News: Students
Our students excelled in their studies and served the community in 2020 and 2021
Best in the commonwealth
The School of Social Work’s John Gyourko (M.S.W.’20/SW) was named the 2020 M.S.W. Student of the Year by the Virginia chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.
Gyourko, who also received school recognition with the 2020 Elaine Rothenberg Social Work Award and the Service & Leadership Award, is now in the social welfare doctoral program at the University of Pennsylvania.
"To be counted among these inspiring social workers — it's truly humbling," Gyourko says of the student of the year award. "I'm grateful to have had strong support from VCU faculty and fellow students during my time in the M.S.W. Program. Along the way, my work was encouraged and empowered by many generous and dedicated people.” More details
Ph.D. Program accolades
Ph.D. student Sarah Lineberry was named a 2021 winner of the university’s Champions of Accessibility Award, one of only two students to earn the honor for exemplary work to create access and inclusion for people with all forms of dis/ability.
Ph.D. students Jennifer Murphy, Camie Tomlinson and Angela Matijczak were honored with outstanding submission awards as co-presenters of two posters at the university’s 2021 Graduate Research Symposium. The posters are based on papers in the Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research (in press) and the journal Youth and Society.
Matijczak led a study and was first author of an article featured on the cover of the the journal Behavioral Sciences in 2021. The project explored how social support from humans and comfort from companion animals can help LGBTQ+ young adults deal with microaggressions, and included Tomlinson and Murphy as co-authors.
Additional Ph.D. student publications included Mauricio P. Yabar in The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare; co-authors (with faculty) Tommy Buckley (Ph.D.’21/SW), Sunghwan Cho and Seon Kim in The Gerontologist; and Nicole George as co-author (with faculty) in the International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. More details
RAACE Fellowships
Six students were selected for the 2020-21 academic year as student fellows for the School of Social Work’s new Radical Alliance for Anti-Racism, Change and Equity (RAACE). The committee, which also includes full-time and adjunct faculty, staff and alumni, was formed to conduct a self-examination of oppression and anti-Blackness in the school.
The fellows represented the Association of Black Social Workers at VCU student organization and the school’s three academic programs. Selected fellows were Rebecca Davidsson, B.S.W. Program; Oscar Kemp, ABSW; Meghan Mallampati, M.S.W. Program; Jennifer Murphy, Ph.D. Program; Francesca Spencer, M.S.W. Program; and Ruth Tiguh, B.S.W. Program. More details
Child Welfare Stipend Program cohorts
The Child Welfare Stipend Program at VCU has produced 43 graduates in four years. The partnership with the Virginia Department of Social Services, funded through Title IV-E of the Social Security Act, provides specialized training and prepares social work students for a career in public child welfare.
“The CWSP at VCU gives students the opportunity to focus their social work education on engaging families, supporting children and fostering connections for families within the child welfare system,” says Naomi Sutton Reddish, the program coordinator at the School of Social Work.
The program has more than doubled from 14 total graduates in 2018 and 2019, expanding with 11 in 2020 and 18 in 2021. The latter included the first two B.S.W. graduates in program history.
“The CWSP provided opportunities for webinars, trainings and discussions that have given me a lot of knowledge to use in working with vulnerable populations who are child welfare-involved,” says graduate Angelica Gehlich (M.S.W.’21/SW). “I plan to take this knowledge and put it to use to challenge some of the injustices within intersecting systems.” Program details
Kicking it at Commencement
After a virtual Commencement in May 2020, the School of Social Work was determined to hold an in-person ceremony in 2021, even if that meant getting a little creative.
To accommodate nearly 300 graduates and as many guests as possible while staying within COVID-19 guidelines, the school turned to an outdoor venue, Richmond’s City Stadium – home to the local Richmond Kickers professional soccer club. Separate ceremonies were held for B.S.W. and M.S.W. graduates, with a smaller celebration for Ph.D. graduates at a separate venue.
In total, 296 degrees were awarded, including August 2021 graduates: six Ph.D., 183 M.S.W. and 107 B.S.W. Including some graduates who were multiple winners or recipients, here is a breakdown of graduate honors:
- Ph.D. honors, awards, scholarships and assistantships: 16
- M.S.W. honors, awards, scholarships and stipends: 88
- M.S.W. certificates and certifications: 31
- B.S.W. honors, awards, scholarships and stipends: 24
- B.S.W. honor designations: seven summa cum laude graduates (3.9-4.0 GPA); 20 magna cum laude (3.6-3.89 GPA); 26 cum laude (3.3-3.59 GPA)
“I want to remind you that as newly minted social workers, you are the light that the world needs right now,” Dean Beth Angell, Ph.D., told graduates. “It gives me and all of our school community hope to know that you will bring your knowledge, capacity for critical thinking and problem-solving, and hunger for social justice into the world to work on behalf of individuals, families and communities that have endured and lost so much over the past year.”
Below is a gallery of photos from the two ceremonies.
