C E L E B R A T I N G Students Teaching and Field Education Alumni Research and Scholarship Service, Advocacy, and Outreach 2023 S.T.A.R.S. Monday, May 8, 2023
GOOD NEWS!
We wanted to start off S.T.A.R.S. with some wonderful news submitted to us from around the School of Social Work!
BSW student Nicole Aguero accepted a position at ourBRIDGE for Kids as a Family Support Navigator
BSW student April Key Godfrey was awarded the Disciplinary Theme Award at the Undergraduate Research Conference (URC) 2023 with the education and communication department and the communications across the curriculum program
As a part of National Advocacy Day, BSW student Nicole Aguero and other social work students, faculty, and staff had the opportunity to attend NASW's social work advocacy day in Raleigh. They met and spoke with Sen. Sydney Batch and Sen. Graig Meyer to advocate for access to affordable housing, LGBTQ protections, abortion access, reproductive health care, etc.
As a part of her field practicum, BSW student April Key Godfrey was awarded Intern of the Year from Mecklenburg County DSS.
Graduating MSW student, Delaney Welsh has recently been informed they were accepted as an Evaluation Fellow with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence Prevention, Prevention Practice and Translation Branch.
We wish all of our 2023 BSW and MSW graduates nothing but the best with their exciting next steps! We look forward to engaging with our new and continuing social work students, faculty, and staff in 2023-2024!
CHILD WELFARE SCHOLARS
The Collaborative is a university-based partnership that provides statewide educational and professional support to prepare BSW and MSW students for careers in public child welfare.
April Key Godrey
Eryka Shontrese Harrison
Sara M. King
Jessica Lee Meyer
Janice Watkins
Maddie Wooten
EARLY CHILDHOOD MENTAL HEALTH SCHOLARS
To earn the Early Childhood Mental Health graduate certificate, students take courses offered by the School of Social Work, the Department of Special Education, and the Department of Child and Family Development focused on children birth to five years of age and their families.
Unika Boyce-Cooley
Stephanie Bridges
Elyse Rodriguez
Haley Shand
Shanel Tucker-Hairston
Hannah Wareham
Ren Walters
* also graduating with MSW degrees
2022-2023 DISCIPLINARY COMMUNICATION CONSULTANTS (DCCs)
Communication Consultants are senior social work students who demonstrated exemplary writing and oral communication skills and are hired to work within the unit serving as writing consultants. Each year, we have been fortunate to receive university funding to hire 4 undergraduate social work students to serve as our consultants. These students maintain a caseload of approximately 20 junior-level social work students and meet with them providing feedback and support with these written assignments and presentations. We would like to honor our distinguished DCC’s for 2022-2023.
Bahia Ali
Dani Hernandez-Rios
April
Key Godfrey
Jessica Meyer
PHI ALPHA HONOR SOCIETY 2022 INDUCTEES
Phi Alpha is a national honor society that invites into membership those who have attained scholarly excellence in social work. Nu Theta, the UNC Charlotte chapter, was founded in 2005. Members of Phi Alpha represent the top 35% of students in our social work program.
BSW
Nyree Beachum
Alyssa D. Brown
Javonne Green
Jeni B. Joffre Rivera
Sunshine K. Key
MSW
Diane B. Bolster
Erin J. Bonsall
Nashara A. Bynum
Haylea A. Cunningham
Ericka M. Ellis-Stewart
Emily R. Elmore
Amber N. Esters
Shykira J. Farmer
Abby Gears
Dorothy J. Gerace
Cody C. Hamrick
Zach A. Johnson
Erin A. Kane
Kaye Lee
Persia A. Mohseni-tabrizi
Timika S. Murphy
Mike J. Padgett
Gina D. Ringelberg
Marybeth E. Roberson
Kelly A. Schnitzmeier
Anna R. Smith
Mikali Z. Smith
Hanna V. Sprague
Hayley Sykes
Marti R. Webb
April R. Zahlman
PHI ALPHA HONOR SOCIETY 2023 CEREMONY
The Phi Alpha Honor Society ceremony was held on May 1, 2023. All inductees were invited to attend the ceremony. Congratulations to all the 2023 inductees!
2022-2023 BSW HONORS PROGRAM STUDENTS
Social Work Honors students in our program are required to have a 3.5 GPA, take four social work honors courses, and participate in a research project in their senior year. Additionally, they must present or defend their research in the presence of the BSW Honors Committee. This year, we have 2 honors students who have met the university honors requirements.
April Key Godfrey
The Impact of Social Support on Children in Foster Care
Disability and Justice Involvement
Avangelyne "Angel" Padilla
BACHELOR OF SOCIAL WORK AWARDS 2023
The BSW Program recognizes the achievement of continuing and graduating students and their numerous contributions to the community. We would like to congratulate the recipients of the 2023 BSW Program awards.
