Alumni & Friends

Florida Institute for Child Welfare Director at FSU to Join National Advisory Board

Jessica Pryce, the director of the Florida Institute for Child Welfare at Florida State University, has been appointed to the advisory board of the National Child Welfare Workforce Institute

The board is a nationally representative panel for expert consultation that guides the development and effectiveness of child welfare professionals. Board members will serve through September 2023 and meet three times a year. 

FSU Social Work Development Director and Dean Emeritus Honored During National Philanthropy Day

The Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare Foundation along with the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Big Bend Chapter celebrated National Philanthropy Day on Thursday, February 22nd at the FSU University Club.

Each year, Philanthropy Day pays tribute to the generous contributions philanthropists and those active in the charitable sector have made in the Big Bend area and their communities.

Social Work Students Lend a Hand with Post-Hurricane Michael Relief

My friend and fellow MSW Student Savannah Pierce was at a doctor’s appointment when her nurse started talking about her family in Bay County lost everything during Hurricane Michael and were feeling the cold now that the temperature was dropping in the area. 

She texted me about it and we realized we had not even considered how the winter weather would affect those impacted by the storm that hit the Gulf Coast in October 2018. We decided to do something about it. 

Poverty in America Conference Brings Experts to FSU

Poverty may be the most troubling and complex social problems we face. According to the World Bank, more than 768.5 billion people were experiencing poverty around the world in 2017. Despite being one of the richest countries in the world, the United States is home to around 40 million people in poverty. 

The Florida State University College of Social Work will host a daylong conference that examines the challenges of poverty and ways that they can be addressed.

FSU Alumni Named Director of Center that Assists Blind Older Individuals

The National Research and Training Center on Blindness and Low Vision at Mississippi State University named Sylvia Stinson-Perez as the new director of the Older Individuals who are Blind Technical Assistance Center.

Stinson-Perez has more than 20 years of experience in the field of vision rehabilitation and five years in higher education. She received her MSW (1993) and BSW (1991) along with a Master's degree (2010) in education witha specialization on visual disabilities at Florida State University. She assumes her new leadership role Monday, Jan. 7.

Alumna answers the call for help in times of crises

Alumna Machelle Madsen Thompson is known at the FSU College of Social Work, where she is a researcher and adjunct professor, and in the local community for her multi-faceted community outreach and advocacy. This fall, Dr. Thompson was on the front line for two major events in the Tallahassee area, assisting with recovery after both Hurricane Michael and the mass shooting at a yoga studio in Tallahassee, Florida.