The people who help Long Islanders with disabilities through their daily lives now have a dedicated place to sharpen those skills. Kinexion, the Long Island organization that supports a network of seven disability services nonprofits, cut the ribbon on Kinexion Studio, a new training and development center in Hauppauge, on October 13.

A simulation lab instead of a lecture hall

Kinexion describes the studio as a space designed to go beyond the traditional classroom. The centerpiece is an immersive simulation lab, where direct support professionals can practice hands-on, real-world care tasks in a controlled setting before they do them in someone's home or program. The studio also hosts hands-on training experiences and leadership development programs for staff across the network.

That matters because so much of disability support work is physical and situational: helping someone through a morning routine, assisting with meals, responding when something does not go as planned. Practicing those moments in a simulation lab, with equipment on hand and trainers watching, is a different kind of preparation than a slideshow.

Seven agencies, one workforce

Kinexion was established in 2023 as a management services organization, a shared backbone for seven not-for-profit agencies that together provide lifetime supports for people living with disabilities on Long Island. The affiliate network includes Independent Group Home Living, The New Interdisciplinary School, Angela's House, The Center for Developmental Disabilities, the Head Injury Association, Maryhaven and East End Disability Associates.

Those agencies run group homes, schools, day programs and in-home services from the Nassau border to the East End, and they all depend on the same kind of worker: the direct support professional. The new studio gives all seven a common place in Hauppauge to train that workforce, and Kinexion has framed the investment as part of strengthening and retaining it.

Why this is a Long Island story

Direct support professionals work in houses, schools and day programs in nearly every corner of Nassau and Suffolk, and the families who rely on them depend on how well they are trained. A purpose-built training center in central Suffolk is an investment in that preparation and in the careers of the people who provide the care. Kinexion marked the opening with staff, people supported by the network and community partners at the ribbon cutting earlier this month.

More on the organization and its member agencies is at kinexion.org.

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