social justice

Jacqueline Guevara, DSW, LCSW

mthomp7 — Tue, 05 Sep 2023 16:27:14 +0000

Jacqueline Guevara, DSW, LCSW mthomp7 Tue, 09/05/2023 - 12:27

Assistant Professor, Social Work

Contact Information

Dr. Jacqueline Guevara, LCSW
Assistant Professor
Department of Social Work
College of Public Health
Email: jguevar2@gmu.edu

CV

Download CV

Biography

Dr. Jacqueline Guevara is a native of Washington DC, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in both Virginia and DC, and has been in the social work field for over 13 years. She has extensive experience working in various agencies within child welfare (including Child Protective Services, Preservation Services, and Foster Care), school social work, juvenile court, and community mental health. Her areas of research and interest include racial inequity, stigma in the LatinX community including the impact of machismo and marianismo, juvenile justice, trauma/PTSD, and cultural stress. Dr. Guevara is also a recognized panelist and guest speaker presenting on topics from mental health in the LatinX community, overall wellness, importance of advocacy in the social work field to increasing mental health support in schools. Prior to becoming a professor with GMU, Guevara was residing in Germany teaching for the University of Maryland Global Campus as an adjunct associate professor and providing mental health therapy in private practice.

Select Publications

Guevara, J. (2018). Acculturation Team-Based Clinical Program: Pilot Program to Address Acculturative Stress and Mental Health in the Latino Community (Doctoral dissertation, University of Southern California).

Memberships

Alumnae Member, Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Incorporated

Education

DSW, Social Work, University of Southern California
MSW, Clinical Social Work, University of Pittsburgh
BA, Psychology, George Mason University

Social Work Faculty Rome Publishes New Textbook about Promoting Voting Rights

Anonymous — Tue, 18 Jan 2022 20:01:39 +0000

Social Work Faculty Rome Publishes New Textbook about Promoting Voting Rights Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/18/2022 - 15:01

Promote the Vote: Positioning Social Workers for Action asserts that supporting political participation is integral to social work practice.

The publication of a new book by Sunny Harris Rome, a professor in the Department of Social Work, comes at a critical time when voting rights are at risk in Virginia and around the nation. Her book details why social workers should be invested in promoting voter participation in the United States and how to support civic participation, particularly among low-turnout groups.

Promote the Vote: Positioning Social Workers for Action is the first social work textbook with a sole focus on voting. It asserts that empowering underrepresented communities to participate in the American political process is integral to social work practice.

Sunny Harris Rome, MSW, JD

“Engaging in voter education and mobilization is a great way for us as social workers to translate into action our commitment to social and economic justice,” says Rome, emphasizing the importance of her book’s timely publication. “We [as social workers] have an ethical mandate to be involved in social and political action and to involve others.”

The book lays out many of the current social and economic realities that define the United States in 2022. These include gun violence, hate crimes, and racial injustice, in addition to voter suppression and intimidation.

Furthermore, Promote the Vote, provides a brief history of voting right in the U.S. This section discusses key policies that expanded voting rights as well as setbacks that kept populations such as African Americans and women from the polls.

Connecting history to the present, Rome dedicates another section to current voting patterns and trends in the U.S. This chapter reveals that despite increased voter turnout in recent elections, huge disparities remain. Rome explores different theories to explain what motivates people to vote and how various characteristics such as political party affiliation, race, income, geography, and more influence the way an individual votes.

Additionally, Rome’s book offers research findings, practical information, and case examples from her own students on expanding civic participation. For example, a Master of Social Work student created informational flyers in English and Spanish on voting for an agency serving people in poverty. The flyers were included in about 6,000 food baskets distributed to low-income households throughout Washington, D.C.

Another one of Rome’s students, who worked at an adult detention center in Virginia, developed a workshop about voting rights for people who are incarcerated. Through this, many of the men at the detention center became aware of their eligibility.

