Master of Social Work program begins with full initial cohort

by Chuck Gordon

When Wingate's administration decided to explore the establishment of a Master of Social Work program a few years ago, it did so knowing that social workers were in short supply nationwide. Still, the program's director, Dr. Wendy Sellers, didn't want to make any assumptions about how easily she'd be able to recruit students.

"The whole time I was thinking that 15 is what I should be trying to aim for," she says, "but I wasn't going to beat myself up if we didn't get there."

She needn't have worried. Wingate's newest master's program begins classes today with an initial cohort of 23. Classes are fully online and asynchronous, which means that although they have deadlines, students work at their own pace and in their own time.

Sellers hopes to establish two hallmarks of the program. First is to make the program's specialized practice "transformative social work in the beloved community."

"Transformative social work is all about how social workers work from individuals all the way to policy, and it's really all connected," Sellers says. "While people entering the program might think they want to work just with mental health with individuals or families, the reality is you also have to know how you interact with people in an organization and how you read policy and understand policy and those kinds of things. That's the transformative piece."

Second, she wants to serve the area around the University, which means encouraging graduates to stay in Union and Anson counties.

"That's one reason I'm intentional about who I admit, in terms of where they're living and where their home is," she says. "Not that you have to be from this region, but we want to be responsive to the needs of this area."

Several students in the initial cohort are recent Wingate graduates. Katelynn Pressley, who graduated in May 2024 with a degree in human services, knows she could take her bachelor's degree and get an entry-level job as a social worker now, but she wants to dive deeper into the profession first.

"I'm looking forward to expanding my views on social work, because while in human services we learned about social work and the steps to it, in the master's program we're going to go more in-depth," Pressley says.

Sellers says that many people who enter the social-work profession do so because they've seen its effects firsthand. Pressley, for instance, was adopted, and she still remembers going through that process, with the help of social workers.

"There are children who go through things everyday that you wouldn't even think of," she says. "They need help all the time, and I just want to do that for them."

As a child, Reagan Thomas ('23) suffered from hereditary chronic pancreatitis, a condition that required multiple surgeries. After one major surgery in Minnesota to remove several organs, Thomas and her family lived in the Ronald McDonald House for six months while she recuperated.

"The only way I got to stay at the Ronald McDonald House was through a social worker," she says. "That social worker also got me into a musical therapy program. I got to write songs with these two musicians while I was in my hospital bed. That sped up my recovery a lot."

Thomas wants to give back by becoming a hospital and healthcare social worker, and she knew she'd need a master's to make that happen. She expresses confidence in Wingate's program, even though the program is brand new.

"The professors at Wingate, they know what they're doing," she says. "I trust them with my education."

Joining Sellers in the MSW faculty are Farrell Wright and Dr. Veronica Hardy. Wright will also serve as the director of practicum experience, which means he'll be in charge of finding internships for students. Hardy, who will teach three courses and is a licensed clinical social worker, has experience assisting with the accreditation process at other institutions.

"I know I'm not going to save the world, but at some point I can help families to improve their lives."

Sellers says that all courses will be "team taught," with a lead instructor and co-instructors.

The two-year program features 12 credit hours each semester. Aside from the initial semester, each semester will feature six practicum hours, during which students will be placed in the field. The semesters are split into eight-week sessions.

Sellers says that when she interviewed for the position of program director, she told the administration that she envisioned an in-person program. That changed when she began building the program and working with the community.

"One of the tenets of social work is you go where the clients go," Sellers says. "If you think about clients as potential students, you really have to think about what their needs are, what they're asking for, not what I think. There were several people, some working here on campus, who wanted to go back and get their MSW and just simply could not do that in-person while they're working full-time."

One of those full-time workers who will be working toward her MSW at Wingate is Doralisa Pellane. Pellane earned her bachelor of liberal studies degree in human services at Wingate in December 2023 while working full-time as a translator with the Union County Department of Social Services.

By earning a master of social work, she says, she'll be able to go from translating for social workers to advocating for and working with families directly.

"I know I'm not going to save the world, but at some point I can help families to improve their lives," she says. "I can make a positive impact on one family at a time.

"I would like to help families become more independent and have a better quality of life. Completing a master's will give me the skills, knowledge and strengths so I can pursue my career."

Wingate's master's and doctoral programs begin between today and the end of the month. Classes for undergraduate students begin Aug. 22.

Learn more about Wingate's Master of Social Work program.

Aug. 12, 2024

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