The H.E.A.R.T. Program

The H.E.A.R.T. Program (Housing, Entrepreneurship And Readiness Training) on Lehman Street is a job-training program for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) who live within Houston city limits. Trainees attend the facility Monday to Thursday, where they learn life skills, social skills and job readiness, then work at vending machines and concession events around Houston and earn minimum wage or more once trained. The curriculum is overseen by state-certified special education teachers. It is a program of the nonprofit Educational Programs Inspiring Communities, Inc., and it says most participants attend at no cost through a grant, depending on eligibility. Reviews are mixed: some praise the staff and the training, while others report poor service or a dismissal they disagreed with.

Training covers life skills, social skills, job readiness, community-based instruction and hands-on practice with mock concession stands and vending machines, including cash handling, cashiering, inventory, sorting and labeling. Trainees work at more than 100 concession events a year and maintain vending machines around Houston. H.E.A.R.T. also offers a 10-week CVS retail training program and a 16-week pharmacy technician program, and its drivers take trainees from the facility to job sites (but not to and from home).

The H.E.A.R.T. Program is at 707 Lehman St, Houston, TX 77018. Participants can be dropped off from 8:00 a.m. and must be picked up by 5:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and should be available for some off-site work events on evenings and weekends. It serves low-income adults with developmental disabilities who live within Houston city limits; there is no application or tour fee, though trainees buy a work uniform. Families provide their own transportation to the facility; apply on the website or call (713) 692-4278.