ALUMNI-DONOR EXCELLENCE
‘Empowered to grow’
Being recognized by his alma mater in 2024 with the Ph.D. Program’s Making a Difference Alumni Award was “the feeling you may have by seeing a parent smile at you with pride,” says alum David McLeod (Ph.D.’13). He serves as the interim director of social work at the University of Oklahoma.
As he transitioned from law enforcement to academia, VCU “empowered me to grow from a place that was truly mine.” He continues to focus his work on reducing violence, building on his career as a detective, SWAT operator, criminologist and forensic social worker. “My time at VCU was one of the most important periods of growth in my life.”
‘Expert troublemaker’
Alum Kim Young (M.S.W.’13), LCSW, is a self-proclaimed “expert troublemaker,” making a career out of creating “good trouble” like the late U.S. Congressman John Lewis. In 2023, VCU named her one of its 10 Under 10 alumni award recipients.
Young is director of programs at Richmond’s Hive youth organization and founder of the Dope Black Social Worker, where she leads workshops and speaks to groups about social work, mental health and youth development. “As a social worker, you can sit with somebody when they’re in the depths of their pain and stay with them until they get to the other side of it,” she says. “There’s nothing like that.”
Top of their field
Chaniqua Jones
Ray Spicer
Taylor Easley
Nicole Durose
Two alumni were honored as VCU’s Office of Field Education handed out its annual Community Partner Awards in the spring. Chaniqua Jones (M.S.W.’19) of Richmond Behavioral Health was named Outstanding New Field Instructor, and Ray Spicer (M.S.W.’82) of Hopewell Department of Social Services won the Amy Rosenblum Field Instructor Award.
Two other alumni spoke as their employer, the disAbility Law Center of Virginia, was named Outstanding Community Partner: Taylor Easley (B.S.W.’19; M.S.W.’22) and Nicole Durose (B.S.W.’09; M.S.W.’13). “What really, really makes a good social worker is having that foundation in field,” Easley says.
Stylish social workers
Congratulations to three alumni featured in Style Weekly’s Top 40 Under 40 Class of 2023. The honors continue a trend of recognition for School of Social Work graduates being recognized in the Richmond publication – 24 since 2005.
- Jennifer Case (M.S.W.’10), executive director, Virginia Down Syndrome Association
- Abbey Philips (M.S.W.’12), director of policy, Legal Aid Justice Center
- Anna Yates (M.S.W.’12), licensed clinical social worker, Thriveworks
Odds-on favorite
Alum Ronnie Sidney II (M.S.W.'14), an author-therapist and motivational speaker, served as the keynote speaker at VCU's Accessibility Achievement Ceremony in May, one of the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs’ Cultural Achievement Ceremonies. The accessibility ceremony celebrates undergraduate and graduate degree candidates with disabilities.
The occasion marked a full-circle moment for Sidney. In 2015, he published “Nelson Beats the Odds,” a graphic novel that tells the story of Nelson – based loosely on Sidney – who is diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. He is placed in special education and then graduates at the top of his class, giving a speech at the commencement ceremony.
“It’s a fictional book [but also] semi-autobiographical, sort of symbolizing me giving a graduation speech at VCU," Sidney says. "So to have an opportunity to speak to students with disabilities and share my story when my original goal with the book was to encourage more students to apply to college and attend, it’s a 360 [degree] moment.”
Marching to the social work beat
Social Work Month in March 2024 was caffeine-fueled, myth-busting and health-focused. The School of Social Work celebrated with three events: Coffee & Conversations at Buna Kurs Ethiopian Cafe in Richmond; Beyond the Micro: Myth, Realities and Opportunities in Social Work; and Social Work, Policy & Politics: Exploring Social Determinants of Health. Throughout the month, the school featured alumni on its social media channels. Alumni who participated on panels or were highlighted online were:
- Melissa Assalone (M.S.W.'15)
- Qasarah Bey Spencer, Ed.D. (M.S.W.'08)
- Allison Gilbreath (B.S.’11; M.S.W.’16)
- Patricia Evelyn Green (M.S.W.’74)
- Yusuf Harden (M.S.W.'18)
- Jericia Johnson (B.S.W.'17), M.Ed., LPC
- Fred Karnas (M.S.W.’76)
- Karen Kimsey (M.S.W.’96)
- Jackie Lawrence (B.S.W.’16; M.S.W.’17)
- Kirstin Lennox (B.S.W.'11; M.S.W.'16)
- Sharron McDaniel (B.S.W.'17)
- Rachael Randall (M.S.W.’19)
- Lourdes Sandoval (M.S.W.’23)
- Erika Schmale (M.S.W.'12)
- Fatima Smith (M.S.W.'12)
- Ashley Waddell (B.S.W.'15; M.S.W.'16)
- Chrissy Wengloski (M.S.W.’17)
- Kim Young (M.S.W.'13), LCSW)
- Alexa Zafarana (M.S.W.’18)
Coffee and Conversations at Buna Kurs Ethiopian Cafe
Donor excellence
Supporting students focused on mental health
With a career devoted to clinical social work and social work education, it’s no surprise alum Rosemary Farmer (Ph.D.'93) would focus her philanthropy on helping students follow in her footsteps and pursue internships and employment in the public sector.
Along with her husband, they have established the Drs. Rosemary L. and David J. Farmer Public Mental Health Scholarship at the VCU School of Social Work – with an emphasis on public. Their initial gift lays the foundation for financial support for Master of Social Work students once the endowment is fully funded from additional donations.
“All of my education, from grammar school through my Ph.D., has been in public schools. I’m a public lady,” Farmer, a full-time social work faculty member from 1993 to 2014, says with a laugh. “And it’s been wonderful.”
A gift with a water view
Alum Keita Franklin (Ph.D.’10) has turned her Lake Anna, Va., vacation home into a unique gift, loaning it for a weekend to the school’s third- and fourth-year doctoral students for an annual writing retreat. Students balance working on qualifying papers and dissertations with a catered dinner and a boat ride.
“To bring people together during that time might serve as a way to increase peer support and give you some time with like-minded folks who are also in the same boat as you,” Franklin says, blending the figurative and literal.
VCU Giving Day
Thank you to the school’s many supporters who helped generate a record $16,960 for the Pay It Forward Fund.