
My experiences at BB&N were particularly formative and have directly influenced my career today in social work. As peer counselor, I confirmed my interest in working with people and was happy to find in my masters program that some foundational skills Mr. Newman taught at the time were transferrable to the profession. Furthermore, as the first predominantly white institution I had attended when I first entered the school in 9th grade, it opened my eyes to the wide gap in the quality of education and resources within the same zip code in addition to many other disparities. This in part inspired me to pursue a career with a social justice orientation.
I am most passionate about understanding and addressing health disparities in communities of color and other underserved groups. Currently, I am a doctoral candidate at Columbia School of Social Work studying the effects of neighborhood quality and social features (ie. overall feelings of trust and shared values) on mental health of Latinx residents. I hope to some day be able to design interventions that may leverage my findings to improve health.
Currently I am a graduate research assistant working on an NIH-funded study that aims linguistically and culturally adapt a digital insomnia treatment for Spanish-speaking adults. In this role I am responsible for various tasks along the research stages including recruitment, data cleaning, leading focus groups, and administering surveys. When invited, as a part of the research team I present at community health talks and health fairs.
I've learned that it is important to have a plan, but also a plan B, plan C, and a plan D and to keep an open mind about the one you end up choosing. You never know what random skill or experience will become relevant and useful. I would also say never underestimate the power of having someone in your corner. People have a way of coming back into your life so making a good impression can be helpful in unexpected ways.
I love that it's different all the time and I have the potential to have a lot of independence in the future. But above and beyond that, I love that I get to do mission-driven work. Writing and publishing will be a lot of work but I like that I feel like it'll mean something and like I can use a skill set I am good at to make a difference.