Introduction

We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.

Dr. Lopez

Q. What is your area of expertise and where are you currently working?

I currently serve as Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work. I have been part of the faculty within the college for over 15 years. Primarily I teach courses in Grief and Bereavement Therapy, Multicultural Practice, Crisis Intervention, and Clinical Practice. I maintain a part-time clinical practice where I work with individuals and families who are experiencing traumatic grief related to the loss of a loved one. As part of my clinical practice, I also provide consultation, training, and expert witness services.

Q.  Why did you choose social work as your profession?

I think it is best to say that the social work profession chose me. I actually began my studies in the field of business, following in the footsteps of my siblings who pursued degrees in that profession. While volunteering at a local crisis hotline setting, I realized that I was more well suited for the helping profession. With the mentorship and modeling of a few social workers at the hotline, they encouraged me to pursue my masters in social work.

Although maybe a dramatic shift from the field of business, it was a decision which lead me to the work I really wanted to do in life. Never in the almost 29 years of social work practice have I regretted this decision and it has been filled with experiences that have clearly gifted my life on a professional and personal basis. Especially in working with traumatic grief, I am continually humbled at the opportunity of listening to the stories of those who have experienced significant losses in their lives. To be part of their process of healing is a meaningful and powerful experience for me.

Q. What are the biggest challenges to helping our growing Hispanic population?
 
There are so many challenges that I can identify in terms of helping the Hispanic population. However, I want to concentrate on what I consider to be the most central or crucial issue. Growing up as a Mexican-American in the community of Houston, I have been keenly aware of the influence of my culture on my personal and professional life. My culture has truly helped to shape the person I am today. My parents taught me to be proud of who I was as a Mexican American and they nurtured those cultural values and beliefs that were unique to our culture.

I am painfully aware that there are mixed reactions to Hispanics in our general society. For the most part, there is acceptance, sensitivity, and even appreciation of the contributions of the Hispanic community. On the other hand, it is today’s reality that many Hispanics encounter hate, prejudice, discrimination, and intolerance. Thus, I believe the greatest challenge in helping Hispanics is encouraging social workers and other helpers to practice cultural competence in working with diverse others such as Hispanics.

Cultural competence as we all know requires some insightful work to explore our feelings and thoughts about those who are different from us. Further, it requires a commitment to learn knowledge about the culture, their values, beliefs, rituals, practices, and history. Given the recent tension around immigration, many Hispanics who were born here in the United States have encountered anti-immigrant sentiments.

Social workers, as advocates, can be valuable in the process of celebrating the Hispanic culture, acknowledging differences from a strengths perspective, and promoting cultural competence. The key challenge – to advocate, support, and develop respect. If we can accomplish this, we will make significant movement to addressing many other challenges as well.

To find a spanish-speaking social worker in your area please click here and select the Advanced Search function.

Introduction

We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.

Dr. Queiro-Tajalli

Q.  Please tell us your area of expertise.

First, I would like to say that my professional interests reflect my opportunity to study and receive my social work degrees from three different parts of the world: Argentina, Iran, and the United States. This educational training set the foundation for my expanded view of social work practice in an interconnected world.

I have practiced in the international arena since I graduated with my bachelor degree in social work from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The assets as well as the gaps existing in underserved areas of the countries mentioned above, as well as those countries where I have had short term projects, Brazil, Kenya, and Indonesia, have strengthen my expertise in generalist social work practice with a focus on community work.

My main areas of expertise are social work with Latino clients, aging, and multiculturalism, but I should say that my heart is in community organization. I also have experience in social work accreditation, educational assessment, undergraduate education and administration, and online teaching.

Q. Why did you join the social work profession?

As the daughter of an Argentine blue-collar family, I grew up with many ideals of social justice. These were instilled by family stories about the struggles of my grandparents and older aunts and uncles. They joined the labor movement to obtain fair labor laws and fight against the violations of the industrial sector.

My sister, currently a practicing lawyer in Buenos Aires, introduced me to the profession of social work. Her guidance expanded my educational horizons as a high school student and soon I realized that my desire to bring change to those in need could best be done with a degree in social work.

My decision to follow social work, which was well received by my parents, put me on a path that I have never regretted. Social Work has opened my mind to a world of inquiry, opportunities, professional contributions, knowledge, values, and skills that no other profession could have offered. Social work has also given me the professional framework required to transfer my generalist practitioner skills to advocate for the needs of people in different countries and vulnerable groups.

Q. What do you believe are the biggest challenges to serving our growing Hispanic population?

It is difficult to single out particular challenges without first considering that Hispanics are part of a diverse community in terms of economic levels, race, language proficiency, education, country of origin, length of residency, legal status, age, and other descriptors that may translate to specific assets and challenges. Furthermore, the Hispanic population, just like everyone else, is affected by what I will refer to as the struggles of daily life. With this in mind, I will highlight what in my view are some of the challenges in serving the Latino population.

