6 minute read
Advancement Impact
Social Work Degree Opens Doors to Many Opportunities
For Hilary Hamlin (MSSW’76) a social work degree opened the door to opportunities she had never anticipated. “We need to educate people about how useful an MSSW degree can be, and how many areas they can work in,” Hamlin said. “The sky’s the limit. I happened to stay in health care, but the skills are very broad.” During the course of her career, Hamlin worked at community mental health centers, state departments of mental health, and a software company developing systems for mental health service providers. Her professional achievements led to acceptance in the prestigious Kennedy School of Government’s mid-career program, where she received a Master’s in Public Administration. For the past 25 years, she has been a consultant with Health Care Perspectives. The firm works with non-profits, large counties, and states to analyze behavioral health care systems, identify gaps and help determine solutions. “Every day is different,” Hamlin explained. “One day you are showing a case manager how to use a computer system or how to do documentation. The next day you may be advising the state commissioner on a policy issue.” She credits the UT graduate social work program for the foundation of her 46-year long career. “It was a very positive experience, and everything else was built on that,” she said. Hamlin recalls her field placements at Montgomery Village and Child and Family Services in Knoxville as key elements in her learning. “For me, having been both a VISTA volunteer and having worked in a number of poverty programs in the summer, getting to do the volume and quality of hands-on field work in a variety of settings was an essential partner to the classroom work,” she said. Though her professional experience has focused on organizations providing mental health services, Hamlin acknowledges her clinical training has been invaluable. “Clinical grounding is critical,” she stated. “If I’m consulting with a mental health center or a foster care agency, I understand the terminology and the kind of issues people there are dealing with. It has been a great value to me both as an employee and as a consultant.” After years of living far from Tennessee, a move to Atlanta gave Hamlin an opportunity to engage again with the college and visit the campus. In 2016, she was invited to join the Board of Visitors. Last December, she was elected board chair. “It’s really exciting to see what’s happening with the college and to be involved in this way,” she said. Hamlin’s experience working across the country underlines the importance of social work education. “The longer I’ve worked in mental health, the more I see the need for social workers in the field,” she explained. “I run into workforce issues wherever I turn. The more we can educate and support graduate social work students, the better.” Her appreciation for the importance of social work education The longer I’ve worked in mental inspired Hamlin to include the college in her estate plans. A generous bequest will create the Hilary Hamlin Endowed Graduate health, the more I see the need Fellowship. The gift will support students in the MSSW program. for social workers in the field.” “An MSSW just opens up so many doors,” Hamlin said. “You can do a huge range of things. I hope that more people can take — Hilary Hamlin advantage of that opportunity.”
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Sula Inklebarger and her son Steve on his UT graduation day in 1975 Sula received her MSSW from UT in 1964
— Lynn Inklebarger Barnes
A SCHOLARSHIP
with a Great Back Story
There’s a story behind the William Steven Inklebarger Scholarship. It’s a story of courage and determination and the power of education to change lives. Above all, it is the story of a family’s legacy and their proud tradition of service.
The scholarship is named for Captain William Steven Inklebarger (BS ’75), who attended UT on an ROTC scholarship, served in the U.S. Army, and became a rescue helicopter pilot. He died while co-piloting a medical rescue mission in Colorado in 1982.
Following Steve’s tragic death, friends and family established the scholarship in his memory. It supports students in the College of Social Work who are either veterans or planning to enter military service, or students who plan to work in rural Appalachia.
Sula Inklebarger (BS’46, MSSW ’64), Steve’s mother, was a social worker for more than 30 years. The first in her family to attend college, she grew up during the Depression. Her father’s job with the Clinchfield Railway meant that the family moved often, eventually settling in Erwin, Tennessee. Sula graduated from UT with a degree in business and worked in accounting before becoming a case manager for the state welfare department. She went on to receive her Master’s degree in social work in 1964 and held supervisory positions in human services until her retirement in 1988.
Sula was a loyal alumna of the college, regularly attending the annual gala and enjoying football games with other alumni and friends. One of her joys was meeting the students who received the Inklebarger Scholarship. Always eager to hear about their field placements and their plans for the future, she shared stories of her son and daughter and their service to others. Sula died at 94 in 2020.
Lynn Inklebarger Barnes (BS’72), Sula’s daughter and Steve’s older sister, taught middle school for 26 years. For more than two decades, she volunteered with the Appalachian Service Project at Cokesbury United Methodist Church. Lynn led groups of local high school students to rural communities where they did home repair. “The goal was to make houses warmer, safer and dryer,” she explained. “We went back in the hollers in Southwest Virginia and Kentucky. We repaired a lot of porches and learned how to do roofs and mud and tape and painting. It was life-changing for the kids in our group. They got to know the families there and to accept people right where they are.”
The family tradition of service continued with Lynn’s son, Steven Barnes (BA ‘06). “I named him for my brother,” Lynn said. “He spent 20 years in the Air National Guard and served in Afghanistan and Iraq.”
Like her mother, Lynn looks forward to meeting the students who benefit from the Inklebarger Scholarship. “Our little family’s philanthropy is about honoring Steve’s memory, and supporting social work students in the military and those working in rural areas,” she said. “Steve was just such a good guy. I went to his 50th high school reunion last year, and everyone had a Steve story for me. I tell Steve stories to my children and my grandchildren. I show them his picture. He died a hero, doing what he loved, trying to save the life of another person.”
It’s a story worth telling.
Sula and her daughter Lynn Inklebarger Barnes B.S. ‘72
