Self, Inc. is a minority non-profit organization which has been providing services for homeless, behaviorally challenged individuals. Self, Inc. was founded by Dr. Sylvester Outley. Self, Inc. was formed the year of 1989, in response to the critical need of the City of Philadelphia to address the substance abuse of homeless people. The goal of Self, Inc. was to deliver on-site drug and alcohol counseling in city shelters. SELF’s “clean and sober” supportive services program transformed the shelters from havens for addiction and crime into bases for recovery and wellness. The “clean and sober” program featured the principles of a therapeutic community of peers; therefore it became the model for Philadelphia’s entire shelter system.
In 1989 SELF was an agency of five employees and a single program of drug and alcohol treatment. Since then we have grown to well over 150 employees today. We have become a comprehensive continuum of care that extends from contact with homeless people through Peer Outreach, to service-enriched rental assistance for independent living scattered throughout Philadelphia.
Dr. Outley
Dr. Outley, the President and Chief Executive Officer of SELF, Inc., received his MSW from the University of Pennsylvania, and his PhD from Union Institute. He has over 40 years of experience in professional counseling of behaviorally challenged people. His life serves as an inspiration to those individuals. Among many awards, Dr. Outley has been selected by the Mayor’s Drug and Alcohol Executive Commission to receive the “Making a Difference Award” as one of the tireless workers who labors daily to help combat the problems of substance abuse in the City of Philadelphia.