Consultation and Training

For Pastors and Ministries

Soma would like to provide support to pastors as they minister in their congregation. The role of ministry is complex and multi-faceted. Pastors find themselves involved in a myriad of situations that call for much wisdom as they seek to respond to people in need.

Our counsellors can support pastors in a variety of ways:

• Pastors regularly refer people for counselling services at Soma.
• Pastors contact Soma for consultation pertaining to challenging situations that they face within the congregation. The role of consultation is to provide feedback, perspective, and problem-solving, which enables the pastor to obtain the clarity and direction that they need to proceed.
• Pastors contact Soma for personal counselling and/or spiritual direction. The work of ministry impacts a pastor’s sense of self and at times their well-being. Pastors seek counselling to address issues of their own healing so that they can continue to minister from a place of deeply rooted personal and spiritual health.

For Educational Needs

Our counsellors have extensive experience in helping students with unique challenges ranging from “at risk” to special education identification. We believe that it is crucial to recognize that individuals who are gifted, who have learning disabilities, self-regulation and attention issues and/or social difficulties that adversely affect them academically often have skills and talents in other areas. Through the counselling process, these other abilities can be highlighted, encouraged and developed in the right environment.

Our counsellors are familiar with the public and independent school system in BC. We believe that parents have a vital role to play in advocating for their children’s education. Soma is dedicated to resourcing families. Our counsellors are skilled in collaborating and working together with the school based team (teachers, administrators, counsellors, SEAs, etc.) and can be available to make school visits when requested.

Some examples of Educational Consulting include:

• Consultation on the Educational and mental health needs of gifted children
• Consultation on the Educational and mental health needs of students with special learning needs
• Individualized Educational Consultation Services
• School Consultation Services
• “Wrap around service” before and after an assessment: Soma works in collaboration with licensed BC Psychologists who administer full psycho-educational and neuropsychological assessments.
• Transition planning (pre-school to Kindergarten, Elementary/Middle school to High school, High school to post-secondary)
• Understanding an IEP (Individual Education Plan), learning how to handle school meetings, learning how to advocate for your son or daughter at the school level
• Education Planning (designing a customized education based on available services in the community)
• Summary and Integration for individuals who have had multiple assessments and would like to see the “big picture”
• Schools visits and collaborating with school based teams
• Referral to specific, targeted services in the community

Career & Vocational Consulting

Soma is able to coach and provide assistance to students as they discern their career path. Experienced academic counsellors are available to help students understand about college and university programs. Students are also guided through the process of post-secondary and scholarship applications.

Counsellors use the John Holland’s Self Directed Search to help clients discover occupations and fields of study that match well with their personality. They also work with clients on a variety of career exploration assessments.

Moreover, adults seeking further education and career planning are counselled in areas of interview skills, effective resume writing, job search strategies and vocational counselling.