Master of Social Work

Lillie's Career Journey

Lillie Skalka (she/her) graduated in May 2019 and currently works as a School Social Worker, LCSW at the Bucks County Intermediate Unit, where she is employed full-time in a center-based special education program serving students from kindergarten through post-graduation transition programs. In her role, she supports students and families, provides crisis intervention for students in distress, participates on the threat assessment team and the county crisis response PrePaRE team, and offers classroom-based, responsive, and IEP counseling. She also facilitates staff groups for paraprofessionals and helps develop and deliver trainings for school staff. Her days are unpredictable, often beginning with greeting students and reviewing emails before responding to behavioral escalations, threat assessments, and student needs, while also attending IEP meetings and communicating with parents. Her MSW education provided a strong foundation in cognitive behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing, which are directly applicable to her work, and courses in behavioral health and child welfare laws were especially impactful in shaping her early career path. She manages stress by spending time with her husband and pets, gardening, caring for houseplants, maintaining a regular workout routine, and prioritizing family dinners as a way to decompress. She encourages current students by emphasizing the long-term fulfillment that comes from helping clients and students achieve meaningful milestones, and she reflects that she wishes she had known about school social work earlier, as she finds great satisfaction in the role and appreciates the work-life balance it offers. One of her favorite memories from the MSW program was graduating alongside her cohort, many of whom were already working full-time as social workers, making the accomplishment feel especially rewarding.