Social Service Academy

People We Serve

Are you a caseworker, service provider, caregiver, supervisor, manager, director, executive staff member, or someone who aspires to be in social service or a helping profession and work collaboratively with others? Are you beaming with creativity and interested in self-care through art or, discovering your hidden talents that align with being of service? Do you feel like you might want or need to alter your approach to care at times at times, to meet complex or changing needs? Would you like to connect differently to make a greater impact? What about expanding your career goals and service reach? You know the ones that require a wider stretch from what you are already doing. You might be a manager or an executive wanting to help members of your team and organization reach their greatest potential, with new and old, tried and true, and sometimes out of the box ways of thinking about a solution. These trainings are presented in a way that provides comprehensive, nuanced, and foundational information, which compounds, an offers core fundamental skills that will last a lifetime. This will lead to the expanded, and creative transformational quality care of others, better self-care, and less stress for you the provider, and if for a service team or organization, (or both) a more spirited work environment with increased focus, high morale, and expanded possibilities around potential and growth!

Course Logistics

Social Service Academy provides online courses for persons and teams in social service, and other service industries, that will lead to professional "lens" enhancing strategies, that can bring about more positive experiences of growth for the individual being served, and encouragement for the provider to trust in their capacities to serve. Held in the tradition of person-centered care, Social Service Academy was created with the idea that knowledge, creativity and self-care ignite the sparks of life that create fundamental shifts in transformation, and thus all participants are also invited to participate in additional activities through Sacred Spaces By Design, a platform made in tandem with it and can be found at sacredspacesbydesign.com.

The course material here in Social Service Academy has been divided into three stages. It provides a roadmap for exceptional care, collaboration strategies, and ways to address some of the most common pitfalls we experience as service providers, caregivers, and/or people in helping professions, though especially supporting persons with mental health, housing and varied support needs. In addition, consultations are available.

Course content is presented in video format, with accompanying slides, workbooks and includes an extensive bibliography.

The video recordings are captured in three modules, broken down into three stages and include a combined 50+ hours of video instruction.

Workbook pages include the PowerPoint presentations used in the video presentations, are paced throughout the three stages, which can be obtained separately or together.

Stage One: Caregiving with Confidence, includes about 7 hours, of video and accompanying workbook pages. Stage One includes:

• Step One: The Multi-View & Why, Why Matters.
• Step Two: Critical Foundations.
• Step Three: The Primers, Theoretical Essentials & You.

Stage Two: Demystifying the DSM & Your World of Service, includes close to 28 hours, of video and accompanying workbook. Stage Two includes:

• Step Four: Demystifying the DSM.
• Step Five: All About Services.
• Step Six: Making the Most of Resources.

Stage Three: Supervision, Management, Self-Care and You, includes close to 12 hours of video and accompanying workbook. Stage Three includes:

• Step Seven: Supervision and You!
• Step Eight: Management and You!.
• Step Nine: Self-Care and You!

All Three: Includes all of the above.

Individual login-credentials, with password are included in the portal. Group Leaders each with their own dedicated dashboard, can be assigned and registered to administer, and review courses at a self-chosen and convenient pace. A robust, secure, dedicated video hosting service is used within the platform, for seamless, safe integration of material. Additional scheduling for task completion is optional and can be arranged by assigned admins with dashboard viewing. Certificates are available and the platform is equipped for self-pace or team environment.

It is recommended that you use headphones for privacy and focus, though is not necessary. The platform was designed for efficiency, as a time saving measure, though can be completed with regular participation swiftly, can be used for onboarding training requirements or scheduled throughout the year. There is no pass or fail. The aim is to complete the framework (complete the videos) stress-free, while allowing as much time as needed to process the material. These logistics are also adaptable to fit your needs.

Why Social Service Academy?

In these courses, Lolita M. Goldring, MA, EdM, integrates her lived experience from despair, sorrow and quiet suffering, to triumph, success and living her best life as a creative, transformational, sparkling, change agent, who helps others do the same. She is a person with capacity to sense and witness pain and transmute it, into something good. She studied psychology and business administration at LIU, C.W. Post Campus earning her BA, then went on to earn her Masters degrees, in Counseling Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she was selected to TA two of group counseling courses as a co-trainer. Her experiences in social service as an educator, trainer, program director, deputy director, administrator, advocate, consultant, as well as a real estate agent, asset manager, entrepreneur and life coach of over 37 years has been combined to provide information to help you learn how to generate success for yourself, your team and your organization. The information is presented with an eclectic approach in a way that offers options, for helping, growing and discovering, creatively, and that can expand for the people you serve.

What Can I Expect in the Courses?

Expect to be provided with content that you can use to assist more people with actionable items, more confidently in helping to realize goals, dreams and move past blocks or obstacles. Expect to feel better about the work you do with more informed strategies to stay grounded, and meet the unique needs of the people you work for and with. Expect to feel a renewed sense of hope for yourself and others leading to greater satisfaction and skills that can propel you, or your team forward in your career and life. Expect to find courses designed for all types of learners with varying perspectives and interests that are that are self-paced so the information can be integrated with ease.

How Will Taking These Courses Help Me?

Here you will learn: (1) skills to be better equipped to provide human services in social service, helping, caregiving environments and general livelihood; (2) behaviors to help you navigate the workplace environment; (3) skill development to deliver services using foundational principles that compound and enhance the capacity to serve wider audiences; (4) information that can be used for successful service provisioning and management in your current role, skills to prepare or place you in the running for promotions or a new role; (5) ways to take better care of your teams, your department, your agency, and yourself; (6) access to additional platforms supporting creative self-care and access to individual 1:1 or group consults and (7) certificates of completion.

Why Would I Want to Take These Courses?

(1). To help more people. (2). To overcome feelings of stagnation, burnout, stress, overwhelm, and feeling limited by what is possible in your current setting, in aspirational settings, or with your current set of circumstances, as the information though written from the caregivers'/providers' point of few, can be applied as self-developing principles. (3). You’re ready to try something new to expand your awareness of self and others, and how to navigate through life’s challenges successfully, especially as someone who cares about the well-being of others and yourself.

When Will I Receive My Certificate?

You will have the option to receive certificates after completing each Stage of Social Service Academy's three stage, Social Service Care Product. The stages are: Stage One: Caregiving with Confidence, Steps 1, 2 and 3; Stage Two: Demystifying the DSM and Your World of Service, Steps 4, 5 and 6; and Stage Three: Supervision, Management, Self-Care and You, Steps 7, 8 and 9. Each Stage may be accessed separately, or you can access all three together as a bundle.  Certificates will be made available within 72 hours and sent to the email you or the registrant used at registration. A final certificate will also be available upon the completion of the Social Service Care Product: Stages One, Two & Three.

How Long Do I Have to Complete Courses?

You will have access to the courses in the portal for as long as the portal is operational, though it is recommended to complete the coursework within a year or two. Materials (workbooks, the extensive bibliography and service handouts) you download, are yours to keep.