Personal Accomplishments

Social work is a career that finds and chooses you, rather than you selecting it. Social work has always been an immense portion of my life even when I had no recollection of what social work entailed. My life revolved around so many situations that had a social worker stepped in, my life would be totally different than it is today. Many individuals and agencies lack the compassion and empathy for oppressed people. Having been in many circumstances, has given me the experience and background that influenced me to go into social work, as well as the understanding of my role and responsibilities that I will assume as a professional social worker, and my reasons for selecting the program at ASU School of Social Work and thoughts on how the Mission Statement addresses my career goals.

Explain how you became interested in social work and why you chose social work as a major.

My passion for social work originated in my senior year of undergraduate school. During my senior, year my single, adoptive mother had passed. A couple of months following her death, I found myself homeless. I had just turned 18 and I was a jobless high school student sleeping from couch to couch. During this time of my life there was one individual who supported me. The high school social worker was a strong support for me. I didn’t have any family support and thus fell on hard times. A college professor once told me that people who choose social work as a major do it because that had someone in their life who influenced them to become a social worker. If that person wasn’t in my life, my personal growth would have differed completely. It was at this point that I realized it only takes one caring individual to hugely impact someone 's life for the better. To be that person to someone else is my highest aspiration in life.

My family are like branches on a tree, we all grow in different directions, at different paces but our roots will always run deep. Family will always come first to me, above all else; coming from a home with no father, the only father figure i had was my grandfather, to me family is so important because it is who we come from. Family

I can say that being a social worker was never in my plans. I started from Liberal Arts, because I wasn’t decided on my career choice. I took almost all courses, when I got an advice from one of my friends to try Health Information Technology. I gave it a chance and I didn’t realize how time flied by and I graduated. My dream always was to work with children. When I graduated and took my internship, that was the time, when I understood that I made the wrong choice. I needed to search for another career, because I understood, that it would not be what I meant. My father is physical therapist and he gave me and advice to think and to do some research about Social Worker. This time, I did the most research that I could, in order to not repeat my mistake again. I instantly knew, that this what I needed. All over the world, there is and will always be abuse. That’s the reality of it, but now I’m studying for Social Worker here at Lehman College, because I would like to be working toward changing a child’s reality one day, I am changing my knowledge every time I come to class, and changing my life one step at a time. I believe that it all starts with me, and while I may not be able to save the whole world, I will be able to save and help at least small part of it. I currently work in the family practice as a receptionist. My best days are those when I able to help people and provide them with all the information needed. Every day is different.

As I continue with social work, I developed an interest working with children and youth in a school setting. Eventually, I switched my major and was probably the toughest decision I had to make. Studying social work as an undergrad at Humboldt State helped me find who I am and what I want to become. I found a sense of belonging by developing a perspective of my own struggles while growing up. I realize how common systemic oppression affects not only me, but everyone around me. Understanding systemic issues, knowing the barriers that people face first hand, encourages me to want to work hard to fight against inequality.

My greatest professional accomplishment was when I exceeded the sales quota my first week selling for TruGreen. It was not only my first week in the field selling lawn care service but it was promotion week: this is when all the branches compete against one another to sell the most packages. I wanted to prove that I had what it took even though I was new to the team.

Before I knew exactly what the social work profession consisted of, I knew I wanted a career that focused on helping others. I explored options including medical and nursing fields, but they did not fit what I was destined for. It was not until I began working in a mental health office for a Licensed Independent Social Worker and a Prescribing Psychologist, that I knew the social work field was for me. It was during that job three years ago when I learned the social work profession and its core values consist of helping others achieve the best life possible with what they have. It is seeing the possibilities that others do not see and assisting individuals in navigating through them with patience and perseverance. The social work

I chose social working as my career because many other people go through tough situations and have a difficult time talking to relatives or friends to help them through a tough situation. I thought of becoming a social worker so I can have the ability to change the lives of others. Social work is one of those careers you can truly make a difference in people’s lives. I want to become a social worker because life isn’t about just helping yourself it’s about helping others as well, which is what social workers do for a living. Child and family social workers protect children and families in need of assistance. Many families and children don’t feel comfortable talking to just anyone about obstacles they have faced in their lives which is why

Throughout my career when I've been asked about the biggest accomplishments I'll often say that I wished I'd acted on the important things faster.

There are many areas in social work, but the one I plan to study for is child and family social work. The child and family social worker’s job is to protect children and help families in need. For example, they may help families apply for food stamps, affordable or even free child care and so on. Social workers must step in when they found out if a child is being abused or in danger of being mistreated.

Social Work is a field of interest to me because of the positive effort it contributes to society. Within the social work profession individuals are striving to improve the welfare of those in need of assistance. Social Workers assist a variety of individuals; from children, young adolescents, older adults, mentally ill, substance abuse individuals, and many other minorities; as in LGBT members, veterans, homeless people, and low socioeconomic status individuals. The broad mix population fascinates me because within this field one will always be able to work in a flexible environment. Social Work is used in multiple settings as in hospitals, nursing skilled homes, mental health and substance abuse clinics, schools, correctional facilities, community centers, child welfare agencies, employee assistance programs, and private practices.

In FY 15, my personal and team accomplishments have demonstrated excellent competencies in communication, customer service, representing the agency, teamwork and cooperation, technical proficiency, leadership and managerial proficiency. I provided excellent quality customer service, contributed and met USCIS mission through collaboration with team members, staff from multiple directorates and within OP&S. I provided critical leadership and management to IFRET members; generated a positive and productive work environment to allow effective communication between team members, RED chiefs, relevant OP&S staff and external stakeholders to ensure IFRET’s work products met USCIS highest standards. I reviewed, planned, coached, facilitated and collaborated on multiples work products with team members and supervised the work of contractors. Many products involved multiple reviews and collaborations efforts. In particular, the final JBS report, required continual and excellent communication with and collaborations from contractors, stakeholders and staff to complete the final product on time and within budget. In sum, I have successful managed and led the team to complete projects and activities outlined by the three-year strategic plan that met agency’s missions and goals. My FY15 accomplishments and selected activities are listed below.

Also, in my past there has been instances that have drawn me to the field of social work. I have had a few family members who have had several different issues dealing with drugs, abuse, and their children being placed in foster care. In one case I took one of the children into my home and my parents took three children into their home. Every family has some different situations, but these incidents have opened my eyes to many new things. This is one of the reasons I feel social work would be a good fit for me. I enjoy helping others build themselves up and make a better life for them and their families. It is a blessing to be part of a team who helps families, children, and groups in need. Helping children get out of bad situations is one of the most rewarding jobs you could ever have in life.

One of the greatest pieces of advice that I have received is that if you do something that you love, you will never work a day in your life. It took me changing my major three times to find what I am truly passionate about. After I changed my major to child and family studies I enjoyed learning everyday and applying what I learned from class into the real world. The knowledge that I obtained through my classes assisted me through my experiences as a nanny, a student worker for the department of child and family studies at Tarleton, and lastly through my internship at Gladney Center for Adoption this past summer. I had thought about pursuing a MSW since I switched to child and family studies. The few social work classes I was enrolled in have been some of my favorite material. Ultimately my internship through Gladney and my passion for adoption led to my final decision to pursue a masters in social work.