CE receives Staunton Farm grant

Molly Burke Allwein LSW, Pitt School of Social Work’s director of professional education received a $200,000 grant from the Staunton Farm Foundation to establish a Licensed Clinical Social Work (LCSW) Training Institute and Licensed Social Work (LSW) supervision matching program in the greater Pittsburgh area.

The program team will recruit 4 LCSWs per year as a cohort of grant-funded learners who will enroll in the LCSW Supervision Training Institute (TI) at no cost to them. The TI consists of a total of 15 hours of asynchronous, self-paced learning modules as well a 5-hour live interactive online training for program participants to interact and engage with each other and their trainers. During each of the 4 years of grant funding, 4 new LCSWs will be selected to receive the TI supervision training for free as part of the grant program. Social workers not involved in this program may also register for this TI course for a fee.

The 4 LCSWs per year who are selected for the grant funded cohort and trained through the TI will commit to working with 4 LSWs each (also selected by the program team) for up to 4 years to provide group and individual supervision to them at no cost to the LSWs. The LCSWs will receive funding from this grant to cover the cost of providing those supervision hours. By the end of the four years of this project, the TI will have produced 16 highly trained LCSWs able to provide quality supervision services to Pittsburgh area LSWs, and the supervision matching program will have sponsored the supervision hours of 64 LSWs in the process of earning their LCSW credential.

“The behavioral health workforce is in crisis. Becoming a credentialed clinical social worker requires thousands of supervisory hours. Many are not able to afford to the cost, or take a job in order to get supervision and leave for a better positions, said Joni S. Schwager, Executive Director at Staunton Farm Foundation. “Staunton Farm is delighted the School of Social Work has created a training institute to address this barrier for social workers who need supervisory training or supervisory hours to get clinically credentialed. The emphasis on training BIPOC social workers is essential.”

This program specifically focuses on providing support to social workers of color, as well as those who work in rural or under-resourced areas or neighborhoods. All of these factors will be taken into account on the program application, and the core program team will work together to match supervisors and supervisees appropriately.

“I am so grateful for the chance to bring this innovative and exciting project to life, and to build the experience and capacity of social workers in the greater Pittsburgh area", said Allwein. “Social Workers are highly trained and educated professionals who work to enhance the well-being of all and particularly those who are vulnerable and oppressed. The behavioral and mental health expertise of social workers is even more critical for our world now than ever before, and we are thrilled to be able to add newly trained and licensed professionals to our ranks as a result of this funding. Our team is proud to partner with Staunton Farm Foundation and help advance their important mission.”

Information about the program will be forthcoming, but those interested in the continuing education program at Pitt Social Work can visit their website 

About the Staunton Farm Foundation

The Staunton Farm Foundation is dedicated to improving the lives of people who live with mental illness and substance use disorders. The Foundation works to enhance behavioral health treatment, support, and recovery through grant making to nonprofit organizations in 10 southwestern Pennsylvania counties (Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington, and Westmoreland).