The Village Learning Center Inc
Creating inclusive opportunities and discovering abilities of individuals with disabilities
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The Village Learning Center, Inc., doing business as The Village Centers, was established by parents who recognized the significant need to have direct care and residential services for people with disabilities in the Lake Houston community in 2000. The Village Centers' primary focus is to enhance the lives of people with disabilities and support their families through a wide range of programs. We are unique in our area because we aim to be an accessible service, regardless of the client's funding source or medical needs. We offer assisted living, independent living, vocational, transportation, and day programming services for our clients.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Learn - Enrichment Opportunities for High Need Level young adults and adults within the IDD Spectrum
Providing daily learning and enrichment opportunities for individuals with profoundly affected IDD including Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome and more. Direct support professionals engage individuals in daily learning opportunities including meals, daily care and socialization skills.
Grow - Continuing Education toward employment opportunities
Young adult and adult supportive learning opportunities specifically for those affected with IDD gaining meaningful employment through education and training.
Achieve - Vocational Opportunities toward independence for IDD adults
Educational employment opportunities for adults within the IDD experience providing them with an opportunity to gain independence at the level to which they desire.
Housing
Providing Assisted and Independent Living opportunities for adults within the IDD spectrum allowing for each individuals maximum independence.
Where we work
External reviews

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Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
We provide options for people with disabilities to attend programming and live in their home communities. Our primary goals are to increase inclusion and job growth through vocational services and to invent new possibilities for our clients. For our families, we offer respite, daycare, and educational resources. Because we can be their partner in caregiving, many parents and legal guardians can return to work and can bring additional talent into the workforce and better financially support their household.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Our programming is robust and wide-reaching. We accept an individual with government-funded care such as Home and Community-Based Services, Texas Home Living, Community Living Assistance and Support Services, Medicaid, and private payment. We also partner with the City of Houston for building low-cost residential units that allow our clients to live more independently within their home community. We provide a Day Health and Activity Service program that engages clients with daily activities and ensures at least one healthy meal a day. We are able to provide vocational programming through both community partners and our Village Thrift Shop.
While we welcome individuals with government-funded resources, a significant portion of our operating costs must be covered by other sources. Financial support through our community partnerships, grants, and individual donors are imperative for our continued success.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We have served our community for over twenty years. We started with one bus that transported our clients to activities, outside day programs, and church on Sunday. We have grown to seven buildings and twelve busses. Each one of our facilities houses a specific program. Our Stoney Glen House provides overnight respite and assisted living for fourteen full-time residents who need nursing care. Our Hickory Glen apartments provide reduced cost rental programs and independent living for individuals and families. Our Day Activity Center serves up to eighty clients at a time with supervised activities, crafts, field trips, and community outings. Our DAHS program can serve up to sixty people a day and is similar to our Day Activity Center with additional nursing care. Our Community Center, Administration Building, and Thrift Shop all serve to support our ever-expanding vocational program. We are able to provide job training that leads to paying jobs in our community. All of our programs give our clients a place to feel welcome and a part of a community. We will continue to develop programs as the population of individuals with developmental disabilities continues to increase.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
We are continuing to grow to meet the changing needs of our families, community, and clients. As we have aged, so have many of our clients we have served for many years. We have long term planning in place for Seniors with developmental disabilities who require different kinds of care, including residential and day programming. We desire to support a behavioral program for families and clients with more significant behavior issues that may keep them from engaging more frequently in the community or hold jobs.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
Our clients, or “Villagers” are adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and come from diverse backgrounds and range in age from 18 to 65. Many need close supervision with physical and verbal prompts and help with eating and toileting. The most common diagnoses we address include: autism, blindness, cerebral palsy, deafness, Down syndrome, emotional disturbance, and seizure disorders.
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How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Electronic surveys (by email, tablet, etc.), Case management notes, Community meetings/Town halls, Constituent (client or resident, etc.) advisory committees,
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals,
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With whom is the organization sharing feedback?
The people we serve, Our staff, Our board, Our funders, Our community partners,
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive,
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback,
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
The Village Learning Center Inc
Board of directorsas of 08/15/2022
Mr. David Bubier
The MINT National Bank
Ray Brock
Insperity, Inc.
Marie Halvatzis
Legal Consultant
Stephen King
Growth Force
Peter W. Mantell
Independent Consultant Associates
Lawrence Pope
Halliburton
Robert Scarfo
Insperity, Inc
Leonard Brusatori
Founder Chair
Joel North Jr.
HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 08/15/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.