McCoy promoted to clinical supervisor

VW independent staff/submitted information

For the past 12 years, Elspeth McCoy has dedicated her career to the mission of the Marsh Foundation. Hired as a group home family teacher, she pursued her master’s degree in social work and has since joined the clinical department.

During her studies, she was able to complete field hours at the Marsh where she learned specifically how to work with youth with sexual behavior problems. During her last semester of graduate school, she also completed a course specializing in juvenile sex offender counseling, expanding both her interest and expertise in the topic. McCoy holds a master’s degree in social work from the Ohio State University. In addition, she has achieved independent social work licensure and her supervision endorsement.

She said she is no stranger to overcoming challenges and plans to use that to her advantage as she continues to grow her career. McCoy acknowledged that working in the group homes as a family teacher was challenging. She also said it was very rewarding and is appreciative of the experience.

“I have persevered through many difficult times in the different positions I’ve held,” McCoy stated. “I strongly believe in the mission of the Marsh Foundation, which is to inspire hope, to teach, and to care for children and families.”

She went on to say that the most important part of the mission, to her, is hope.

“Hope has helped me to remain working in a difficult job and hope is what I try to inspire in the clients I work with,” she said. “Now, it is time to pass this on to the people I supervise.”

McCoy is excited to bring her growth ideas to the clinical department and has several goals for her new role.

“We have really great counselors and case managers already and I would like to add more clinical staff so we can focus even more on our existing and developing programs,” she said.

In addition to the department’s more traditional one-on-one and group counseling sessions, the department is also expanding to include Equine-Assisted Learning, Animal-Assisted Therapy, CrossFit, Horticulture and Independent Living.

“Being a supervisor will allow me to bring everyone together and grow our clinical program to serve children and families in more diverse ways,” McCoy said.

The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides services for youth and families in a variety of settings. Services include residential care, family foster care (ages 0-17), adoption and independent living services. Located in Van Wert, the organization is licensed to provide on-campus services for up to 30 children, offers an on-campus school for grades 2-12, and provides a variety of clinical services to campus residents, foster care children and community members throughout western Ohio.