Senior Leader Spotlight: Rosemary McFadden
Did you know that all of the Center for Human Services (CHS) Senior Leaders are women? To celebrate Women’s History Month, we will be sharing Senior Leader Spotlights throughout the month. Today, we sat down with Rosemary McFadden, Director of Behavioral Health, to talk about leadership and her career at CHS.
How long have you been involved with CHS?
I started at CHS in 2000, so it will be 17 years in June.
How did you first get involved with CHS?
I got involved with CHS after I went back to school to get my Masters in Counseling. Previously, I had a career in mortgage banking talking to people about their productivity, but often people had personal problems that they told me about. I joked that I missed my calling as a therapist until I decided to actually go back to school to become a counselor. When I applied to CHS, I knew it was where I wanted to be. I wanted to work with kids in a school setting. I was offered a position as an onsite clinician.
What does your role as Director of Behavioral Health entail?
I oversee the Behavioral Health Department. This includes the Children’s System of Care which offers counseling services for children ages 5–18. There is also Managed Care which is a counseling program for children and adults with mild to moderate cases. I also oversee the Intensive Outpatient Treatment for adults in recovery and Substance Use Disorder groups for adolescents. We also have a practicum program that offers Masters students on the Master of Social Work or Marriage and Family Therapist track a trainee-ship to get hands on experience in counseling.
What is your favorite thing about working at CHS?
The people. I love what I do, and I love helping. The work we do is important and it is gratifying to know what we do makes a difference. Everyone has a purpose and when you find your purpose, it’s no longer work; you are serving. We all love what we do here. In the profit world, it’s all about the dollar, but in the nonprofit world, it’s about people’s lives.
Which of our CHS core values is most important to you and why?
Integrity is most important to me because when your truth is “I’m going to do what I say,” that creates trust. Transparency develops trust. As a nonprofit, the community trusts us with their donations and trusts us to do what we say we will do. The community wants to know we are accountable and are good stewards.
Who is someone that inspires you to be a leader?
My parents and one of my high school teachers. My dad used to tell me to use my brain and not my fists and my high school teacher encouraged me to take the high road and to rise above bullies. My teacher told me I am better than that, and I never forgot it.
What does leadership mean to you?
Leadership is servant-hood. In order to lead, you have to know how to serve. Leaders are the first examples that people see. A lot of people get it wrong; they think leadership means power and authority, but really you are serving. You see something that needs to be done and you do it. I believe in being alongside my staff. We do whatever it takes to get the job done, and that’s self-leadership as well.
To learn more about our Behavioral Health Department visit: http://www.centerforhumanservices.org/what-we-do/mental-health-services/
