About Us
Seak Manor
(Founder and Director)
Seak is a founder and director of CASS, a service that provides culturally sensitive support to diverse communities. She has a Master in Couple and Family Therapy from UNSW, a Graduate Diploma in Counselling from ACAP, and a BA in Management from University of Canberra. She has over 20 years of experience in the Community Service Sector, working in various roles and settings in Australia and New Zealand.
Seak was born in Cambodia and came to Australia as a refugee. She knows firsthand the challenges of war, family separation, resettlement, inter-generational trauma and cross-cultural issues. She served as a Board Member of the Cambodian Australian Welfare Council of NSW (CAWC) for two terms, from 2000 to 2002 and from 2004 to 2007, providing guidance and support to various government and non-government organisations. Seak also represented Waverley council in several management committees related to family and children services. She is committed and passionate about enhancing access and equity for all Australians.
Seak's personal and professional background has given her a passion for helping children, young people, individuals and families achieve positive outcomes through culturally appropriate services. She has expertise in areas such as child protection, Out-of-Home Care, mental health, family and domestic violence, refugee communities, family support, disability and youth homelessness.
Seak is a certified Couple and Family Therapist, and she also has accreditation in Family Group Conferencing, Shared Lives training, and Step by Step registration.
(Founder and Director)
Seak is a founder and director of CASS, a service that provides culturally sensitive support to diverse communities. She has a Master in Couple and Family Therapy from UNSW, a Graduate Diploma in Counselling from ACAP, and a BA in Management from University of Canberra. She has over 20 years of experience in the Community Service Sector, working in various roles and settings in Australia and New Zealand.
Seak was born in Cambodia and came to Australia as a refugee. She knows firsthand the challenges of war, family separation, resettlement, inter-generational trauma and cross-cultural issues. She served as a Board Member of the Cambodian Australian Welfare Council of NSW (CAWC) for two terms, from 2000 to 2002 and from 2004 to 2007, providing guidance and support to various government and non-government organisations. Seak also represented Waverley council in several management committees related to family and children services. She is committed and passionate about enhancing access and equity for all Australians.
Seak's personal and professional background has given her a passion for helping children, young people, individuals and families achieve positive outcomes through culturally appropriate services. She has expertise in areas such as child protection, Out-of-Home Care, mental health, family and domestic violence, refugee communities, family support, disability and youth homelessness.
Seak is a certified Couple and Family Therapist, and she also has accreditation in Family Group Conferencing, Shared Lives training, and Step by Step registration.
Sheri Shenker
(Consultant Supervisor)
After graduating with a MASW in South Africa, Sheri started her career working in adoptions and and counselling in crisis pregnancies and infertility. In 2000, after experiencing the impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic on the number of children being orphaned and abandoned, she started Impilo, a place of safety offering child protection and adoption services. Along with another social worker she established a home based environment for children offering intensive early intervention services so children could find permanency, either through restoration or adoption, as early as possible. Impilo continues as an established adoption and child protection service in South Africa.
Working for 18 years in South Africa, through the transition from Apartheid to democracy and the HIV/AIDS pandemic, she developed her insight into the issues facing various culturally diverse groups and the understanding of the norms and values of varying cultural groups. In 2008, Sheri moved to Australia, initially to Victoria where she was principal officer for an adoption program for five years. Her portfolio included leadership of the adoption program, two placement prevention programs, the permanent care program and the adoption information services.
After moving to NSW, she took a contract for a year as CEO to an adoption advocacy organisation, focusing on the NSW permanency reforms. She presented a paper at the 2012 Australian Adoption Conference, A Continuum of Care, advocating for adoptions from out of home care, a blueprint for the current Permanency Support Program.
Throughout her career she has undertaken assessment work, focusing on Adoption Assessments and Court Reports, Guardianship Assessments, Restoration Assessments and Carer Authorisations. She was contracted to develop policies and procedures for the accreditation of a NSW adoption organisation and once accreditation was achieved, was appointed to the principal officer role. Sheri offers independent supervision and consultation to CASS with the aim of developing reflective practice and assessment skills of the CASS team of assessors.
(Consultant Supervisor)
After graduating with a MASW in South Africa, Sheri started her career working in adoptions and and counselling in crisis pregnancies and infertility. In 2000, after experiencing the impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic on the number of children being orphaned and abandoned, she started Impilo, a place of safety offering child protection and adoption services. Along with another social worker she established a home based environment for children offering intensive early intervention services so children could find permanency, either through restoration or adoption, as early as possible. Impilo continues as an established adoption and child protection service in South Africa.
Working for 18 years in South Africa, through the transition from Apartheid to democracy and the HIV/AIDS pandemic, she developed her insight into the issues facing various culturally diverse groups and the understanding of the norms and values of varying cultural groups. In 2008, Sheri moved to Australia, initially to Victoria where she was principal officer for an adoption program for five years. Her portfolio included leadership of the adoption program, two placement prevention programs, the permanent care program and the adoption information services.
After moving to NSW, she took a contract for a year as CEO to an adoption advocacy organisation, focusing on the NSW permanency reforms. She presented a paper at the 2012 Australian Adoption Conference, A Continuum of Care, advocating for adoptions from out of home care, a blueprint for the current Permanency Support Program.
Throughout her career she has undertaken assessment work, focusing on Adoption Assessments and Court Reports, Guardianship Assessments, Restoration Assessments and Carer Authorisations. She was contracted to develop policies and procedures for the accreditation of a NSW adoption organisation and once accreditation was achieved, was appointed to the principal officer role. Sheri offers independent supervision and consultation to CASS with the aim of developing reflective practice and assessment skills of the CASS team of assessors.
Diversity - Accountability
Responsiveness - Innovation - Inclusiveness
Responsiveness - Innovation - Inclusiveness
Our partners
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