Alumni & Friends

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.

The Florida Institute for Child Welfare (FICW, Institute) was created in June 2014 to conduct research, policy analysis, and program evaluation of child protection and child welfare services. In November 2016, the FICW introduced its new website, http://ficw.fsu.edu/, to assist child welfare policymakers and stakeholders access current research.

A group of FSU College of Social Work students and faculty enjoyed a transdisciplinary conversation and seminar on the topic of hate. Dr. Lawrence (Larry) J. Friedman, currently a teacher at Harvard University and an emeritus professor of history and philanthropic studies from Indiana University, led the discussion.  Dr.

Florida State University College of Social Work’s best and brightest gathered Thursday, Sept. 29 for an evening celebrating five distinguished graduates for their significant accomplishments and contributions to the field of social work. Sixty-five social work scholarship recipients also were honored for their academic achievement.

Coercive practices and treatments in social services are common but seldom subjects of critical public discussion. Florida State University is changing the conversation by taking a look at the pros and cons of coercive approaches in the helping professions and institutions relevant to students, academics, local and state government, private agency professionals, clinicians and interested citizens.

Dr. Leah Cheatham, a recent alumna of the FSU College of Social Work doctoral program wrote about her mentor and major professor Dr. Karen Randolph that, “through the six years I have worked closely with Dr. Karen Randolph, I have witnessed her continual commitment to promotion and elevation of women’s scholarship and teaching in social work academia.” Dr. Randolph and mentors from other schools of social work around the country were recognized and honored for such contributions at the 2016 Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Annual Program Meeting.

Stephanie Grace Prost, doctoral candidate at the FSU College of Social Work recently received the Group for the Advancement of Doctoral Education in Social Work’s (GADE) 2017 Student Award for Social Work Research. This recognition is provided to a doctoral student or a group of doctoral students whose in-press or published scholarship advances scientific inquiry in social work or social welfare. The scholarly research should serve as a model for scientific rigor and show high potential to impact social work practice, policy, and research.