Where Cultural Understanding Meets Clinical Training
A Unique Partnership Expands Mental Health Access in New York’s Yiddish-Speaking Communities
In 2023, Avrumie Heimowitz was truly alarmed at the near nonexistence of Yiddish-speaking social workers in New York City, and throughout the state.
“We not only have an extreme shortage of social workers, but in New York City, we have an even more extreme shortage of social workers who understand the languages and cultural sensitivities of certain groups of marginalized people, those who are more isolated and insular, and therefore, underserved,” explains Heimowitz, director of the Children and Family Treatment and Support Program for CARES (Community Assistance Resources and Extended Services, Inc.) “We were desperate for Yiddish-speaking social workers who could work within the Hasidic and Orthodox communities.”
In stepped the dean of Touro University Graduate School of Social Work (GSSW), Dr. Nancy Gallina, and a partnership was born. CARES had some very talented Yiddish-speaking paraprofessionals on its staff. GSSW would educate and train them to become full-fledged social workers. “I am so committed to this partnership because it fits seamlessly with the school’s mission and social work values—to give access and opportunity to those who otherwise might not have it or might not know it’s even available to them,” explains Dr. Gallina.
So far, more than a dozen men have graduated and another 100 or so men and women from the religious communities are in the educational pipeline. The classes are offered as a hybrid model, online or in culturally comfortable locations. “The whole point of social work is to go where you’re needed, with the social workers who understand the culture they are there to help," says Dr. Gallina.
CARES provides comprehensive behavioral and mental health services to individuals and families. To reach those who need their services most, the social workers visit clients’ homes and other sites in their communities that feel welcoming and safe. In their partnership, according to Dr. Gallina, Touro’s Graduate School of Social Work has hired a multitude of adjunct professors from the religious community to teach the CARES cohort of students.
A 33-year-old man who recently completed his studies at GSSW says he is honored to bring his educational knowledge and innate understanding of the religious community to which he belongs to those who need mental health services. “I am so grateful to Touro,” he says, "for creating a program that values not just education but also the people learning it."
