MIDDLETOWN, N.Y. – Following the success of its initial Direct Support Professionals (DSP) microcredential offerings 18 months ago, SUNY Orange announces the availability of its newly approved two-course DSP-III curriculum for the Spring 2026 semester.

The DSP-III microcredential is designed to improve students’ understanding of key aspects of counseling, the helping process, setting person-centered goals and supports, cultural competence, recognizing bias and its impact on the therapeutic relationship, making informed choices, and demonstrating the ability to seek and use feedback to acquire and improve counseling skills.

Students will explore the cultural and social forces that operate beyond individual control and awareness yet profoundly influence our behavior, identity, and thought processes. They will also examine how these social forces impact decision-making and opportunities in life and work on improving critical thinking, writing, and oral communication skills. Upon completion, they will be prepared to undertake the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals (NADSP) certification exam for Level III certification.

To date, the College has issued more than 110 certificates of completion for its DSP-I and DSP-II cohorts since launching the microcredentials in Summer 2024. The complete program, which offers free tuition to students, is designed to help DSPs serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities enhance their careers and skills. Stackable microcredentials can also provide a pathway to a certificate or to an initial or advanced degree. By completing all three DSP cohorts at SUNY Orange, students can accumulate 18.5 credits that can be applied to a human services or liberal arts degree at SUNY Orange, or transferred to another college or university.

In order to enroll in DSP-III, students must have DSP Level II certification. Level I certification is a prerequisite for enrolling in DSP-II. The DSP-III curriculum includes two three-credit courses: Introduction to Counseling and Introduction to Sociology.

For more information about the DSP microcredential programs, contact Nolly Climes, LMHC and human services coordinator for SUNY Orange’s Behavioral Sciences Department, at nolly.climes@sunyorange.edu or call (845) 341-4139.