About Creative Enterprises

Incorporated as a not-for-profit 501 (c)(3) Community Rehabilitation Program in 1979, we provide employment opportunities along with social and life skills training to individuals with developmental disabilities. This is accomplished through on- and off-site work training, job placement assistance, educational programs, community involvement events, and a variety of additional resources.

Our Mission

The Mission of Creative Enterprises is to assist individuals with disabilities and others with barriers to employment in maximizing their potential.

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Our Vision

We provide a wide spectrum of programs and services for persons with disabilities, and other employment barriers, that offer many opportunities to enjoy life and explore employment offerings while being fulfilled, challenged and encouraged to excel.

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Our Values

Those we serve come first
Respect for all persons
Choose your attitude
Provide excellence in service

Those We Server Come First

We accept each other for our own unique individual contributions while providing a caring environment where persons with disabilities can feel safe and connected. Utilizing “Shift Happens” principles, we use the three pronged approach of keeping people engaged at all times, developing caring relationships with each individual, and using lavish praise and positive reinforcement as a proactive behavior management strategy to reduce negative behaviors.

Those we serve come first

Needs, Safety, and Growth towards individual hopes and dreams are the foundations of our purpose. We challenge and encourage individuals to excel, and to be proud of themselves and their accomplishments.

Respect for all persons

All individuals, with all levels of abilities are treated with respect and appreciation. Communication is the key to this successful model, and achieved through honest dialog regarding expectations, goals and accomplishments.

Choose your attitude

Praise and positive reinforcement leads to success, inspiration, personal productivity and increased self-esteem for all individuals including staff members.

Provide excellence in service

A success driven staff with high moral character and integrity is paramount to providing excellent services; which represents the essence of our team. Exemplary work ethic and individual accountability defines our success.

Our Accreditation

Creative Enterprises is accredited through CARF International and we have been since the 1980s! We are currently accredited for Community Employment Services: Employment Supports; Community Employment Services: Job Development; Community Integration; and Employee Development Services.

CARF Accreditation 2022

Founded in 1966 as the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, CARF International is an independent, nonprofit accreditor of health and human services in the following areas:

  • Aging Services
  • Behavioral Health
  • Child and Youth Services
  • Employment and Community Services
  • Vision Rehabilitation Services
  • Medical Rehabilitation
  • Opioid Treatment Program

The CARF International group of companies currently accredits more than 65,000 programs and services at over 30,000 locations. More than 15 million persons of all ages are served annually by 8,500-plus CARF-accredited service providers.

CARF accreditation extends to countries in North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania.

Our Staff

With a long history of exceptional services, our staff members – the heart of our operations – are well trained and passionate about their talents and gifts they share with those we serve.

Staff members are subjected to rigorous training and testing protocol to ensure our knowledge and ethics remain exemplary; such as:

  • Pre-employment Drug Testing
  • State and Federal Background Checks, including Motor Vehicle Records
  • CPR Certification
  • First Aid Training
  • Defensive Driving Training, if applicable
  • HIPAA Compliance Training
  • In adherence to our strict Quality Control standards, other areas of training occur on an ongoing basis

Leadership

Our Board of Directors

A volunteer Board of Directors governs Creative Enterprises and meets the third Monday of each month to review milestones and accomplishments and decide future business objectives. This board also ensures that the Company is implementing plans to meet its goals with the utmost integrity.

Board of Directors generic photo

Creative Enterprises encourages parents, caregivers, and other stakeholders to attend the monthly Board meetings and give their own input. Please call to reserve seating.

Our Current Board of Directors

  • Dennis McGowan – Chair
  • Gary Powers – Vice Chair
  • Ed Ringer – Treasurer
  • Mike Nelson – Secretary
  • Gwen Allen, Ed. D.
  • Allen Carroll
  • Scott Hansard
  • Vernon L McLean
  • Allie Ousley
  • Sherry Patton
  • Kara Specht
  • V. Leigh McIntosh – Executive Director

Our Locations

All Counties

On any campus page:

  • Click the Creative Enterprises header logo to return to the corporate home page.
  • Click the campus county map to return to the campus home page.

Our Origin

The first step was taken in 1976 when Mental Health Services rented additional space and established a workshop using their existing staff. The plan was to incorporate the workshop as a private, not-for-profit corporation providing work evaluation and work adjustment services to individuals with disabilities.

While we continue to provide these same services to individuals referred from the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency and also to individuals with a Medicaid NOW or COMP waiver, we have also expanded the services we offer over the years. For many years our focus was on providing training and employment services by contracting with local business to provide the labor pool needed for distribution of their products. This allowed the individuals we served to have real work experiences in a safe environment. We focused on helping clients improve work behaviors so that they could eventually gain employment within the community. When ready for employment, our placement staff found clients jobs, then trained them to perform tasks required for the positions. We provided on-the-job supervision as needed so that we could trouble shoot any issues. This allowed many individuals to be successful at maintaining employment.