Major Milestone: Center for Workforce Development Graduates Largest Class to Date

On Friday, May 30th, 85 individuals received certificates of completion in five different career ladder programs during the 2025 Center for Workforce Development (CWD) graduation. Aimed at introducing young professionals to careers in behavioral health and offering established professionals opportunities to advance existing careers, these programs combine paid professional experience with education and training—both essential in building the highly trained, culturally responsive behavioral health workforce the country needs. This year’s graduating cohort, the CWD’s largest to date, includes 39 participants in the Behavioral Health Service Corps℠; 24 in the Community Health Workers (CHW) Training Program; 7 in the Emerging Leaders Certificate Training Program; 7 in the Leadership in Community Behavioral Health  (LCBH) Fellowship; and 8 LCBH Alumni. 

“It’s always magical to be in the room with folks at graduation,” says Gina Dessources Benjamin, MSW, LICSW, William James College Program Director, Community Health Workers Training Programs, who was struck by the tremendous gratitude participants expressed to the CWD and to one another. 

“There is a level of vulnerability required not only to learn together but also to draw upon life experience and carry it into a professional realm,” says Benjamin of an often unspoken part of the learning journey. During the hybrid ceremony, this was on full display via a trio of student speakers including Marie Nancy Jeanniton, who spoke on behalf of the Community Health Workers Training Program graduates.

“When many hands come together, the load is not heavy,” Jeanniton shared, speaking first in Haitian Creole before translating the popular adage from her native language into English. In her current role as a paraprofessional at Dedham Middle School, Jeanniton works with members of the Haitian community to advocate for youth, build confidence in young leaders, and connect families to community resources.

“We are not here to lead or to follow, we are here to support—to sit with others and hold space for them without trying to fix or label anything,” she adds of how participating in the CHW program has impacted all facets of her daily life. “I have become more confident, more open and more present because of what I have learned here,” she shared. 

TEAMWORK FOR THE WIN 

At William James College, Workforce Development Initiatives bridge myriad needs—including those of organizations, the professional, the profession, and the community—by providing high-quality education and training programs that prepare students to meet the existing and growing demand for culturally responsive behavioral health care. Naturally, it’s a team-based model.

 “Workforce development requires a herculean effort,” says Gemima St. Louis, PhD, Vice President for Workforce Initiatives and Specialty Training, of the many hands that make light work of getting the programs off the ground, running, and seeing cohorts of students succeed over the course of a year-long academic period. She cites an internal team of dedicated staff members coupled with external partners and funders converging to create unrivaled passion for and commitment to the work at hand.

“Ensuring these programs are readily accessible to students—many of whom never envisioned a career in behavioral health—requires strategic collaboration among staff, professional mentors, and supervisors,” says St. Louis.

“I witnessed a tremendous amount of growth among participants,” says Mandi Miller, BA, pointing to several in the Behavioral Health Service Corps (BHSC) who joined having never worked in behavioral health and finished with a full year of experience in the field. “Not only have these students witnessed all the ups and downs of the behavioral health system, but they also have two graduate courses under their belts,” says Miller of the program’s intentional design: Positioning participants to continue their  professional journeys.

According to available data for the most recent BHSC graduates, as of June 5th,  11 students have enrolled in a graduate program related to behavioral health starting Fall 2025. Seven of those students will attend William James College (four in the Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling; one in the MA/CAGS in School Psychology; and two in the Clinical Psychology PsyD Program). The other four students will attend Master’s and Clinical Psychology programs at Boston College, Boston University, Kean University (New Jersey), and University of Chicago.

RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

 A trio of intertwined factors have contributed to the growth of workforce initiatives at the College. “Across Massachusetts and beyond, William James College is lauded for its commitment to expanding and diversifying the behavioral health workforce,” says St. Louis, underscoring the importance of reputation coupled with name recognition. Strong collaborations and partnerships are equally important. “Many of the students who come to us were referred by their supervisors,” says St. Louis, citing a growing community of folks in the field who have benefitted from the top-notch individuals pursuing non-degree and career ladder programs through William James College. Word of mouth from the graduates themselves has been astounding. “Alumni of our programs offer the most powerful testimonials that are based on their lived experience,” says St. Louis, explaining that future program participants look to these graduates as ‘possibility models’ who communicate, albeit silently, If I can do it, you can do it, too. Benjamin calls alumni the CWD’s ‘greatest ambassadors’ for good reason. “They are the ones sending friends and colleagues our way, often three and four at a time, which has allowed us to establish a wait list even before the current cohort has completed their training,” she says.

From a systems-level standpoint, St. Louis is quick to add that they can’t keep up with demand. “Our capacity to meet the need pales in comparison to the number of applicants who are seeking these training opportunities,” she says. Five years ago, in the midst of COVID, the BHSC was launched with a cohort of 15; the goal was to target 20 individuals in each futre cohort.

 “We have received over 90 applications for the Fall 2025,” says Miller of demand that continues to outpace capacity. The addition of a BHSC-Rhode Island cohort means the free, post-college gap year in mental health—boasting guaranteed job placement and graduate credits—will now be available to 50 individuals in two locations.

 Amidst a changing landscape, one thing remains certain: “For students who are unsure of their future, the CWD offers a clear path toward getting there,” says Miller who regularly attends career fairs. Given the various career ladder pathways and individuals pursuing them, another constant lies in paving the way.

“We reduce the barriers and work to eliminate them so folks can fully participate in our programming,” says Benjamin of benefits ranging from a free laptop and internet access for a year to critical mentorship and career coaching. Stipends to address individual challenges— from childcare and transportation to food and/or housing security—are further evidence of intentional support for the whole person, not just the student. 

“The fact that we address these social determinants of health really sets our programs apart,” says Benjamin, pointing to the reciprocal nature of these efforts. “The clients we serve see themselves in the individuals we are training,” says Benjamin, emphasizing that the program participants not only look like those they serve but also speak the various languages of the people in the community. 

“We actively work to recruit people who typically didn’t think higher education was for them,” says Benjamin, pointing to a diverse range of folks not only with lived experience but also who identify as adult student learners and first-generation college and high school graduates.

 LOOKING AHEAD

Invoking the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., St. Louis feels that the time is always right to do what is right. “There is a significant demand for culturally and linguistically appropriate behavioral health services, not only locally but across the country and beyond, and we must not turn a deaf ear to these needs,” she adds, underscoring that—until the workforce reflects the diversity of the community at large—the work must continue.

“Folks who enroll in our programs want to pay it forward,” adds Benjamin, further testament as to why sustaining opportunities for workforce development remains crucial. Sharing St. Louis’ sentiments, and returning to the CWD’s class of 2025, Benjamin points to the group photo of the graduates: “Given the size of the class and the diversity represented, the future is bright for our field.” 

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