Katie Dager '14
B.S. Social Work
All throughout her undergrad, Katie Dager ’14, was convinced that she would go into direct practice, providing one-on-one social work upon graduation. However, during field placements provided to her by the University of Findlay she realized where she would fit best in the profession was in community practice. By the end of her time at UF, she realized she wanted to practice social work on a larger scale.
And she is doing just that as the development coordinator for University Settlement, a neighborhood center located in the Cleveland’s Broadway-Slavic Village community. She serves as liaison to her agency’s board of directors and coordinates all volunteers for their weekly community meals. She also writes grants and plans fundraising events.
Dager’s decision to center her career around helping people came after the deaths of her grandmother and two classmates while she was in high school. Dager initially thought she wanted to major in psychology to be a therapist, but after encouragement from her parents, she did some research and found social work, “I was attracted to the variety in the field and the professional license,” she said.
While visiting the University’s campus during the College of Health Professions campus visit day, Dager was sold on the program after one conversation with Robin Walters-Powell Ed.D., M.S.W., LISW-S, assistant professor and chair of the social work program. “Walters-Powell’s passion for teaching, her students and the profession of social work is so apparent,” Dager said. “Her charisma, dedication and passion is unmatched.”
As part of her curriculum requirements, Dager participated in two fieldwork experiences at Tiffin Development Center and Bridge Home Health. She learned much about herself during that time, as well as direct practice social work. She found the work overall critical to social work learning.
Her placements taught her about true empathy for others, the importance of being a self-starter in the workplace and not to be afraid to ask questions. “I learned the importance of encouraging self-worth, dignity and self-respect not only in clients but in everyone you work with,” she said. “Positivity is contagious and people take notice if you are an encouraging, open individual.”
Julian Brown '12
B.S. Social Work and Criminal Justice
Hometown: Newark, OH
Career: General Probation Officer and Treatment Court Officer
What made you choose The University of Findlay?
My high school guidance counselor, Tiffany Hamilton '01, and I scheduled a college visit. Lisa Snyder, from the Financial Aid Office was so nice and very helpful with taking the time to help me understand how to make it financially possible for me to attend UF. I met with my at the time-admissions counselor, Charlie Webb who was overall amazing! He and the other UF staff definitely made my visit one of the best experiences! Findlay's location on the map was nice because it was an equal distance from my family who was in Columbus and Cincinnati. The size of the campus was what I was looking for because I knew it would give me a better chance to know the professors I would be working with.
How did you choose your career path?
I wanted to be a homicide detective ever since a close friend's murder case went unsolved. I wanted to put murderers behind bars and make them pay for the crimes that they’ve committed. Ever since then I've loved law enforcement so I started out as a criminal justice and psychology major until I met social work professor Robin Walters-Powell. She showed me that I was meant for social work. So I changed from psychology to social work. Robin was right, I loved my classes and she taught me so much about social work and what it could be!
Lauren Burke '12
B.S. Social Work and Equestrian Studies
“When I shared my unique dream of developing an equine-assisted therapy program, my passion was fueled and supported by staff,” she said.
“They welcomed my dream and assisted in making it a reality. They were flexible with my schedule, which allowed me to graduate in four years in two fields that do not necessarily easily coincide, and they went above and beyond to help me achieve.”
During her senior year, Lauren was able to gain hands-on experience in equine-assisted psychotherapy through working with Project HOPE (Horses Opening People’s Eyes) in Bowling Green, Ohio. Her work there counted toward the 450 hours of required field placement experience for social work majors. Through her experience, Lauren worked with patients ages three to 64 who were working through a variety of issues: attention deficit disorder, bullying, low self-confidence, marital problems, depression and more.
“In equine-assisted psychotherapy, the horse is a co-therapist,” said Lauren.
“Horses mirror our behavior. When I teach a patient to take deep breaths to relax, the horse will do the same. My patients learn that they can have some control over situations in their lives …I feel like I make a difference every day.”
In addition to this experience, Lauren feels like the faculty members at UF have helped prepare her for many situations.
“Faculty members have an abundance of experience and knowledge to help prepare and advise us on how to handle various situations from individual sessions and community planning to ethical dilemmas and social activism,” she said.
“Social workers are deeply involved in advocacy … the faculty at UF have helped me foster leadership skills I never knew I had.”
Lauren arrived at the University with “the mentality that social work is what I wanted to do, and now I leave with the knowledge that social work is more than just a profession but a way of life.”
Rochelle Rhoades '08
B.S. Social Work
When Rochelle (Croft) Rhoades graduated with a degree in social work in 2008, she planned on pursuing a traditional social work career working with children. Four years later, she pursued a social work career and a master’s degree from the Ohio State University, but in a very non-traditional setting: the U.S. Navy.
Rochelle entered The University of Findlay as a freshman education major. She quickly realized that it wasn’t quite the right choice, and after some guidance from faculty members in the College of Education, decided to major in social work. It was a field in which she felt like she could thrive, and she could work with children, which was her original goal.
Robin Walters-Powell, assistant professor and chair of the social work program, and Tony Wilgus, associate professor, helped Rochelle succeed in the program. “Tony and Robin made sure that I was ready for graduation. They pushed me to do better,” said Rochelle.
Walters-Powell helped Rochelle to “see her options” and helped her find internships that matched her interests, such as the Open Arms internship. Walters-Powell also welcomed Rochelle back to campus for an administrative internship as part of Rhoades’ master’s degree program.
During her senior year, Rochelle completed an internship at Open Arms Domestic Violence and Rape Crisis Services. She continued working there following graduation, and although she was doing good work, “it was an emotional field.” Rochelle knew she needed to find a different path but wanted to continue in the social work field.
As she was considering her options, Rochelle met a friend who had served in the Navy. Her interest was piqued, and she talked with a military recruiter. Because of Rochelle’s completed bachelor’s degree and her good GPA, she is entering the Navy with the highest rank possible for a new recruit. After she completed boot camp, Rochelle worked as a social worker wherever she was stationed or deployed.
When stationed, Rochelle worked in a veteran center or on-base childcare center doing counseling for families. If deployed, she may work as the ship’s social worker, offering counseling services to service men and women who are away from their families.