Mission in Action

As a clinical faculty member, my role in the School of Social Work is primarily as an educator. I teach courses across the curriculum, including Individuals and Families I, Human Behavior and the Social Environment I and II, Principles and Interventions in Clinical Social Work, Practice with Children, Interprofessional Practice with At-Risk Youth, and Social Work Field Instruction. All the teaching I do is informed by nearly 20 years of clinical practice with children, adolescents, families, adults and older adults. Areas of focus in my practice have included child sexual abuse, trauma, adoption, and domestic violence, along with commonly presenting concerns such as anxiety and depression. Class material is enlivened by examples from clinical practice, allowing students to apply theories about which they are learning to actual case scenarios. I believe it is especially important for students to hear social work educators and practitioners talk about both difficulties and successes in our work, in order to prepare them for the realities of day-to-day social work practice. Theses in-class experiences are a building block of transformative education.