Vantaggi
After graduating with my MSW degree, I was hired as a Therapist/Case Manager in 2011 and departed as the Director of Residential Services in 2015. I had the opportunity to do meaningful clinical work with young men who had a variety of different social, emotional, behavioral and educational needs. This experience assisted me in building a strong clinical foundation working with people who need support. As a therapist, I facilitated individual and group therapy sessions in a structured environment. Beyond therapy, I gained valuable experience attending client IEP educational meetings, family/criminal court cases and facilitating relevant inter/intra agency staffing meetings. I received clinical supervision toward my LCSW and had opportunities for relevant paid internal and external trainings. I was trained in Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (TCI) and learned how to manage myself and others during crises, which are useful skills to have during crises which can and do occur working with a population of young people with significant trauma histories. This training has served me well during my time at Lawrence Hall and beyond. As an administrator, I had the opportunity to represent Lawrence Hall in broader industry meetings and work groups, which allowed greater insight to macro issues facing residential facilities and the greater social service community. I had the opportunity to work for and with people of high ability, character and integrity who have track records working in social services and do this work for the right reasons - to help this underserved population. Lawrence Hall is a great place to start a career, as well as a place to grow as a professional. Depending on your career goals, there are many opportunities once in the agency and there is always room for those of us looking to make a difference in a supportive and challenging environment.
Svantaggi
I cannot list any specific personal cons while working at Lawrence Hall but can bring up some concerns I heard from others when there. People always want higher salaries. I found Lawrence Hall compensation competitive with peer agencies for the work done with generous paid time off and good health insurance. People have complained the work can be difficult, and it can be difficult. That said, there is support in place with regular supervision and management has an open door policy to address greater concerns. While the population can be challenging, the work is incredibly rewarding and I built positive relationships with almost all the youth I worked with while there. With the challenges comes growth and perspective. The challenging environment allows us to grow as mental health professionals and interpersonally as human beings. The skills and experience I gained working at Lawrence Hall set me apart from most applicants when looking for internal or external job opportunities.