TAKE FIVE!

August 24, 2021

Samantha Mango:
Hi, I’m Samantha Mango and Welcome to Sullivan 180 Presents… Take 5! Our guests today are Rose Hanofee and Jen King from SUNY Sullivan. Welcome Rose and Jen, thanks for being here!

Rose Hanofee:
Thank You for having us today!

Jen King:
Nice to meet you!

Samantha Mango:
Can you please introduce yourselves and give us a brief description of your roles at SUNY Sullivan?

Rose Hanofee:
I’m Rose Hanofee. I’m the Dean of Liberal Arts, Sciences and Health Sciences. I work with all of the programs that fall within that division, and that includes the alcoholism and drug addiction counseling track.

Jen King:
And my name is Jen King. I’m a licensed clinical social worker. I also have my CASAC and I am the Director of Learning and Student Development Services here at SUNY Sullivan.

Samantha Mango:
Can you tell us a little bit about the new program at SUNY Sullivan that is focused on alcoholism and drug abuse?

Rose Hanofee:
Many years ago, we offered this track and it included a “CASAC” certification. Now Jen King, with her credentials and her experience in this field, was instrumental in bringing the program back and updating it to make it current. We’re really excited to now be an ‘approved trainer’ for this program, and we’ve worked closely with OASAS (Office of Addiction Services and Supports) to stay in compliance with their criteria. This just went into effect last fall, and we have just started enrolling students. We’re hoping to get the word out so we can recruit more students interested in working in this very important field.

Samantha Mango:
Can you talk a little bit about what the program is focused on?

Rose Hanofee:
So within the program, we have the 350 hours that are required by OASAS: a standardized curriculum for students to complete. It also gives students a well-rounded liberal arts degree to help them if they want to further their education after their Associates Degree. One of the awesome benefits of this program is that students get to do a field placement within it. They get to work in one of our Sullivan County agencies to get hands-on experience in all of the different areas that someone within addiction would work.

Samantha Mango:
So who do you recommend take this program?

Rose Hanofee:
This program is open to anyone, and it is a great opportunity! It can work for students who are right out of high school who are interested in working within the addictions field. It can be for somebody who has a career change and wants to go down a different route. It could also be really beneficial for anyone who may already be working in the human services field and wants to get more specialized in this specific area. So as a social worker, I know many social workers who have gone back to the college, or have gone back and received their CASAC just so they can be more competent in that area to help their clients.

Samantha Mango:
Great! And I know both of you had said this and just for my own clarification, what is a CASAC?

Rose Hanofee:
A CASAC is a “Credentialed Alcohol and Substance Abuse Counselor,” and that is recognized by New York State. It requires 350 hours of standardized curriculum, which is within our Associate’s Degree. They also recommend that everyone has the opportunity to do field placement, and specifies the amount of hours within the field. By getting an Associates Degree, students have their hours decreased by a thousand hours. That’s also a huge benefit for students to earn their Associates Degree!

Samantha Mango:
Yeah.

Jen King:
In addition to the hours required for the CASAC Certification, the coursework in the Associates piece includes the major specific courses for the field and also a number of liberal arts courses that can prepare them if they want to keep going and pursue their Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in the future. So it’s a nice well-rounded degree with, the major specific courses, as well as the liberal arts.

Samantha Mango:
So how can people find out more about this program and enroll?

Rose Hanofee:
Jen is the primary faculty advisor for the program, and she also coordinates the fieldwork placement. You can visit our website, www.sunysullivan.edu for more information. There you will find the track sheet, which is all of the course requirements. It also gives you an overview of the program and the the career itself. So Jen King is the contact, and students can contact me directly as well.

Samantha Mango:
Is there anything else you’d like to share about this program or SUNY Sullivan in general?

Jen King:
Sure! Just a couple of benefits of coming to SUNY Sullivan for the Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counseling Degree: students could apply for financial aid and receive federal and state aid, which can help cover the costs of college. Students also have that great opportunity to network within the fields because they’re going to get that hands-on experience and that possibly could lead to a permanent employment after they finish their degree with us. Rose also worked very hard with SUNY Empire and we now have a Pathway Transfer Program, which means any student that may finish their degree with us and graduate could transfer seamlessly over to SUNY Empire to further their career in their Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Addiction Studies. As I mentioned before, in regards to earning your CASAC, there’s a certain amount of hours that you need within the field, so earning your Associates Degree will decrease that amount by a thousand hours. Those are just some of the awesome benefits that we worked into our program! The collaborations with local agencies and other SUNY schools will help our students recognize if they want to continue their degree, or, if they want to go out into the workforce, they already have some connections there.

Samantha Mango:
That’s great. Rose, do you have anything to share?

Rose Hanofee:
The only thing that I’d like to add is that the coursework is going to be offered online and also seated classes. It’s a combination to accommodate potential students, especially if they’re working full-time during the day.

Samantha Mango:
That’s really helpful!

Rose Hanofee:
Thank you.

Samantha Mango:
Well, thanks for joining us today and thank you for everything you do to help build a healthy Sullivan County!