The Macro Social Work Mentor

Patricia J. Britt was appointed, unanimously, by Cleveland City Council, as City Clerk, Clerk of Council on January 14, 2008.  As Clerk of Council, Britt is the Chief Administrative Officer of the Office of Cleveland City Council.  In order to enable the work in Council, Britt is responsible for overseeing Cleveland City Council’s Staff in the creation of policies and procedures, media relations,...

My interview today is with Judy Verduzco, Public Counsel’s Director of Social Work. Public Counsel is a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to advancing civil rights and racial and economic justice.  In this position, she leads Public Counsel’s efforts to nurture a trauma-informed and client-centered culture throughout the organization.  We will be talking about her work with Public Couns...

Dr. Joan Zlotnik has focused on strengthening the bridges between research, practice, policy and education. She worked for three national social work organizations between 1987 and 2018. From 2009 to 2015 she  directed NASW’s Social Work Policy Institute, and served as the executive director of the Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research from 2000 to 2009. Dr. Zlotnik is an internati...

Episode 5 is my interview with Heather Bradley-Geary. Bradley-Geary is the Director of Supportive Housing for The Vecino Group.  Since 2014, Vecino Group has developed 29 supportive housing communities in 10 states, ending homelessness for 750 households annually.   Prior to her work at Vecino Group, Bradley-Geary worked at Missouri Housing Development Commission (MHDC).  While at MHDC, Bradley-Ge...

Today, I have three guests who will be discussing their work in social innovation and social entrepreneurship. Dr. Gokul Mandayam:  Dr. Gokul Mandayam, is a macro practice faculty member in the MSW Program at the Rhode Island College School of Social Work. Prior to that he worked with the University at Buffalo School of Social Work (UBSSW) and was affiliated with the school’s interdisciplinary soc...

We will be talking about Artificial Intelligence or AI and Social Work on this episode of the Macro Social Work Mentor. Dr. Marina Badillo-Diaz is an experienced school administrator and counseling director with a demonstrated history of working in community mental health and in education as a social worker. Currently, Dr. Badillo-Diaz is a consultant focusing on the training of educators and soci...

Dr. Lakeya Cherry is a Partner at Evolution and an executive leadership coach who has dedicated her career to the growth and development of individuals and the organizations they are a part of, and she is the former Chief Executive Officer of The Network for Social Work Management. She also serves as a Commissioner on the City of San Diego Commission on the Status of Women, which helps to address...

Ahmanise is currently a counselor working with the foster, homeless, and juvenile justice students in LAUSD. Prior to that, she established the foundation of her social work career in the mental health department of the LA County jail system. She is also a community organizer and cofounder of Westside Activists, Regional Director of NASW-California chapter, an executive board member and Delegate f...

Dr. Wehrmann resides in Champaign, Illinois. She has deep roots in this community after living there for over forty years. She loves its diversity as a university community as well as the wide range of cultural opportunities it offers. She received both her MSW and Ph. D. from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. She is retired from Illinois State University, School of Social Work after...

Anjanette Young is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and graduate of Jane Addams School of Social Work at The University of Illinois Chicago. She obtained a master’s degree in clinical social work with a special interest in Mental Health with individuals and families. Anjanette has worked in the profession for over 26 years and her passion for people and her professional ethics is rooted in her DN...

David Perez is the first social worker hired directly by a public library in the state of New Jersey. He served ten years in the U.S. Army, over fifteen years in healthcare business, and he has been a library social worker at the Long Branch Free Public Library (LBFPL) since 2015. He received his Master of Social Work with a concentration in International and Community Development from Monmouth Un...

Marla Blunt-Carter is an accomplished Associate Professor of Professional Practice at Rutgers University School of Social Work in New Brunswick, NJ, with a deep interest in social policy, community organizing, advocacy, and political social work. Professor Blunt-Carter earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Delaware, and a Master of Social Work degree from Rutgers...

Along with my new segment, "This Doesn't Just Happen!", you can listen to my interview with Valerie Arendt. Valerie is the Executive Director of the National Association of Social Workers North Carolina (NASW-NC), where she leads the association’s efforts to advance the profession of social work in North Carolina. She is a registered lobbyist and actively lobbies North Carolina lawmakers on behalf...

Fatima Salman is a macro social worker and community organizer. She is part of the ENGAGE team at the University of Michigan School of Social Work, and she is the Project Manager for the Employment Equity Action and Learning Collaborative, a collaborative of 65+ stakeholders working in Detroit, MI. She currently is the President of the NASW Michigan chapter, is also the Chairperson of the NASW Cou...

Coy Stout is senior vice president and head of patient advocacy and policy at Brii Biosciences, a small biotechnology company focused on advancing treatments and cures for diseases with high public health burden and social stigmas. At Brii Bio, Coy works with patients and advocates to connect the patient journey to drug development and to support efforts to increase awareness and education about i...

Dr. Manalo interviews Sabrina Gillan, MSW, a strategic social justice advocate who specializes in policies that alleviate human suffering. She currently serves as the Chief Strategic Partnership Officer for Brilliant Corners, a supportive housing agency focusing on Californians exiting institutionalization or chronic homelessness. In this role she is responsible for fund development, government af...

In this episode, I interview Deborah Son, MSW, Director of the Family Violence Appellate Project in Oakland, California. Deborah was formerly the Executive Director for the National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter, where we met and worked together. Deborah shares her journey to macro practice, as a woman of color, and what she has learned about macro social work practice. She wil...