid employment and more stable support for daily operations.

Why it matters: - The partnership created a paid role for a person supported by Seven Hills Rhode Island while helping Dirigo cover ongoing operational work at its Warwick center. - The arrangement shows how employers and disability-service providers can translate routine tasks into meaningful employment. - Dirigo says the role lets staff focus more on clients and less on room setup and materials prep.

What happened: - Dirigo and Seven Hills Rhode Island partnered to create a new employment opportunity at the Dirigo Center in Warwick. - Sabrina Howard joined Dirigo on August 25 as a Logistics Support Specialist. - Howard supports the day-to-day preparation and operation of the Dirigo Center. - Her duties include organizing training materials and activity kits, monitoring program supplies, preparing classrooms and gathering spaces, and resetting rooms between programs and events.

The details: - The opportunity grew out of Dirigo’s existing relationship with Seven Hills Rhode Island. - Dirigo has worked with Seven Hills on leadership and culture development, including programs focused on organizational accountability. - Dirigo founder and CEO Tim Hebert got to know Marissa Ruff through that work and learned more about Seven Hills’ services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. - In late 2025, Ruff and Hebert discussed whether Dirigo had work that could become a meaningful role for someone supported by Seven Hills. - Valerie Larochelle, a Job Developer, and Kristen Gagnon, an Employment Coordinator, helped identify the candidate, introduce Howard to the workplace, and provide ongoing support. - Howard took over work that had previously been handled by other Dirigo team members. - Garry Foisy, Partner and Principal Activator at Dirigo, said the work had always needed to be done and was often squeezed in by staff or left unfinished. - Foisy said Howard has taken real ownership of the work and helps ensure facilitators walk into ready rooms with complete materials and prepared spaces. - Gagnon said Howard has become more engaged, more confident, and more independent in the role. - Howard said her favorite part of the job is putting the kits together and making sure everything is ready. - Howard also said she likes knowing where everything goes and, “the coffee, too.”

Between the lines: - The partnership is both an employment placement and an operational fix for Dirigo. - The role appears designed around actual workflow needs, not a charity post. - That matters because jobs built around real tasks are more likely to last and create a stronger sense of ownership. - The example also underscores Seven Hills’ broader mission to help people with disabilities pursue independence and community participation through employment.

What’s next: - Dirigo says Howard is part of the team and will continue owning work the organization now depends on. - Seven Hills Rhode Island will likely keep using similar employer partnerships to expand employment opportunities for people it supports. - Dirigo’s experience may encourage other organizations to look at routine internal work as potential job creation opportunities.

The bottom line: - The partnership turned unfinished day-to-day tasks into a real job, and a real job into stronger workplace support for Dirigo.