THE GLASS CEILING .. MANAGERIAL APPOINTMENTS IN SOUTH AFRICAN CHILD AND YOUTH CARE

This week on social media was a question. Who best to manage a child and youth care facility/project?

Very soon after my first appointment as Director of a childrens' home, a 12year old boy gave me my first aha experience and my first lesson in what makes a manager in a child and youth care programme DIFFERENT. I came into the position from teacher training . He said "Don't bring your teacher/ headmaster thing here!     We LIVE here!"

The AHA moment was a life-changer.It meant a start towards understanding what it meant to be active in the field of child and youth care. The first step was to attempt a grasp of what child and youth care was NOT.

It is NOT Pedagogy as in teaching; it is NOT Psychology as in Psychological therapy; it is NOT parenting; it is NOT classic Counselling, it is NOT Social Work and its NOT Management as in any other type of business. It is unique. It has elements of all these, but in its uniqueness, it has a world view, a style, an approach, a philosophy and a body of knowledge and a set of skills that is all its own.

What that 12year old taught me was that I was perceiving, experiencing and responding to situations through the lens of my world, my training, education  approach and past experience. Totally not withing the "fit"of the child and youth care world.

I think it took at least two years before I more intimately connected with what was really needed of me.... and that involved at least two to three years additional intensive training and education IN THE FIELD.

The world view thing is an essential part of who we are .Its normal It is deep within our psyche. When a tailor sees you, he sees your body shape , your stature and your probable best clothing size and style. When a hairdresser sees you, she sees the condition of your hair and the shape of your face. When a doctor sees you , she sees f your pallor, your eyes and if she can, your finger nails. So with me it was the child and youth care system as a school and the children as pupils.

It wasn't said from what or which type of programme the child and youth care worker on social media was employed when this question was asked. But it was clearly a pointed question expressing dissatisfaction about two issues. One was the experience of being managed by someone who was not a child and youth care worker. The other a level of frustration about being managed by persons from other fields when a child and youth care worker could / should have been appointed. This is certainly the case in Departmental organisations and now we hear in the community based programmes of the Isibindi project on what appears to be on as a national pattern.

I really cannot be said that child and youth care workers at the professional level do not have training and education in management. The degree, and the diploma curricula have modules on Management and Administration  contained in the qualification.
Fundraising is  really the responsibility of the Board of Management . So there is no real justification in appointing a fundraising manager to a child and youth care setting which, certainly has been the case in some NGO's.

Then there is the legal requirement in terms of the Social Services Act which in the regulations is very clear that a child and youth care worker can be  supervised only by a registered child and youth care worker.

SOWETO??... So where to? It is abundantly  clear that management of a child and youth care facility should and can be done by child and youth care workers. Child and youth care workers want it to be so.... not only as they want to resonate with their managers, but also they want a career pathway that breaks through what they presently experience as a glass ceiling.