Passaic County – 91��Ƭ

Family Service Bureau Employee Promoted to Executive Director

Michelle Lang — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 15:41:47 +0000

Family Service Bureau (FSB) has a new Executive Director with a familiar face in the agency. Vito Andrisani first joined FSB as the Site Director for the Kearny location in January 2020. Several months later, he became Administrator of both the Newark and Kearny locations. He was then promoted to Executive Director of FSB on May 15.

“Vito Andrisani brings his mental health and counseling expertise to Family Service Bureau,” said 91��Ƭ Chief Operating Officer Fred Hunter. “As the new Executive Director, we look forward to him building on an incredible program already providing vital services in our community.”

Andrisani has been a counselor since 1999 and has worked with a variety of clients, ranging in age from 5 to 81. He worked with children in group homes and was a teacher’s assistant in special education where he worked with behaviorally challenged students. He worked with schizophrenic adults and behaviorally challenged adults, as well as those dealing with substance abuse.

“I’ve been director of a methadone clinic, I’ve been director of outpatient, I’ve been director of detox,” Andrisani said. “I’ve worked in every level of care from detox to residential and then residential mental health as well as residential substance abuse.”

That variety of experience is beneficial in his current role with FSB, which provides outpatient services in behavioral health, including mental health and substance abuse. Andrisani is responsible for designing the programs at FSB.

“We need to have a mental health and a substance abuse program based on evidence-based practices, which means you’re doing the same thing every day that has already been proven to work,” he explained.

Andrisani believes that it’s important to treat the whole person since oftentimes mental health issues and substance abuse are co-occurring. He is also a champion of 91��Ƭ’s mission statement to help residents of inner cities improve the quality of their lives to reflect individual God-given dignity and personal achievement.

“I have a strong belief that if we don’t take care of the human being first, what we’re trained to do is not going to be successful. It’s not going to last,” he said.

In addition to designing the programs for FSB, Andrisani hires and schedules staff, coordinates ongoing training, ensures regulations and grant rules are followed and networks with referral sources.

Prior to his career in counseling, Andrisani was attending medical school and became a freelance photographer in Italy. He has photographed Jermaine Jackson and even had a chance encounter where he was able to photograph Pope John Paul II at an airport. He gave up freelance photography because the lifestyle wasn’t conducive to starting a family, which he wanted.

Andrisani grew up in Paterson and lives in Passaic County with his wife, son and daughter. While he gave up freelance photography, he still enjoys taking photos and has passed along some of his knowledge to his son, who received his first camera at age 2. Now that he’s 10, he takes photos with his own equipment and uses his sister as a model.

Throughout his experiences, Andrisani has always enjoyed talking with and learning about people and their lives, which he brings to his work as a counselor and supervisor.

“People are very challenging,” he said. “They present differently for different reasons.”

Free COVID-19 Crisis Counseling Services Available to Residents of Bergen, Essex, Hudson and Passaic Counties

Michelle Lang — Fri, 12 Jun 2020 14:23:09 +0000

Family Service Bureau of Newark, an affiliate of 91��Ƭ, is offering the NJ Hope and Healing Crisis Counseling Program (CCP) for residents of Bergen, Essex, Hudson and Passaic counties. Services are offered free of charge for families, individuals and youth and are available in multiple languages.

FSB is a neighbor helping neighbor team with staff on-call to provide the following free services: online support for stress management techniques, development of new coping skills, compassion fatigue, communication techniques and resource linkage.

The hours of operation are Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Those interested in services should call 973-272-7488 or email FSBNJHH@newcommunity.org.

Virtual support groups are available weekdays via Zoom. The morning group is for Spanish speaking individuals from 10 to 11 a.m. Monday to Friday with meeting code 970 8765 7941. The afternoon group runs from 3 to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday with meeting code 943 0132 5496. The password for both groups is 12345.

