Susie Wirka

Position title: Training Support Specialist

Email: wirka@uwm.edu

Phone: (414) 964-7400

Susan Wirka (“Susie”) joined the WCWPDS at UW-Milwaukee in October 2014 where she continued her UWM career as the Registration Coordinator for the Home Visiting program exclusively. Since then, Susie expanded her role as Training Support Specialist for each program area in the Milwaukee office: Foster Parent Foundation, Public Adoption, Child Welfare, and Home Visiting. This position requires close coordination between administrative staff, program managers, and trainers to ensure a smooth transition between the curriculum and all aspects of the classroom experience. In the age of Covid-19, this has also meant knowing how to make the necessary real-time shifts between in-classroom and digital learning environments, sometimes at a moment’s notice. 

Susie sits on the Cultural Humility Council (CHC) where she helps translate the principles and tenets of cultural humility to be both applicable and unending to the entire organization. Through the CHC, Susie works to strengthen our understanding of the cultural dynamics of our workplace, thus allowing us to better serve our community. In May 2021, Ms. Wirka was elected to the UWM University Staff Senate as an ongoing commitment to better understand our relationship with the larger campus community. In that regard, she sits on the Staff Senate Awards committee which recognizes outstanding service awards for University staff, and the Staff Senate Nominations committee which manages the election of University staff members to permanent standing committees that conduct important work for the University.