BSW LEADERSHIP AWARD
The BSW Leadership Award is given to Senior BSW students who exemplify excellence in campus leadership. These students have demonstrated leadership among their peers within the School of Social Work.
Dana Rakes, Ruby Sidhu, and Avangalyne "Angel" Padilla
BSW COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AWARD
The BSW Community Engagement Award is given to a Senior BSW student who exemplifies excellence in campus and community engagement. This student has demonstrated leadership on campus and within the community.
Reece Yoho, Nicole Aguero, and Brianna New
BSW STUDENT RESEARCH AWARD
The BSW Student Research Award is given to a Senior BSW student who exemplifies excellence in research. This student has demonstrated a commitment to research and often has gone above and beyond with research.
April Key Godfrey and Keshawn Mathews
OUTSTANDING BSW FIELD STUDENT
Bradley Fedele- Catawba County Library
OUTSTANDING BSW FIELD INSTRUCTOR
Hannah Abernethy- Carolinas Care Partnership
OUTSTANDING MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK AWARDS 2023
"Outstanding" is defined here as the best MSW graduates in each cohort with respect to their academic performance in the classroom and field, in community engagement, in research involvement, in social work and related extra-curricular activities, through demonstrated leadership and integrity, and outstanding demonstrated potential for social change---- best "all-around." The MSW candidates are voted on by all School of Social Work faculty in a first round, followed by a second round of voting by MSW full-time faculty.
OUTSTANDING MSW GRADUATE 1 YEAR ADVANCED STANDING
Winners: Octavia Burch, Matthew Cyr, and Phoebe Pruneda
Honorable Mentions: Alex Chipps, April R. Zahlman, Erika Walker, Michael Padgett, and Quez Austin
Nominees: Ava Frankel, Camille Suitt, Catherine Jimenez, Emily Small, Falena Salcedo, Jacob Moore, Jade Porter, Jenell White, Jennetta Randolph, Jessica Sykes, Olivia Garcia, Rob Sullivan, Tiffany Anuel, and Willow Garretson
OUTSTANDING MSW GRADUATE 2 YEAR
Winners: Delaney Welsh, Sara Leiva, and Tierra Durant
Honorable Mentions: Elijah Paul, Hallie Amat, Karlee Perry, Maria Navarro, Nashara Bynum, and Shelby Pringle
Nominees: Alena Kramer, Amy Koslick, Danielle Canaday, Emily Holtzclaw, Irma Gutierrez, Jemeriah Wilson, Jennifer Newman, KiShawn Pritchett, Leacie Holland, Parker Tompkins, and Sumina Shakya
OUTSTANDING MSW GRADUATE 3 YEAR DISTANCE EDUCATION
Winners: Arielle Conley and Amy Royal
Honorable Mentions: Caitlin Hubbard, Mary Orr Wilson, and Quincy Ridley
Nominees: Christian Suggs, Derick Pritchett, Haley Linker, Ivy Gray, Janice Charles, Jessica Castro-Vergara, Kelly Schnitzmeier, Rose Casey, Shaina Melcher, and Vivienne Walton Sejat
OUTSTANDING MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK AWARDS 2023
OUTSTANDING MSW GENERALIST FIELD STUDENT
Jamie McChesney - Transforming Youth Movement
OUTSTANDING MSW SPECIALIZED ONLINE FIELD STUDENT
Arielle Conley - Race and Social Equity Academy
OUTSTANDING MSW SPECIALIZED ON-CAMPUS FIELD STUDENT
Leacie Holland - Trauma Survivors Network (TSN) program at Atrium Health's Levine Children's Hospital
OUTSTANDING MSW GENERALIST FIELD INSTRUCTOR
Kurtis Carpenter - Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools
OUTSTANDING MSW ADVANCED STANDING FIELD INSTRUCTOR
Elyse Hamilton-Childres - Mecklenburg County Community Support Services
PROFESSOR OF THE YEAR IN TEACHING
Kevin Edwards-Knight
RESEARCH & SCHOLARSHIP
Dr. Sonyia Richardson
Honorable Mentions: Dr. Othelia Lee and Dr. Annelise Mennicke
SERVICE, ADVOCACY, & COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Dr. Sonyia Richardson and Professor Kevin Edwards-Knight
Honorable Mentions: Professor Josh McNeil and Professor Frances Ferrante-Fusilli
YEARS OF SERVICE
For nearly 50 years, moving from a concentration to a department, and now a School, the School of Social Work has produced strong social workers that contribute to our community and beyond. It is with great pleasure that we acknowledge those who continue to pour into our students and unit.