As a profession we need to prepare a critical mass of bilingual and bicultural practitioners that are ready to work with Hispanics. We need to graduate more macro practitioners who can address and help to mitigate profiling and hate crimes that our people are increasingly dealing with. While the Hispanic heritage of the United States has deep and rich historical roots, we also know that many are recent arrivals.

The realities of Latin America include the displacement of people due to unrealistic economic demands on those countries to repay their international debt, the impact of transnational corporations on the well being of workers, including the flower industry in Colombia, the copper mines in Peru, or the "extinguished" farms in Mexico, to mention just a few.

We cannot serve our immigrant population at the individual level without understanding the reasons for their migration. The social work profession is one of inclusion and acceptance. And part of this is an understanding of the issues, strengths, challenges and opportunities of the people we work with. We grow as a profession, when we grow as effective culturally competent practitioners.

Dr. Queiro-Tajalli is the 2009 recipient of:

• The Indiana Commission for Women Torchbearer Award, the highest award presented only to women by the State of Indiana.
• The 2009 Joseph T. Taylor Award for Excellence in Diversity

Introduction

We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.

Mr. Alvarez

Q. What is your area of expertise?

My area of expertise is substance abuse treatment. I do substance abuse and mental health counseling privately and I am a regional director at Volunteers of America of Florida where I manage eight supportive housing programs in Dade and Broward Counties.

Volunteers of America of Florida is part of the national nonprofit spiritually based organization that supports, nurtures and uplifts the human spirit and empowers the people we serve to reach their full potential. The agency's work includes opportunities for people in the community to serve: such as board members, volunteers and staff. The organization is also a leader in home-based behavioral healthcare services and is accredited by the Joint Commission.

Volunteers of America of Florida envisions communities where all people live with a spiritual sense of well being, opportunities for training and employment, and a place to call home. This includes our commitment to strengthen individuals and communities through outreach and services to the persons we serve. Our programs deliver comprehensive services to support an individual's well being, promote self-sufficiency and foster independence.

We actively support every person in our programs. For example, we transport a veteran to a medical appointment, provide a meal to a senior, train an individual to manage their bank account, assist with utilizing community resources, develop life plans with individuals facing chronic and severe mental illness, support persons with developmental disabilities or inspire independence and meaningful activity for elderly persons.

Currently we  offers community programs in 16 cities throughout the state of Florida. Persons served include: veterans in need, the elderly, persons with a severe and persistent mental illness and/or persons engaging in substance abuse. Program participants are supported by the agency's three lines of service: Health; Housing; and Training, Education and Employment.

Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?

I chose social work because in the end the only thing that matters is making a difference. “I was hungry and you gave me something to eat.” – Jesus.

Q.  What are the greatest challenges to serving our growing Hispanic community?

The greatest challenge facing our hispanic community is the need for immigration reform that respects the dignity of the human person and strengthens our families.

To find a spanish-speaking social worker in your area please click here and select the Advanced Search function.

Introduction

We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.

Ms. Coln

Q. What is your area of expertise?

Primarily I would like to believe that my area of expertise is teaching families to cope with everyday stressors. I obtained my MSW from New York University in 1979, and have devoted many years working with children, adolescents and their families. Working with the Latino families and their assimilation into the American culture has been of the utmost importance.

As a therapist understanding the effects of racism within our culture and outside our culture influenced my belief in fair play and the essence of empowering the Latino families to advocate for themselves. Obtaining my MSW in the 1970s clarified my role as a Latina female in this society.

As a political activist in the Puerto Rican community I was exposed to the reality of what families confronted when they came from the island to the mainland. My personal/political growth as a Latino female enabled me to explore how social work can be utilized as a tool for empowerment which then leads to appropriate assimilation to this society.

Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?

In 1974, I obtained my BA from the City College of New York. Prior to obtaining my MSW I worked as a case aid at the International Ladies Garment Workers Union Healthcare Center. In my third year of employment, students from Columbia University School of Social Work were placed there as social work interns. These students influenced my decision to become a social worker with their commitment to human rights and self-determination of their clients.

Q. What are the greatest challenges to serving the Hispanic community? 

1. The stigma in the Latino community regarding mental health services, and the myth that only "locos" need to receive mental health counseling. 
2. The lack of resources and funding for services. 
3. The inability of the main stream mental health providers in understanding the culture. For example, how "Espiritismo" can be utilized in reaching out to the Latino community that needs mental health services.

To find a spanish-speaking social worker in your area please click here and select the Advanced Search function.

Introduction

We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.

