I can't speak to the personal experiences of the people who have left one star reviews. But I have to say, they do not reflect my experiences seeing them care for my uncle over the past 35 years. The staff has been attentive and kind, we have always been kept informed of his health and other issues, and our visits have always been wonderful. There's a lot of unhappiness there, it's true. In a place like this, that's unavoidable. But the people who work there genuinely care. Again, I feel slightly aren't leaving this review and some people seem to have had very different experiences. And I don't know, maybe things are different outside of the areas for lifetime care of those with severe cases. All I can say is what I've seen and what I know, and I have seen wonderful people who do wonderful work. read more

I worked at for many years and really have grown to love the residence that I cared for the campus is very nice but as far as the management residence do get mistreated, I've seen it and overall the company itself is declining. But yet the company makes and generates money, but it doesn't the residence into the employees that deserve it. The organization has recently switched CEOs and things there is only getting worse. People are getting fired there is declining and if you read the reviews not lying. And the HR manager is very rude and disrespectful and has no resolutions for your issues that you bring to her things really need to change for the better for the employees and for the residence. read more

There's no job stability and the pay is low! The management that runs woods is trash!!!! Jennifer manager of HR is very rude and disrespectful and very unfair to the employee so if you have an issue dnt go to her it won't get resolved!!! Dawn diamond is the new ceo of woods and the only thing she and her new administration cares about is money!!! I remember years ago when I started here ,the management thin was friendly nd you could go to them if you had an issue and it would get resolved! Now years later this place has declined so much with the residence and employees. They use to have different things and places to go, now today how many residence don't go on trips like they use to there's nothing for the residence to do and some of the managers nd supervisors will see a problem within the unit and they do nothing about it! Residence get mistreated all the time and the staff is overworked not to mention this company is culturally biased!!! I see more American workers get fired at this place then I've seen and all the other places that I worked and a lot of the other reviews say the same thing all this place is interested in as money not your loved ones that you take there to and trust this company with your loved ones and I love the residence that I work for and Woods campus itself is beautiful, but this organization acts like this because they know there's not too many campuses that houses the residence that we do so when you have a company in an organization like that, they just don't care. They really need to do better and clean up their act because it all starts from the higher-ups read more

My now-elderly brother lived here for many years & was treated well for a good number of those years & given training in a few, though primarily menial areas of work. He has fond memories of his time here, for which I am thankful. Those are the semi-positives; the negatives though, are that he was not challenged enough to become a more responsible, capable working man and, somehow, he was able to get his hands on alcohol & cigarettes & no, these were not fabrications on his part because he is a developmentally disabled man. They were substantiated acts & we could not fathom how this happened. I get it that all people are entitled to make their own decisions when it comes to their care, but this was inexcusable & incredibly poor judgement on the part of the School (we knew it as the Woods School, not Woods Services). Thank goodness we found a much better place for him, an OPWDD group home in upstate NY with amazing, devoted care. read more

Som of the most rude employees I have ever seen. I understand this is a special education school, but these many things are inexcusable 1. Workers forcing the children they watch over to take out the trash and do laundry as they sit on their cellphones 2. Take the children's daily allowances to spend on food for themselves 3. Allow children to climb on top of tables naked, screaming at the top of their lungs 4. Allow for a system where many employees can enjoy their leisure by putting the person they are supposed to be taking care of in their bedroom and leaving them alone for many hours 5. Eat the children's food These are some of the many points, among many other things. Management, this is absolutley deplorable and must be changed. There are many nice workers at Woods Services. But a vast majority of employees are very selfish and greedy. Please send out memos to the staff advising them on how to properly treat those who you are supposed to be giving an education to. Also, please highly consider retraining all of your caretakers. The education that I personally view the children of Woods school have been receiving so far has been doing them more harm than good in my opinion. read more

This facility is known for mistreating the children/adults they take care of. Just in 2010 a worker was charged for the death of someone who they "mistakenly" left in the car when it was well above 90 degrees outside. I have several friends who also have/had their family members here and they were SEVERELY abused. Staff member openly hit the people they are taking care of. If you decide to enroll your family member please make sure you constantly do a thorough evaluation of marks/bruises on their body and don't be so quick to believe it's "SELF HARM". read more

My son was on Woodlands drive for 8 years. When he arrived at this new house in Upstate NY, he arrived with 2 pairs of socks, 3 pairs of shorts (one of which was a size 36 and he's a 46) and his 10 inch Kindle is "missing" (a Police report will be file). I sent back a garbage bag FULL of clothes that were the WRONG SIZE. He's a 3XL and there were shirts with his name on it a size medium and large. He has MULTIPLE clothes MISSING. Noone knows anything. So in my eyes, they're STOLEN. The manager - Michelle Olgers, is a joke. I was told from her staff she's barely there, she doesn't return calls or emails. I left a complete outfit for him to wear to his new house. Including a pair of white briefs. He arrived after a 4 1/2 hour drive with a pair of plaid boxers that were at least 2 sizes TOO SMALL on him. I wouldn't tell ANYONE to send their kid there. read more

I am very sad when I see reviews that simply reflect an agenda. Anyone who actually has seen Woods programs would know the truth... Woods Services is EXCELLENT!!! The founder of Woods Services was a teacher named Mollie Woods and she had a very unique vision, especially in the early 1900s. At that time, "special people" were referred to as idiots, lunatics, and defectives. Physicians advised that families commit their special loved ones in asylums,have other children, and go on with their lives. Mollie Woods believed that every person has a right to an education, to have dignity and respect, and to contribute to society. This person who wrote how children were made to throw out trash and do other chores, simply failed to see that these tasks are activities of daily living. As members of society, even throwing out trash is a service and adds to self-esteem. You see, I am a very proud member of the Woods Family. When staff appear to be "lazy" as was depicted by this so-called witness, they are developing life skills. It is much easier to do a task than to teach a task! This is called, "killing with kindness". Instead, our staff develop plans that incorporate academics, physical therapy, occupational therapy, cognitive and psychological therapy, job training,and developing social skills. I am sure I left out a lot more but I am simply responding to a careless and ignorant remark. Many of our residents work independently. Some struggle with looking at a vision board to communicate but everyone is encouraged to try!!! There is a Twitter site for Woods Services and you may also find interesting items on YouTube which depict many of our programs. I join my Woods Family in urging our community to learn about Mollie's vision which developed to amazing heights and "you ain't seen nothing yet!" Watch us grow and join us in the quest to let everyone matter!!! Thank you. read more

Woods Services is (still) an exceptional place. My Uncle has been at Woods for almost 50 years. My early memories include visiting him- and I still do quarterly. I have always been struck by how much he has always felt "home" at Woods- and with his "guys." He has had several life phases while at Woods that were all enriching and have fit to his specific abilities. I have also always been struck by the care and compassion of the staff that I have met. Sure - a place as big as Woods will have its less than A players. But, overall, the line leaders set the tone and continue to- and you see it up, down and across the campus. I have also known several staff for decades now- and some even have their children now working at Woods. Woods has been and continues to be a true gift to my Uncle and our family. read more

My nephew goes there and I must tell you it takes a very special person to have such patience along with a caring attitude. I love Woods they are God sent. The staff has taken excellent care of my nephew I'm forever grateful. Like any establishment that takes care of our love ones our continued attention and presence is vital. I can not say enough good things about this school read more