Alum Spotlight

The School of Social Welfare commemorates the extraordinary life of alum Leslie Hartrich Leighninger (1943-2024).(link is external)

Dr. Leighninger was recently honored as a...Read more about In Memoriam: Leslie Hartrich Leighninger (DSW, '81)

Currently Professor and Associate Dean of Research and Faculty Development at the Ohio State University College of Social Work, her areas of expertise include child abuse and neglect, drug and alcohol use, drug distribution systems, geographic information systems...Read more about 2022 Berkeley Social Welfare Distinguished Alumni Awards

Next week, Jessica Scortt will open the doors of the Self-i.s.h. Society, a nonprofit that will operate as both a hair salon and resource hub in Oakland.

Her business description explains, "We believe that there is power in the comfort and communication that takes place in...Read more about Meeting people where they are: Jessica Scortt (MSW '21) launches the Self-i.s.h. Society

“I knew I was going to be advocating for unpopular causes and disenfranchised communities,” explains Dylan de Kervor (MSW/JD ‘09), “so I wanted a law degree for the teeth and a social welfare degree for the heart.”

She attributes this commitment...Read more about Situated social work: Dylan Nicole de Kervor (MSW/JD ‘09) at the intersection of social work and federal legislation

New York Mayor Eric Adams has appointed Jess Dannhauser, the former CEO of major child welfare provider Graham Windham, to serve as...Read more about Jess Dannhauser (MSW '03) appointed to lead New York City's child welfare and juvenile justice systems

Sunday, October 17, 2021 marked the induction ceremony for the California Social Work Hall of Distinction, which recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to social work and social welfare in California.

This year's inductees were:

Initially active from 1989 to 2010, the Distinguished Alumni Award is being relaunched this year by the School of Social Welfare with support from the...Read more about Berkeley Social Welfare Distinguished Alumni Award: 2021 Honorees

Not long after graduating with an MSW in 1968, alum Ruth A. Davis picketed in front of Sproul Hall to advocate for the creation of a Black Studies department. She then set down her sign, headed to SFO, and boarded a plane to Washington DC to begin a long and illustrious career in the U.S....Read more about Diplomacy and social work: Ambassador Ruth A. Davis (MSW '68) looks back on a groundbreaking career

Lindsey Chung (BASW '21) champions trans and nonbinary voices on campus. Chung received the Charlene Conrad Liebau Library Prize for their thesis, Accessing Gender Affirming Care from the Margins: Comparing the Strategies of Transgender People Pre-1980 to Non-Binary People Today...Read more about Lindsay Chung (BASW '21): There’s No One Way To Be: How One Recent Grad Created Space for Trans and Queer Identities at Cal

"I am a Dream Beyond Bars fellow at Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice. As formerly incarcerated youth and leaders in our community, we are committed to ensuring that the state closes DJJ the right way. To me, this means that youth never belong in cages, period... Young people are...Read more about OP-ed by Katarina Sayally (MSW '19): "It’s On All of Us: Close Youth Prisons, Build Youth Leaders"

"In honor of Ambassador (ret.) Ruth A. Davis’s 40-year distinguished career and commitment to diplomatic excellence, the Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute (FSI) is...Read more about Foreign Service Institute honors Ambassador Ruth Davis (MSW '68)

Alum Honey Mahogany was elected(link is external) as the first transgender and first Black chair of the San Francisco Democrats.Read more about San Francisco Democrats elect Honey Mahogany (MSW '09) as first Black and first transgender local party chair

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona held a virtual roundtable(link is external) to showcase the importance of providing...Read more about Daniela Medina (MSW '21) meets with US Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on importance of Pell Grants for incarcerated individuals

Daniela Medina(link is external) still cherishes a 2019 graduation video that captures her walking across UC Berkeley’s Haviland Hall stage, receiving a...Read more about Passing the torch: Daniela Medina (MSW '21) continues legacy of her slain mentor

When the pandemic closed schools in March 2020, Brian McGhee found himself bagging breakfasts and lunches for students at West Oakland Middle School and providing other support at McClymonds High School. As a social worker, he knew that "once we feed families, then we can talk about educating...Read more about Planting seeds: Brian McGhee (BASW '91) on school social work and West Oakland community power

Mental health. Housing costs. Healthcare access. Employment stability. The impacts of wildfire can be far-reaching(link is external). In a...Read more about Alum Annie Rosenthal (MSW '19): Wildfire’s devastation can linger long after the smoke has cleared

Mayra Alvarez(link is external) (BASW '03) has been...Read more about Alum Mayra Alvarez (BASW '03) Named to Biden-Harris COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force

Alum Joseph Perales has been awarded the Heart of Social Work Award(link is external) from the North American Network of Field Educators and Directors as well as the Field Instructor of the Year Award from the School of Social...Read more about Joseph Perales (MSW '08) receives "Heart of Social Work" Award and "Field Instructor of the Year" Award

"They designate every single Native child they remove and place into foster care as disabled." In the latest episode of the Fiat Vox podcast, alum...Read more about Alum Ella Callow on Berkeley's Fiat Vox podcast: "How state courts use disability to remove Native children from their homes"