Ms. Collazo

Q.  What is your area of expertise?

I received my MSW from Hunter School of Social Work in 1998. Since then I have worked with a vast and diverse population. However, my area of expertise is working with adolescents and their families. My main goal is to assist parents in understanding developmentally appropriate behaviors and teaching parenting skills to help them deal with those behaviors.

Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?

What influenced me basically was that I was the youngest of six children of a Latino Puerto Rican family. I took the role of advocating and assisting my parents who were primarily Spanish speaking. In this role I was exposed to the struggles that the Latino community faces. In doing that, I encountered many barriers in attempts to get the services that my parents required. I was exposed to racism and discrimination due to being unable to speak English. Because of my childhood experiences and my exposure to the inequalities within the culture, I became empowered to pursue my career.

Q. What are the greatest challenges to serving the Hispanic community? 

1. The primary challenges that the Latino families face are discrimination due to race, language, and cultural beliefs. 
2. Another challenge is the lack of resources and services available for the Latino community. 
3. Furthermore, there is also a lack of cultural awareness and sensitivity within the professionals that serve the Latino families. 
4. Lastly, the difficulties that Latino families face in assimilating to the American culture because new values and beliefs have to be learned while maintaining one’s own.

To find a spanish-speaking social worker in your area please click here and select the Advanced Search function.

Introduction

We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.

Ms. Rojas-Watson

Q. What is your area of expertise?

I have been in the social work field as an MSW since 1992. Since the beginning of my career, I have been fascinated with family counseling.

Throughout the years I have provided family counseling within several settings including psychiatric hospitals, alternative schools for behaviorally compromised children, substance abuse treatment centers and currently at a healthcare setting.

I also provide family counseling as a consultant with a company serving low income, high risk families in their home. I believe that as professionals, we all have room to grow and learn more. Therefore, I don't consider myself and expert in anything. I think that because of the emphasis of working with the family system throughout my professional life, I may have more tools and feel very comfortable working with them but I am not necessarily an expert.

Q. Why did you choose social work as your profession?

I have always been attracted to helping professions. I was born and raised in Colombia South America in an upper middle class family. However, I always witnessed poverty and injustice around me with "gamines" (children that live on their own, beg, steal and use drugs to be able to survive), people living in cardboard box homes by a dumpster to collect items and food, and mentally ill people walking the streets without places to go. Witnessing the lack of resources and suffering, I always thought about how I wished I could help them by creating programs and providing services.

After graduating from high school I started attending medical school with the goal of serving low income communities. However, we moved to the United States and after completing my AA degree I was more interested in psychology and social work after speaking with other students. I received a dual major and realized that my true calling was social work. I received my MSW in 1992 and have been very thankful that I found where I needed to be professionally.

Q. What are the greatest challenges to serving the Hispanic community? 

1. One of the greatest challenges is realizing that there is great discrimination within our own communities. Instead of uniting to empower ourselves, we isolate from our own communities and compromise our abilities to be heard. 
2. Also, I have found many non-Latino professional mental health workers that have preconceived notions and expectations. These professionals seem to have a misguided image of what the Latino culture entails.

To find a spanish-speaking social worker in your area please click here and select the Advanced Search function.

Introduction

We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.

Ms. Silverman

Q. What is your area of expertise?

I have a bilingual private practice in which I provide psychotherapy to individuals, couples and families. I specialize in relationships, including serving as a co-parenting therapist and parenting coordinator for divorcing parents. It is my goal to facilitate my clients’ process of self discovery, help them through their difficulties, improve their communication skills, and enhance their potential to have satisfying relationships.

Q. Why did you become a social worker?

I believe my desire to become a social worker stemmed from my own growth process. It comes from a deep desire to help others resolve their issues and transitions. I have always felt a need to give back, coach, and teach methods that I have learned through my own academic and personal experiences. My social work career began later in life, after having overcome the challenges of some very difficult personal losses. I feel that those losses led me to learn the skills of adjustment, communication, and adaptation.

I was 10 years old when my five-year old sister and I came to the United States from Cuba in 1961. Once our parents were able to join us, we worked individually and as a family in our adjustment process, including learning a new language and new customs, while preserving our own. The services we received and the help we were able to provide to each other and to others helped us preserve our relationships while forging new ones. I truly learned the importance of a full support system.

Q. What do you think are the greatest challenges to serving our growing Hispanic population?

Even though we have grown tremendously in numbers, our Hispanic population continues to be in need of an effective service network, particularly in rural areas. In these difficult economic times, funding is the biggest challenge to the development and implementation of such a network. Because I was an immigrant child, I am particularly sensitive to the needs of children. They need a system in which they can preserve their self-esteem while facing the challenges of a new language and culture. Such a system would provide the protective web they need to overcome the risks they face during the transitional period.

To find a spanish-speaking social worker in your area please click here and select the Advanced Search function.

