Program offers staff counseling, workshops, more


Vol. 19, No. 3	Sept. 16, 1999

Program offers staff counseling, workshops, more

The Faculty and Staff Assistance Program will offer a series of workshops for employees this fall, ranging from topics in support of Sexual Assault Awareness to sessions on step-parenting and workplace stress.

In conjunction with the Sexual Assault Awareness planning committee, FSAP is sponsoring a series of workshops this month.

The Sexual Assault Awareness Week workshops include "Drawing the Line: How to Set Healthy Boundaries," noon-1:30 p.m.; and "The Shapes Happiness Comes In," 7 p.m., both Monday, Sept. 27, in the Ewing Room, Perkins Student Center, and featuring Margot Silk Forrest, founder of the Healing Woman Foundation. Also, "Intimate Violence: Living with Contradictions" will be presented from 12:20-1:10 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 29, in Multipurpose Room A, Trabant University Center, featuring Allan Johnson, author of The Gender Knot: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy.

(See page 12 for a complete details on these presentations and other Sexual Assault Awareness events.)

Other FSAP workshops specifically designed for UD employees will be offered during the fall semester, beginning Oct. 5. Interested graduate and undergraduate students also are invited to attend.

These include:

"Step-parenting: It's Not a Fairy Tale," noon-1:30 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 5, 130 General Services Building. Yvonne Nass, parent education coordinator of Child Inc., will discuss the real world of blended families, including the myths and realities of stepfamilies. The workshop is designed for anyone living with or involved with children of a significant other and offers many "how to" suggestions for these enriching yet challenging relationships.
"Loves Me Not," noon-1:15 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 7, Collins Room, Perkins Student Center. Donna Tuites, FSAP, and Nancy Nutt, Center for Counseling and Student Development, will discuss abusive relationships, which can involve more than physical violence, and how to identify the warning signs and be aware of the potential risks and resources. They also provide information on resources that are available to help.
"Handling Workplace Anxiety and Stress," noon-1:30 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 26, 130 General Services Building. Tuites and Cecily Sawyer Harmon, FSAP, will facilitate this workshop on handling the multiple responsibilities and pressures of work-including deadlines, new tasks and working with difficult people-combined with the stresses at home. They also will discuss resources that are available to help.
"Coping with Loss and Grief during the Holidays," noon-1:30 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 11, 130 General Services Building. Linda Wills, Delaware Hospice Inc., will facilitate this workshop dealing with feelings of loss, due to divorce or separation, which are intensified during the holidays. Participants will learn how to recognize, accept and express these feelings these feelings in a healthy way.

FSAP also will tailor programs to meet the needs of offices and departments. Examples of these programs include "Identifying the Troubled Employee," "Violence in the Workplace," "Coping with Grief and Loss" and "Supporting the Caregiver." The office staff also provides mediation with members of departments who are experiencing conflicts, and runs two ongoing support groups, which meet from noon-1 p.m.

A group for separated and divorced women, led by Sawyer Harmon, meets the first and third Wednesday of the month, beginning Wednesday, Oct. 6, in Room 111 of the Faculty and Staff Assistance Office.

A recovery group for employees dealing with substance abuse problems, led by Tuites, meets Wednesdays in Room 110 of the General Services Building. Two additional support groups for cancer survivors and those wishing to build self-esteem are under consideration.

For more information or to participate in any of these support groups, call 831- 2414.

-Sue Moncure