If you are working in the community services sector but looking for an opportunity to take the next step in your career, diploma of community services can help you achieve your goal. For a community service worker, their goal is empowerment. Empowering the people of marginalized communities to make the most out of their lives through the services their area offers. Evergreen College opens the door to this highly rewarding career.
The 1-year long Community Service Worker diploma program from Evergreen College is a multi-prong course grounded in principles from psychology, sociology, anthropology and counselling. “Professionals in training” (students) to learn how to assist individuals and their families in understanding and resolving social, family or personal problems.
To be effective in the community, students learn the skills of active listening, showing empathy, gathering client information and self reflection. The course also teaches the practical skills professionals will need on a day to day basis, such as building a client support plan, report writing and administration.
The Evergreen College classroom isn’t your typical lecture. Class sizes are small and training is personalized. Knowledgable instructors give presentations, students engage in ice-breaker exercises, role-play counseling scenarios and lively group discussions.
“Community Walks” allow students to take their learning outside the classroom. During the walk, students see first-hand the richness of a community and witness inspiring cases of how community service workers helped people find their social power. Previous walks have included the Jane and Finch neighbourhood or Center for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto, Ontario.
But it’s not just about what Evergreen College offers. In a fully person-centric role like a community service worker, it’s about what each individual brings to the table. Every student’s life experience, previous work experience, gender, culture and religion is used to inform and build relationships with others.
At the end of the teaching module portion of the course, every Evergreen student is guided into a field placement where they apply everything they’ve learned and to begin to market themselves as professionals. Field placements are one of the key reasons Evergreen students succeed in the real world.
Students are supported throughout their whole course. Classes are taught by industry professionals with decades of experience. The Evergreen College team will also help students with: admissions, student visas, resume writing, interview techniques and even their job search.
Trained professionals can soon find themselves working in drop-in centres, youth facilities, faith organizations, mental health agencies or addiction treatment centres where they may run recreational classes like cooking, take people on outings, help with chores like buying groceries, help people deal with addictions or just be an ear to listen or a shoulder to cry on.
Evergreen College’s Community Service Worker program truly is empowering training. Empowerment through learning. Empowerment through their passionate instructors. Empowerment by taking part in real scenarios both in the classroom and out. A diploma from Evergreen College allows those empowered individuals to empower their community.