Alumni & Friends

Social workers and community members filled the Leon County Services Center on March 31st for the National Association of Social Workers of Florida’s (NASW-FL) Big Bend Unit’s 2016 Social Work Month Celebration and Award Ceremony. The festive celebration marked the closure of March, also Social Work Month, with the presentation of awards. Some very deserving social workers from the Big Bend area received recognition for their service to the field and the community.

The College of Social Work convocation ceremony took place on April 29, 2016 in the Oglesby Union Ballrooms, presided over by Dean Jim Clark. Student representative and MSW graduate Jasmine Haynes spoke on behalf of her fellow graduates offering four key lessons she learned during her time at FSU. Jasmine said in her speech:

“Number one, every experience in life is not going to be what we expect it to…and we should seek to make the best of each and every experience.

Terriyln Rivers-Cannon, MSW, Ed.D, School Social Worker for Atlanta Public School System and Founder and Chief Executive Officer of K.A.T.I.E. (Karing Actions Towards Inspiring Eagles) LLC, has been recognized with an Excellence Award as a Distinguished Professional in her field through Women of Distinction Magazine.  Terriyln Rivers-Cannon will be featured in an upcoming edition of the Women of Distinction Magazine in 2016.

FSU College of Social Work Development Director Colette Podgorski has been awarded The Tallahassee Network of Young Professionals’ “20 under 40” Golden A.C.E. Award for 2016 in the category of Non-Profit leadership.  The Tallahassee Network of Young Professionals selected finalists from more than 130 applications to recognize outstanding contributions to the community at the 2016 Golden A.C.E.

Counseling is critical in the aftermath of Orlando shootings

James Clark, dean of the College of Social Work at Florida State University, has been in Orlando where the state chapter of the National Association of Social Work is meeting. The setting puts him right in the middle of the aftermath of one of the worst cases of mass shootings in the country.

Beyond the criminal investigation, there is the huge responsibility to address the needs of the families affected by the 49 deaths.

While much has been made about the “blue wall of silence” among police officers, a new study found that police officers don’t turn a blind eye when other officers perpetrate domestic violence.

The first week of June 2016, twenty-two middle school aged youth participated in the fifth annual Arts & Athletic Camp sponsored by Florida State University College of Social Work at Florida State University. Five MSW students served as the camp counselors and worked with partners across the university to expose the youth to various forms of arts, activities, and sports in efforts to increase their self-esteem and confidence, thus promoting positive youth development.

Jim Clark is no stranger to dealing with high-stress, traumatic events.

Clark, who has served as the dean of Florida State University’s College of Social Work for about a year, lent his expertise in Orlando after the recent terrorist attack at the Pulse nightclub that devastated the LGBTQ community.

Katrina Boone, the director of field education for the FSU College of Social Work, has been appointed to a three-year term with the Council on Field Education, a group within the national Council of Social Work Education (CSWE).

American Addictions Center (AAC) announced the recipients of its 2016 Behavioral Health Academic Scholarship Program. Among the winners was FSU College of Social Work BSW student Samantha Ferrara (third place). Ferrara and second place winner, Patricia Francois an MSW student at Columbia University, will each receive $2,500. First place winner Rhonda Kelly, a master’s student in clinical mental health counseling at University of Colorado at Denver will receive $5,000.