Keynote Presentation:

Do We Value our Values? Renewing our Compassion in Challenging Times

Presenter: Erin Khang LMSW, University of Michigan Director of Field Education and Clinical Assistant Professor School of Social Work

Description: Campus students, faculty, and staff continue to face sustained and complex examples of systemic oppression and social injustices. With ongoing protests and an upcoming divisive presidential election, how can social workers and social work students find the compassion needed to live out our profession's stated values? University and College Counseling Centers are uniquely positioned to experience, influence, and support the border societal shifts and challenges we are currently facing. 

Learning Objectives:

1. Explore the impact of social work values on campus climate.

2. Re-imagine the relationship between compassion and advocacy.

3. Discuss compassionate approaches to train and mentor future social workers. 4. Enhance personal resilience and self-compassion

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Roundtable Topics:

Cultivating Empathy in the Context of Burnout and Fatigue

Building and structuring a SW Training Program: orientation, groups, crisis triage, DEI considerations, outreach, clinical expectations, case management, etc.

Trainee Connection Table

Socio political climate: taking care of ourselves and each other

Advocating for SW in a Multidisciplinary setting (within the counseling center, in partnership with other units, in context of a merger, etc.)

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Social Work Trainee Panel

Presenters: Aubrey Driscoll, LCSW Ball State University, Felicia Reed-Watt, LCSW-R, M.S. Health Admin University of Rochester

Description: Social Work trainees in University and College Counseling Centers are navigating various roles and integrating into various systems throughout their training experience. While Social Work training programs have nuances and differences between and across the various University and College Counseling Centers in which they operate, all Social Work trainees, as both burgeoning helping professionals, and graduate students, are at an increased risk for burnout in comparison to their peers in other, non-helping, disciplines. Our panelists will share the ways in which they, and the systems in which they are training, address both prevention and management of experiences of burnout. In addition, our panelists will discuss the ways in which the structure, sequencing, and/or development of their training programs impact their overall experience as well as address any gaps that they see within their training programs that could further enrich their professional development.

Learning Objectives:

1. Increase understanding of the ways in which Social Work trainees experience, mitigate, and find support in both the management and prevention of burnout throughout their training experience.

2. Learn takeaways from Social Work trainees regarding gaps in training programming that could improve both their overall training experience and level of competence upon completion of training.

3. Discuss ways to implement Social Work Trainees feedback regarding their experiences of training programming, sequencing, and development to either improve your center’s existing Social Work training program or consider when creating a future Social Work training program.

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Breakout Presentations:

Matching Supervisory Interventions to Supervisee Level of Development: An Integrative, Trans-Theoretical Approach

Presenter: Les White LMSW, Grand Valley State University

Description: There are many models of clinical supervision that inform how to effectively teach and supervise novice clinicians in training. To date, research has not consistently demonstrated one model to be superior to the others. Models that social workers in UCCC’s utilize are typically based in learning, task-oriented, cognitive, competency, systems, relational or psychodynamic theories—or some combination thereof. This workshop will focus on integrating elements from several models, focusing first on the developmental level and needs of the clinical social work trainee, and then tailoring supervisory interventions to match. As the clinical social work trainee grows in understanding and skill, supervisory interventions also need to shift, and attendees will learn how to adapt their interventions in harmony with supervisee growth. Attendees will be given an opportunity to reflect on and discuss their own experiences in training clinical social work trainees, applying the model to those experiences.

Learning Objectives:

1.Attendees will be able to identify common models of supervision and some strengths and weaknesses of each.

2. Attendees will learn some basic elements of cognitive, learning, relational, and competency models of supervision.

3. Attendees will be able to assess supervisee level of development using the integrative model.

4. Attendees will be able to identify five types of supervisory interventions and how to match those with supervisee level of development.

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Managing Burnout For Trainees and Permanent Staff in Choppy Waters

Presenters: Amanda Byrnes LMSW, Hanna Pinkelman LLMSW, Ed Huebner LMSW University of Michigan

Description:  Recently added to the Social Work Code of Ethics “Purposes and Principles” section of the Code, “Professional self-care is paramount for competent and ethical social work practice.” Empathy and compassion fatigue is real and continues to be prevalent in our social work field and the college/university counseling center profession.  And yet, we keep coming back.  Where do social workers cultivate empathy and compassion at this time in our field and world?  How do we train this ethical value to the future generations of social workers and college counseling center professionals? The University of Michigan CAPS staff and trainees would like to share our thoughts and practices (success and challenges) both currently and moving forward on this topic.  We will also invite a discussion on the systems that add to the fatigue and what we can do both individually and collectively to live out this “paramount” practice. Continuously returning to this conversation is imperative given the current socio political climate, ongoing changes to the counseling center profession, and the role that social workers can play moving forward.     

Learning Objectives:

1. Inform participants of one center's approach (both current and future) to managing burnout.

2. Reflect on recent changes to NASW Code of Ethics related to self-care and learn how to incorporate those changes into practice and training.

3. Identify strategies to implement self-care within counseling center policies and practices.

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Juggling Two Worlds: Experiences as embedded counselors on a college campus

Presenters: Ashley Watters LMSW & Janae Kinn LPC, Oakland University

Description: OUWB Medical Student Mental Health Counselors Janae Kinn, LMSW, and Ashley Watters, MA, LPC, NCC will share their experiences working as mental health counselors embedded in the OUWB School of Medicine. Janae and Ashley will share the successes, the challenges they’ve experienced in their roles, and the goals they have for the evolution of their embedded positions in the future. We feel this presentation would benefit clinicians who are wondering how an embedded position might look different than a university counseling position, counseling departments who are considering implementing an embedded counselor model, and clinicians who already have embedded positions and would like to connect with others in similar roles.

Learning Objectives:

1. Participants will learn about the benefits, successes, and challenges that come with working with an embedded counselor model. 

2.Participants will learn about ways to navigate working with various university stakeholders in order to support our student population.

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