Introduction

We asked several outstanding Hispanic social workers to tell us why they chose social work as their profession and what they see as challenges to serving the Hispanic community today.

Ms. Jimenez-Vazquez

Q.  What is your area of expertise?

I graduated from UCLA in 1967 with a MSW with a macro concentration in Community Intervention.  When I came from Cuba in 1961 I already had a bachelors in Diplomatic and Consular Law, and ABD in Social and Political Science from Havana University. I also had served the Cuban Consular Service for 12 years. Also I had a scholarship of the United Nations and the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to study Public Administration with a specialization in Public relations and Personnel Administration.

I worked in Los Angeles, California at the International Institute of Los Angeles. This nonprofit organization served recently arrived immigrants and refugees. I worked with Hispanics in general and with Cuban Refugees. I developed the largest organization creating programs that ranged from job findings to social and support activities such as youth programs, dances, festivals, celebration of cultural traditions such as Reyes Magos and celebration of the Independence day among others.

In cooperation with the Adult Education of Los Angeles and Junior Colleges and Universities we created special English classes for Hispanics Professionals who wanted to revalidate their professions including helping them with the application to the programs in those other institutions.

In Miami I organized the first community center “Accion Community Center” to serve the Cubans and other Hispanics in the area and bring the awareness of the needs of Hispanics in the Greater Miami Area. This Center created awareness and opened the opportunities for the Hispanics to be heard and served. This was the beginning of the creation of bilingual programs and services in the area. Programs like “Cross-cultural Training for the Public Education Teachers, cultural awareness of Hispanics needs for secretaries attending telephones, United Way awareness of Cuban and other Hispanics needs.

We created an association of Hispanics social workers of the Greater Miami area. I was actively involved with the national Hispanic movement after the Black Revolution when only men and another woman from Puerto Rico and I were nationally involved. The attended the first meeting with NIH, HEW, Labor Department and Hispanics . We were able to place the Hispanics on the front line.

Since the end of the 1980s I have been interested in complementary therapies, specially in Mind-body therapies. I have completed training with Deepak Chopra, Brian Weiss, Borisensko, Kabat-Zinn, Naparstek, and at Omega and NICABM several years have receive the best training. I became a master Teacher of Reiki, healing energy therapy. I teach and practice mindfulness, relaxation response meditation and imagery. Have done presentations for NASW Virginia Chapter NASW New Jersey Chapter, the NASW National Office. I am currently writing a book for the integration of mind-body therapies for social work practitioners and educators.

Q.  Why did you choose social work as your profession?

When I went to Brazil I had several psychological tests done with the primary interest in changing profession. I was not happy with the Consular Career. I went back to Havana University when I returned to Cuba and took the first year of the two years degree in social work. I loved it.  However, I wanted to finish my PhD in Social and Political Science first.  But the Revolution which I joined became communist so I decided I need to leave Cuba.

I did not finished the social work degree or the PhD. So, when I became an exile I knew I had to change my career path and I knew before I left Cuba that I would become a social worker in the United States. First I had to bring my parents and brothers and their families out of Cuba. Then move to Los Angeles, got a job as a social worker at the International Institute where they gave me half of my salary as a scholarship to attend UCLA.

It is the best decision I made in my life! I have loved my work as a social worker with immigrants, refugees and illegal Hispanics in Los Angeles and Miami and as a professor for 22 years. I retired from the Virginia Commonwealth University, School of Social Work in Richmond, VA. I have worked with individuals with HIV/AIDS and women with breast cancer combining social work with mind-body therapies and energy therapies. It is a very rich, exciting and energizing work. Social work degree prepares people for many other professional activities beyond social work per se.  Social work opens up people’s creativity to serve better in whatever position you are.

Q.  What do you believer are the greatest challenges to serving our growing Hispanic community?

It is the battle of the languages and culture. We must learn English and at the same time we need bilingual resources to satisfy all the needs of our communities. We need to learn to function in middle America but we don’t have to reject and forget our cultures. We have to celebrate our Hispanidad and become well prepared professionals to be part of the mainstream of the American society. We don’t need to be acculturated but we have to learn to function in a modern world. Modernity not acculturation. They are different. We must learn to be part of and f unction professionally in this great society and maintain our pride of our Hispanidad!

We must also keep the beauty of the love and closeness of our families and maintain professionally our ability to contribute to this society and be part of it. This balance is not easy, there are pieces of our culture that will be transformed by the forces of modernity, wherever we are, even if we were in our countries of origin but there are others pieces culturally essentials that can not be forgotten.

Professional education opportunities, job opportunities, equal treatment, social justice and equality are values that are necessary to maintain our traditions and cultures and still be part of this country. We need to constantly be aware and contribute to maintain both.

To find a spanish-speaking social worker in your area please click here and select the Advanced Search function.