5 YEARS OF SERVICE
Dr. Tianca Crocker
Frances Ferrante-Fusilli
Dr. Travis Hales
Jacquelyn Garcia *
Lisa Gunter
10 YEARS OF SERVICE
Kevin Edwards-Knight * Dr. Sonyia Richardson *
Dr. Ticola Ross *
Candice Whiteside *
Lynn Puma
Diane Rashford
*Started as Adjunct Faculty
STAFF HIGHLIGHTS
"Our School of Social Work staff members are the absolute best! Many thanks to Janet, Cheryl, Keianna, and Cali for all they do to make our SSW an incredible place to work and collaborate. You all rock!! Nothing this unit does could happen without you." Read below for some submitted comments about our outstanding staff.
For All Staff Members
We could not do what we do as faculty without our incredible staff! We could not function without our staff!
Janet Baker
Janet is a huge support on various projects (such as hiring, grants, events, etc.) and is also kind and understanding.
Cheryl Whitley
Cheryl is a team player- always ready to help and assist the School and does it with a smile on her face.
Keianna Benson
Keianna jumped right into the School and has been making important connections with our students.
Cali Wickert
Cali is instrumental in the Field Office- always striving to help us improve and make the process of placing students efficiently.
2022-2023 Memories
2018 NC House of Representative, Christy Clark stopped by campus to speak to Professor Lynn Puma's SOWK 6242 Advocacy and Policy Change class about how advocacy and her passion impacted her desire to run for office
The School of Social Work hosted a Social Work Innovation Lab open house to welcome faculty and staff to the new VR equipment in March 2023 and demonstrate.
The Social of Social Work attended Advocacy Day at the NC Museum of History in Raleigh on March 1, 2023. This was an opportunity for students and faculty to advocate for themselves.
Our staff decorated the School of Social Work for Halloween in October 2022.
2022-2023 Memories
The School of Social Work hosted an end-of-year celebration for all BSW and MSW students. Students were able to grab snacks, fun fidget and social work gear, job information, and meet some of our faculty and staff members.
BSW students, Katherine Bolt and Heather Dodson, presented at the 2023 Undergraduate Research Conference on April 25, 2023, on Interagency Mental Health Collaborations under the direction of Dr. Ticola Ross.
BSW student Avangelyne "Angel" Padilla hosted a Disability Awareness Forum to bring together community members and organization leaders to discuss disability and accessibility within our communities and a call to action plan.
2022-2023 Memories
Clinical Assistant Professor and Field Placement Coordinator Frances Ferrante-Fusilli participated in the Active Learning Academy 2022-2023.
SSW Faculty, Dr. Sonyia Richardson, Mrs. Cali Wickert, Prof. Kevin Edwards-Knight, Prof. Candice Whiteside, Mrs. Janet Baker (not pictured), and Dr. Othelia Lee (not pictured) were recognized as CHHS Faculty and Staff Award winners.
2022-2023 Memories
BSW student Avangelyne (Angel) Padilla was honored with the UNC Charlotte Derrick Griffith Servant Leader Award. This is awarded to first-generation college students who have demonstrated leadership through service, commitment to mentorship, and involvement in student organizations and activities.
BSW honor students presented their project presentations in April 2023. Avangelyne (Angel) Padilla spoke on The Impact of Disability Services and Resources Provided by Correctional Facilities on Justice-involved Individuals with Disabilities and April Key Godfrey on The Impact of Social Support for Children in Foster Care.
The Charlotte Racial Justice Consortium Culminating Event celebrated its third year at Central Piedmont Community College in April 2023.
MSW student Kasey Srey presented her Reflection and Synthesis project on the Triple P-Positive Parenting Program.
2022-2023 Memories
VA MSW Interns Shelby Pringle, April R. Zahlman, Jacob Bee, and Rob Sullivan were celebrated during the VA End of Year Breakfast.
Faculty and Staff attended CSWE APM 2022 in Anaheim, California on Leading Critical Conversations: Human Rights are Global Rights
CHHS celebrated with a Faculty and Staff Winter Celebration in December 2022.
VA MSW Interns and Field Faculty and Staff during the VA End of Year Breakfast.
The
2022-2023 Memories
Atkins
hosted a special event showing off their new self-care collection
Faculty and Staff attended CSWE APM 2022 in Anaheim, California on Leading Critical Conversations: Human Rights are Global Rights
The SSW hosted a mini agency fair for graduating MSW students - April 2023
SSW Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni Celebrating DSS Interns - April 2023
SSW and
Library
May 8, 2023
THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR 2023 S.T.A.R.S. Monday,