The many real-world examples in the book illustrate the countless ways one can support equal participation in the voting process. Furthermore, Rome notes that another important strategy is to advocate for more voter-friendly policies.

“I believe we are in a moment of crisis. We are at a historical crossroads,” Rome says. “And the only way forward is to push back against voter suppression. Now more than ever, it’s really important that we all get involved.”

Rome notes there’s a long list of marginalized groups that remain underrepresented at the polls including people of color, people with disabilities, immigrants, those experiencing homelessness, LGBTQ+ people—particularly those who are transgender—and survivors of domestic violence. Since members of these groups are often social work clients, her book devotes a section to understanding their unique challenges as voters and suggests actionable solutions.

“Research shows that people who vote have better health and mental health outcomes,” says Rome about the positive impact of civic participation. “Communities are more cohesive. They experience less crime. Voter participation strengthens both individuals and communities.”

Topics

Social Work Student Mengqi Li Is a Fierce Advocate for the APIDA Community On-Campus and Beyond

mthomp7 — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 14:17:47 +0000

Social Work Student Mengqi Li Is a Fierce Advocate for the APIDA Community On-Campus and Beyond mthomp7 Thu, 08/26/2021 - 10:17

In This Story

Evelyn Tomaszewski, MSW, ACSW

Emily Ihara, PhD, MSW, FGSA

Li shares her passion for social justice and the opportunities the MSW program has offered her so far.

Mengqi Li is a Master of Social Work student with a passion for social justice and advocating for the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) community. She was recently accepted into the Council on Social Work Education’s (CSWE) Minority Fellowship Program, with a mission to reduce health disparities for racially and ethnically diverse populations through cultural competency training. Additionally, Li accepted a new position at Mason’s Center for Culture, Equity, and Empowerment (CCEE) as a graduate assistant within the Student Engagement for Racial Justice team.

Li started the MSW program as a major career transition a few years after graduating with an undergraduate degree in business. “I just knew it really wasn’t where my heart was,” she says about working in business. She decided to pursue social work due to her interest in clinical mental health and the field’s emphasis on social justice values.

“The program at Mason has the most diverse faculty, and as a BIPOC [Black, Indigenous, and person of color] student that was really important to me,” Li says about why the MSW program stood out to her.

She’s found many ways that the curriculum has intersected with her activism and advocacy. Last spring, she took SOCW 659 Organizing and Advocating for Change, a course on community organizing, during which Li and her classmates brainstormed ways to organize around issues on campus.

Li’s engagement as a student goes beyond the classroom too. She is the founding president of the Asian Graduate Student Association. So far, the organization has recruited nearly 100 APIDA graduate students. “I’m very excited for the potential of this RSO [registered student organization] to build community at Mason,” she says.

Faculty and staff have had a tremendous impact on Li’s life as a student, and MSW Program Director Evelyn Tomaszewski, MSW, ACSW, has been a great ally to her in and out of the classroom. Social Work Department Chair Emily Ihara helped connect Li to CCEE for her graduate assistant position and to other opportunities as well, including the CSWE Minority Fellowship Program.

“Having APIDA faculty and staff [in the department] has been very meaningful,” says Li. She notes that Julie Kim, the director of graduate student life, is an APIDA staff member who has also made a huge impact on her experience at Mason so far.

After she completes her master’s degree, Li plans to continue her advocacy work for the APIDA community, particularly within the field of mental health. She notes that a lack of diverse practitioners may be one reason why Asian Americans do not always seek mental health services, even when they need it. Li is currently in a training program to be a meditation teacher and hopes to integrate mindfulness training into her future clinical work.

When asked about what advice she has for future MSW students, Li says, “Let others know what you care about. I really believe that’s a huge part of what will open the door to opportunities.” She also adds that leaning into your interests and passions “will keep [them] burning and sustain you in whatever form of work that you do.”

Topics

College of Health and Human Services Department of Social Work

College of Health and Human Services