This program is brought to you by/through NJ Hope and Healing Crisis Counseling Program (CCP). Family Service Bureau of Newark in collaboration with the New Jersey Department of Human Services’ Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services, Disaster and Terrorism Branch, is offering a Crisis Counseling Program (CCP) through a FEMA/SAMHSA grant.

Two flyers are available for the services:

91��Ƭ Family Service Bureau
Serving the needs of the community since 1882, Family Service Bureau (FSB) is a Licensed Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Treatment Center. FSB’s mission is to preserve, educate, support, strengthen and enrich family life through prevention, intervention and community education programs that assist families, children and individuals. Our staff includes clinicians and interns under direct supervision of licensed clinical supervisors. By adopting an integrated behavioral health model to treat the whole body, FSB aims to provide each consumer with the resources needed to improve their quality of life.

91��Ƭ 91��Ƭ (NCC)
91��Ƭ was founded in 1968 in Newark, N.J., by Monsignor William J. Linder and a small group of community residents during a time of civil unrest that was spreading throughout urban communities across the United States. NCC has grown to become one of the largest and most comprehensive community development organizations in the country, providing services ranging from housing and health care to education and banking services. 91��Ƭ’s mission is to help residents of inner cities improve the quality of their lives to reflect individual God-given dignity and personal achievement.

Family Service Bureau Offers Free COVID-19 Crisis Counseling Services

Michelle Lang — Fri, 15 May 2020 18:57:30 +0000

Family Service Bureau of Newark (FSB) is offering free COVID-19 Crisis Counseling Services for individuals, families and youth in Bergen, Essex, Hudson and Passaic counties.

Services are offered Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information or to make an appointment, call 973-272-7488 or email FSBNJHH@newcommunity.org.

NCC Welcomes New Manager of Human Resources

Michelle Lang — Wed, 02 Oct 2019 14:46:19 +0000

The Human Resources Department at 91��Ƭ gained a new employee this summer. Tina Howard took on the role of Manager of Human Resources Aug. 19. She comes to NCC with more than a decade of experience in the human resources field and 15 years of experience working at a nonprofit community development and social service agency.

Before coming to NCC, Howard worked at New Jersey Community Development Corporation (NJCDC) for 15 years. She ran two programs for NJCDC for her first three years of employment. After that, she was promoted to the Director of Human Resources and Administration for NJCDC.

Howard decided to pursue a new employment opportunity to help her career grow and develop and liked the idea of working for NCC, which has an extensive history and is a larger organization than her previous employer.

“I felt it would be a great transition for me. It’s a large organization so it gives me an opportunity to take what I’ve learned and then learn what I can from this organization and take it to another level,” Howard said.

As Manager of Human Resources, Howard is responsible for all of NCC’s HR functions under the direction of Director of Human Resources Benjamin Galvez, including hiring, orientation, employee relations, benefits and risk management. She oversees HR staff members and ensures the department runs smoothly.

Howard holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in public administration but didn’t start working in human resources until she was asked to step into that role at NJCDC after a colleague received a promotion. She obtained the necessary credentials to work in an HR role and received training in the field. She currently has the PHR (Professional in Human Resources) and SHRM-CP (Society for Human Resource Management Certified Professional) certifications.

“Tina brings to us a great combination of human resources and nonprofit experience that is a good fit to grow our Human Resources Department and our continued efforts to fulfill NCC’s mission,” Galvez said.

Howard’s favorite part of her job is employee relations because she works well with people.

“It allows me to get to know individuals. It allows me to troubleshoot,” Howard said. “It’s an opportunity to use my psychology background.”

Howard is from Passaic County. She has a husband, stepson and stepgrandchild.

In her spare time, Howard enjoys many forms of entertainment. She is a music buff who attends many jazz festivals. She also likes plays, Broadway shows, reading and going to the movies.

Howard plans to learn as much as possible and help NCC achieve its goals and objectives for the Human Resources Department and agency wide.

“I’m excited to be part of the team and just looking forward to working with everyone,” Howard said. “I see the future looking very bright for all of us. I’m really happy to be here.