The Mission of Club Nova
Club Nova promotes and provides opportunities for individuals with mental illness to lead meaningful and productive lives of their choice in the community.

Who We Are
Founded in 1987 to address the needs of Orange County citizens living with mental illness, Club Nova provides a holistic, caring environment designed to promote rehabilitation and reintegration into the community.

Club Nova follows the successful Clubhouse Model pioneered by Fountain House in New York City. Club Nova focuses on members' strengths and potential rather than illness.

A Place to Come
Mental Illness typically isolates individuals from society. Club Nova provides a place to come for a sense of belonging, acceptance, friendships, and repeated opportunities. Club Nova offers:
- A place to come six days a week
- Support through a newly discovered circle of friends
- Opportunities to gain confidence through the work-ordered day
- A range of employment opportunities
- Access to housing
- Supported education
- Evening and weekend social/recreation programs
- Community support services (case management)
- 13 affordable meals each week

Meaningful Work
To live meaningful lives, we each must have some place that expects us - where we are needed. Members are needed at Club Nova.

The Work Day and Our Units
Club Nova members volunteer to work within the clubhouse to promote their recovery from serious mental illness. This work provides a sense of belonging and accomplishment.

According to interests, members join and participate in areas of the clubhouse called units. Working side by side with staff, members use and strengthen their abilities and gain confidence through running the clubhouse.

Clubhouse members and staff work together in these areas (please see links at left for more information):
- Administrative Unit
- Program Unit
- Culinary Unit
- Thrift Shop
- Director of Club Nova: Karen Dunn

Employment Opportunities
The Club Nova Employment Program is a unique collaboration between Club Nova and the business community. Our program offers a range of employment opportunities in the community working for competitive wages on real jobs.

Group Placement: Several members work together in a local company with on-the-job support from a Club Nova staff worker.

Transitional Employment (TE): Bridges the gap between clubhouse work and independent employment. TE offers members part-time, entry-level employment opportunities in the community.

Independent/Supported Employment: Provides members with permanent employment and ongoing support. The employment area discusses employment options and assists with employer contacts, resume development, and interview preparation.

Functions of the House
Housing/A Place to Live: Members live in various settings throughout Orange County. Club Nova offers assistance in locating housing, including completing housing and Section 8 applications. Ten members live independently in Club Nova supported housing located in Carrboro. Club Nova provides support on a flexible as-needed basis. Recently, we completed the design, financing, and building of 24 brand-new efficiency apartments located behind the Clubhouse.

Supported Education: Club Nova assists members in taking advantage of the adult education system in the community in support of their vocational and personal aspirations

Social/Recreation: Club Nova offers a social/recreation program on Thursday evenings, weekends, and holidays, which includes hiking, shopping, and attending cultural events. This program provides an opportunity for members to develop relationships in a relaxed and safe environment while becoming more fully engaged with their own communities.

Community Support Services: Members and staff of the clubhouse provide community support services. The services include helping with entitlements, housing, and advocacy, as well as assistance in finding quality medical, psychiatric, pharmacological, and substance abuse services in the community.

Meaningful Relationships
As individuals work together toward common goals, collegial relationships develop. Relationships developed between members and staff are at the center of all clubhouse interaction and the essence of the rehabilitation process.

Members participate in all areas of planning and decision making regarding the future development of Club Nova.

A Place to Return
Membership is without time limits. Members have a right to immediate re-entry into Club Nova after any length of absence.

Membership
Club Nova is designed to serve adults (18 and older) who have been diagnosed with a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.

A member may use the resources of Club Nova whenever needed, at whatever level desired, throughout his or her lifetime.

The Clubhouse Community Bill of Rights
- A Guaranteed Right to a Place to Come
- A Guaranteed Right to Meaningful Work
- A Guaranteed Right to Meaningful Relationships
- A Guaranteed Right to a Place to Return

The Clubhouse Model of PSR: Clubhouse philosophy and practice

The following are excerpts from the International Standards for Clubhouse Programs.  There are 36 Standards guiding Clubhouse philosophy and practice, published by the International Center for Clubhouse Development in New York.  The Standards serve as a "bill of rights" for members and a code of ethics for staff, board, and administrators.  The Standards also insist that a clubhouse is a place that offers respect and opportunity to its members.:

The Clubhouse has control over its acceptance of new members.  Membership is open to anyone with a history of mental illness, unless that person poses a significant and current threat to the general safety of the clubhouse community.

Members choose the way they utilize the clubhouse, and the staff with whom they work.  There are no agreements, contracts, schedules, or rules intended to enforce the participation of members.

Clubhouse staff are sufficient to engage members, yet few enough to make carrying out their responsibilities impossible without member involvement. 

The work-ordered day engages members and staff together, side by side, in the running of the clubhouse.  The clubhouse focuses on strengths, talents, and abilities.  Therefore, the work-ordered day must not include medication clinics, day treatment, or therapy programs within the clubhouse.

All work in the clubhouse is designed to help members regain self-worth, purpose, and confidence.  It is not intended to be job-specific training.

To find out more about the Clubhouse model and to read the full Clubhouse Standards, please visit www.iccd.org.