Job Title: Director of Psychological Health
161st Air Refueling Wing
Location: Phoenix, Arizona 

“My motivation to become a social worker started as an admissions counselor at UofSC.  My job focused on traveling and recruiting students, and one of my trips was to a rural South Carolina high school. I met with some upperclassmen and listened to their interests and plans after high school. Meeting with guidance counselors and reviewing some of the SAT/ACT scores sparked the thought of why there was such a disparity in test scores, including top performing students, compared to other, perhaps more prominent schools in close proximity. Having surface knowledge of socioeconomic disparities, I wanted to not only know more, but be better positioned to be a change agent. Social Work was the best way to accomplish this. 

My MSW degree led me to doing some interesting and fulfilling things: conducting research focused on foster children with the Duke Endowment and North Carolina Department of Social Services; conducting research and providing treatment in a substance abuse setting with the U.S. Air Force; and my current position as the director of psychological health for national guardsmen in Arizona. 

All of these opportunities proved that social workers are essential, and this continues to be evident as we face societal disparities and the fallout from the pandemic.”