Staff Feature:
Lauren Hofmeister
This month we interviewed our longtime Youth Program Supervisor who is now transitioning to a Director of Operations role at the Domestic Abuse Project. She’s kind, she’s thoughtful, and everyone at the organization loves her. Check out this interview to learn more about Lauren and her career trajectory at DAP.
DAP: How long have you been working at the Domestic Abuse Project?
Lauren: 4.5 years. I was also contracted staff when I was in graduate school back in 2012, where I did group work, and saw a few individual kids for therapy. I was even doing some group work back then.
DAP: What brought you back to DAP?
Lauren: The mission, the community, and I really liked how collaborative of an organization DAP is. I really believe in the work that we do and the positive impact that it has on the kids and families.
DAP: What has been your primary role here?
Lauren: My primary role was supervising the Youth Program. The branches of the Youth Program are early childhood intervention, child-parent psychotherapy, play therapy for kids ages 6-11, relationship psychotherapy with adolescence, and youth therapy for kids ages 7-14. My job entailed supervising the therapists who engaged in these programs, having a small caseload myself, co-facilitating youth group, supervising interns, youth program development, and supervising childcare. I also helped develop the TAY (Transitional Aged Youth) Program, in collaboration with Hennepin County Juvenile Probation Transition Aged Youth Unit. This program was a piloted a couple of years ago, but in 2022 it became a permanent staple at DAP.
DAP: What have you enjoyed about being a youth therapist? What changes have you seen in youth over the years as they go through the program?
Lauren: One of my favorite parts about doing youth work has been co-facilitating youth group and watching kids come together to learn that they are not alone in their experiences. Really supporting each other. It’s such a cool experience to watch even little kids validate each other’s feelings and experiences. For kids who have not talked about their experiences with DV yet, it’s wonderful to see them gain the courage, talk about it, draw about it, and share with their peers. It feels like such a privilege to watch this. I think it’s also really special to watch parents and kids find common language together from their common experiences and heal together. I get to watch the stress of the family decrease in big ways. Helping parents understand the impact DV has on their kids can be so impactful.
DAP: Tell us about your new role as the Director of Operations!
Lauren: Primarily I am supporting our infrastructure in a bigger way. I am responsible for doing most of our reporting for grants, and being a part of developing and implementing procedures and policy that support staff in their day to day roles, so they can focus on the direct work. I’m in charge of a lot of our platforms, and in charge of supervising the Client Services Associate. I’ll continue to have a small caseload of kids, because that is important to me. Finally, I serve on lots of committees and help with our third party billing.
DAP: One more question, Lauren. How do you feel about the new incoming Youth Therapists?
Lauren: Oh my gosh, I am so excited. They are all coming with their own expertise and experiences and they seem really eager to learn and be here and do the work. I am really excited to see how this team continues to progress the Youth Program. It’s always fun to have fresh eyes on things and fresh perspectives.
