Subject/Topic:
Social work practice, knowledge and skills and Clinical Interventions
Names and Qualifications of the Presenters:
Tanya S. Odums, LCSW-R, M.S.Ed. is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has an obtained a Masters in Social Work and a second Masters in Education Leadership. With over 20 years of human services experience her expertise lies in working with NYC’s most at risk youth and their families in a variety of social, academic and mental health settings. She was formerly an Adjunct Professor of Psychology and Human Services at Touro College for seven years and taught courses in Human Services at New York City College of Technology at the City University of New York. As an Adjunct Lecturer for Columbia University, NYU and Hunter College Schools of Social Work she has also provided clinic training to dozens of Master Level Social Work Interns and teaching artist.
Tanya is the former Executive Director and Co-Founder of HYPE: Helping Young People Excel, Inc.; a not for profit organization and has developed a therapeutic recreation program for adolescents that uses creative expressive therapies to help youth heal from their trauma. She was also the Director of Boys and Girls Harbor Children’s Clinic, Teen Substance Abuse Clinic and The Coordinator of their 9/11 Project Liberty FEMA counseling unit. Her career began at Spofford Juvenile Detention Center in NYC and spans across the spectrum of juvenile justice, child welfare, preventive services, residential treatment, community mental health, adolescent substance abuse treatment, education, school social work and social work administration. She is currently an administrator within a NYC DOE public high school where she has developed and implemented a clinical case management model to service students and their families. In her role as Assistant Principal in Training she also oversees the wellness and preventive divisions and she has developed the wellness/preventive polices and structures that have positively shaped school culture. Her mission is to bridge the gap between Mental Health and Education. She is an innovative Professional who utilizes nontraditional modalities of therapy when working with diverse populations. However, her expertise lies in working with the most at risk adolescents.
Ms. Odums manages a small private practice and consulting business that provides short term mental health counseling, assessment and referral services to the Brooklyn community. She is currently pursuing a certification in Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and provides clinical supervision to Licensed Social Workers and Guidance Counselors. She also consultants with a variety of community based organizations and academic institutions to provide professional development training to Social Workers, Case Managers, Educators and Administrations on clinical issues affecting at risk youth and to assist them with developing programs to promote success amongst urban youth.
George Daniels, is a Licensed Master Worker who has 29 Years of Professional experience in the Child Welfare System and has developed expertise in working with adolescent and their families. Mr. Daniels has worked for New York City Department of Juvenile Justice as the Director of Program and Planning at Spofford Juvenile Center, The Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services as a Child Care Worker, Milieu Supervisor, a Therapist, and Program Director. He is currently employed by Community Counseling and Mediation as Chief of Program Operations.
Mr. Daniels is a graduate of the New York City Public School system; Charles Evans Hugh High School. He has a B.A from SUNY New Paltz in Black Studies and Sociology and a Master Degree from Wurzweiler School of Social Work at Yeshiva University.
Mr. Daniels experience has focused on developing and implementing Programs to benefit Children and families. He has strong skill sets in assessing needs and creating highly effective programs, networking and building community relationships, fundraising, staff training and development. He has managed multi-million dollar budgets. He has a working knowledge of OMH, DYCD, OCFS, ACS, and Juvenile Justice Regulations.
Mr. Daniels has presented at Child Welfare League’s National Conferences; Engaging Men of Color in the Therapeutic Process. He co-facilitated the Men of Color antiracism Caucus at the Jewish Board of Family and Children Services for many years. Mr. Daniels is a compassionate and dedicated Professional.
Description of Course:
Session amounts may vary based on the individual needs of the organization.
For individuals, please contact us for more information.
The course will focus on developing clinician self-awareness through exploring their countertransference when working with challenging youth and how this affects the therapeutic relationship. This session will also focus on helping clinicians expand their knowledge base of the psychosocial issues affecting urban youth and understanding of how mental health disorders manifest themselves in school settings. Clinicians will be empowered to begin to assess school culture and alter and influence the culture to support students in more positive ways.
The course will also focus on building practical skills. Clinicians will be given the opportunity to practice utilizing creative expressive modalities of treatment to engage challenging youth in the therapeutic process to explore clinical issues, teach coping skills, build self-esteem and empower youth to adjust their behavior. Clinicians will also learn how to implement positive behavioral interventions to teach social skills and build community.
Learning Objectives:
Self-Awareness, Social Understanding and Influencing the System
- Exploring Countertransference: Participants will develop self-awareness through exploring their thoughts, feelings and challenges about working with challenging youth.
- Clinician Resistance: Participants will examine how their thoughts and feelings impact their ability to engage challenging youth and affect the therapeutic relationship.
- Clinical Understanding: Participants will develop a deeper clinical understanding of the social environment/ social issues affecting urban youth that lead to the development of mental health issues that go undiagnosed in school settings. (ADHD, ODD, Conduct Disorders, Learning Disabilities, Depression).
- Assessing and Shaping School Culture: Participants will gain an understanding of how school culture also influences and reinforces student disruptive/maladaptive behavior and how they can aid in shifting school culture to support their counseling goals of helping student make positive behavioral changes.
Creative Engagement and Counseling
- Participants will acquire the ability to use non-traditional creative-expressive modalities to engage resistant/challenging youth in individual or group counseling.
- Participants will learn how to use music, art, poetry and movement to explore clinical issues, build self-esteem, empower youth and build community.
- Participants will learn how to implement positive behavioral interventions develop social skills and shape school culture.