NORWICH, N.Y. — The SUNY Morrisville Norwich Campus is offering a new human services certificate, which is available online and on campus.
The 21-credit program provides education and training to individuals who are looking for a career helping others and for professionals already employed in the human services field who want to advance their careers. The campus also offers an A.A.S. degree in human services.
The certificate program evolved from Chenango County human service agency leaders’ need for direct- support professionals and personal care assistants, according to Lindsey Lefevre, director of the Norwich Campus. “Their need far exceeds their ability to recruit and retain high-quality staff,” she said.
“This certificate program offers a high-quality education and training for their employees, which is integral to providing high-quality care to the individuals and families that they serve,” said Julie Burton, assistant professor of social science and coordinator of the human services program.
The seven three-credit classes offered through the certificate program include introductory human services and psychology classes, as well as more advanced classes in crisis intervention, counseling and case management, human services administration and abnormal psychology. Classes can be completed at students’ convenience or finished in as few as two semesters, and also can be taken at the Norwich Campus.
All of the classes seamlessly transfer to the Norwich Campus human services A.A.S. degree. Completion of the certificate also leads to advanced standing status that allows students to complete the A.A.S. degree in one calendar year.
Through the years, the Norwich Campus has provided the community with a well-trained workforce to meet its various needs. In addition to the associate degree and certificate program, the Norwich Campus operates a Human Services Institute.
A resource for students, the college and local community, the institute develops ongoing partnerships and collaboration between the college’s human services program, faculty and staff, and human service professionals in Norwich and throughout Chenango and Madison counties.
Partnering with human services agencies, the institute hosts trainings, conferences, professional development speakers and continuing education, and addresses quality-of-life issues that impact the community.
For more information about the new human services certificate, contact Burton at burtonjc@morrisville.edu or call 607.334.5144, ext. 5043.