News Archive
Students
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Program will be offered by the newly created Department of Nursing
The USC School of Social Work announced today plans to develop an online Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) for aspiring family nurse practitioners (FNPs). Program graduates will help meet the increasing nationwide demand for advanced practice nurses in primary care settings.
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The USC School of Social Work established the first social work doctoral program in the western United States in 1953, and today continues the tradition of educating highly motivated, self-directed individuals interested in a career in research and teaching.
This year's four PhD graduates have studied topics as varied as HIV prevention among the homeless to health outcomes among older adults in rural China. One newly minted PhD, Weiyu Mao, is the first student to graduate from the School of Social Work's joint MSW/PhD program.
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Home for Oralia Catalan used to be a makeshift house under a bridge in the North Bay. She bathed in the nearby river and did homework by candlelight. Often, she and her siblings would take home extra milk and fruits from their school lunches to eat for dinner. This was her reality for more than 10 years.
“I spent my life in survival mode,” she recalled. “I knew that as a child, if I continued to live this way, I wouldn’t be able to help my family. … I would focus on how I was going to survive and how I was going to change the course of my life.”
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Navigating the child welfare system in Los Angeles County can be difficult – and that’s putting it lightly. Not only do families have to meet certain benchmarks, but they have to do so by figuring out where and how best to receive certain social services, much on their own.
For the social workers helping these families, the process can be just as tough. Unless a social worker has had experience on both the government and community agency sides, fully understanding what these people go through is unlikely.
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Graduate students from the USC Price School of Public Policy and the USC School of Social Work partnered to organize the first Students of Color and Allies Policy Forum, which examined policy, planning, development and social work issues within the context of race, ethnicity, class and social justice.
More than 70 USC Price and social work students came together to discuss how to address racial and social justice issues in their fields. In addition to sharing their own experiences, the students heard from academic and community experts at the half-day event.
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There is no universal way to support student veterans with mental health issues but, generally speaking, providing a safe environment on college and university campuses has proven effective.
That information, along with highlighting specific transition challenges and military stigmas, was presented during a USC conference aimed at supporting college and university students with mental illness.
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For Janessa Hatch, being a Trojan meant she never had to miss a class, despite moving with her family from Utah to Georgia and then Alaska.
Hatch is working toward her USC master’s degree in social work online. The program boasts the largest enrollment — 1,900 current students — of USC’s online offerings.
“It was an opportunity to attend live classes from a top social work program from virtually anywhere,” said Hatch, whose husband is in the military. Hatch has worked with refugees in Salt Lake City and provided services in Haiti after the devastating 2010 earthquake.
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What do you get when you combine music, medicine and social work? A trip to Canada in June.
At least, USC Master of Social Work student Friday Lilly does. Lilly holds the distinction of being the only social work student to be presenting at the 3rd International Conference of the International Association for Music & Medicine (IAMM) in Toronto to be held from June 24-27. Along with USC School of Social Work Clinical Professor Murali Nair, Lilly will be presenting a proposal to use traditional Indian music to help relieve anxiety in patients undergoing chemotherapy.
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Cynthia Lemus knows what it’s like to care for an ill, elderly family member. The emotional, physical and financial toll can be nearly unbearable.
“My grandma was really ill, and I didn’t like to see her like that,” said Lemus, an 18-year-old high school senior. “While taking care of her with my mom, I realized that other families [in my community] also go through this, or worse, and I wanted to be someone in their lives to help them out and let them know they’re not alone.”
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With a knee injury during deployment ending her dreams of a long career in law enforcement and the military, Master of Social Work student RanDee McLain decided to give back to her fellow veterans by pursuing a career in social work.
To that end, McLain has been involved in more than 21 military-related events and organizations in just two years at the USC School of Social Work. In recognition of her tireless work, McLain has been honored as the 2013-2014 Veteran of the Year by the San Diego Veterans Museum and Memorial Center.