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GREENSBURG, PA- The Social Work program at ��ɫAV Hill College will hold its Spring Seminar, titled “Attracting and Retaining Social Work Staff: New Strategies to Ease the Workforce,” on Wednesday, March 21st from 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. in the Sullivan Hall Lounge on the College campus. There will be a continental breakfast at 8:30 a.m. Tickets are $15. According to said Dr. David Droppa, assistant professor of social work, social service organizations, both public and private, are facing the most critical shortage of social service workers in 30 years. The crisis is one shared with almost all sectors of the national economy: corporations, small businesses, health care and others. However, due to the lower rates of pay and the challenging roles of human service workers, the crisis in human services is all the more severe. Within the past two years, local human service agencies have created and implemented strategies to increase worker recruitment, hiring and retention. All who are concerned about the future of human services in the region will want to learn more about these strategies. “The seminar will address a hot topic in the social work field,” said Droppa. “Traditional methods of attracting and retaining employees no longer work. We will discuss alternative methods to the usual ad-in-the-classified-section routine.” Presenters at the seminar include: David Campbell, Director of Employee Relations for Adelphoi Village; Joseph Cook, M.S.W., Director of Programs for Family Links; Stephen Christian-Michaels, L.S.W., Chief Operating Officer for Family Services of Western Pennsylvania; Steven Kozak, M.A., Program Director for The Pressley Ridge Schools; Robert Sukolsky, M.A., Program Manager for Spectrum Family Network; and Gerald Sopko, Assistant Director for the Westmoreland County Children’s Bureau. Also, two continuing education units (CEUs) will be awarded to licensed social workers attending the seminar. The CEU’s are provided through a partnership with the Southwest Chapter of the National Association of Social Work (NASW) and the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work. Immediately following the seminar, a meeting and lunch for field instructors from agencies that have served as ��ɫAV Hill social work field sites will honor graduating social work seniors. Registration is due by Friday, March 16th. For more information or to request a registration form, please call Dr. David Droppa at 724-830-1411 or e-mail at droppa@setonhill.edu.