Sandhya Hermon Hired as Program Director for APS Northern Academy at UC Davis Human Services
UC Davis Continuing and Professional Education – Human Services is pleased to announce that Sandhya Hermon, Ph.D., has been hired as the inaugural program director for the Adult Protective Services (APS) Northern Academy. Her appointment marks the first leadership hire under a new three-year renewable grant from the California Department of Social Services to launch and manage the APS Northern Regional Training Academy, which began implementation on July 1, 2025. The new program will serve 28 counties across Northern California, providing training, coaching, and workforce development services for APS professionals.
In this role, Hermon will lead the design, implementation and expansion of the new APS program, shaping its strategic direction and delivering high-quality educational services to counties and community partners. In addition to building the APS Northern Academy, Hermon will oversee the Adult Services portfolio within UC Davis Human Services, providing support for related adult services and mental health workforce development initiatives. Her responsibilities include setting long-term academic goals, managing program budgets and aligning activities with the division’s mission to drive impact and sustainable growth.
“I am delighted to welcome Sandhya Hermon to the UC Davis Human Services leadership team,” said Alison Book, associate dean of UC Davis Human Services. “Sandhya will lead efforts to launch and grow the APS Northern Academy, working closely with county and state stakeholders to create educational programs that strengthen the adult services workforce.”
Hermon brings more than 20 years of applied research and workforce development experience in national and international positions. Most recently, she served for eight years as deputy director of the Social Services Agency in Santa Clara County, where she oversaw staff development, workforce engagement and program evaluation across the agency.
Her professional background is diverse and rooted in deep expertise across adult and aging services, child welfare, eligibility and benefits programs, social work education and workforce development. She has worked extensively on initiatives that improve outcomes for APS and child welfare workers, as well as those in substance abuse treatment. Before her time in Santa Clara, Hermon served as director of research and evaluation at the California Social Work Education Center at UC Berkeley. Hermon holds a doctoral and master’s degree in experimental psychology as well as a Master of Fine Arts in screenwriting.
UC Davis Continuing and Professional Education – Human Services is a long-established leader in social services training. Last fiscal year, it trained more than 42,000 professionals across all 58 California counties, 12 states and 37 tribes. With deep experience in child welfare, behavioral health, self-sufficiency, and adult services, UC Davis Human Services strengthens the public human services workforce.