Clinical psychologist and UNCG Social Work professor Dr. Viktor Burlaka has dedicated more than 20 years to improving mental health in vulnerable populations—a passion that began after earning his bachelor’s degree in Kyiv, Ukraine.
While in school, we were taught many skills related to communication, empathy, and supporting and listening to others. One skill I used a lot while supporting this school was being an active listener; sometimes, you don’t even have to say anything. They may only need someone to listen to them and their story, and others need you to be empathetic and support them through it.
How do you decide on the right child care facility? A star rating at a North Carolina child care facility can ease the minds of parents and caregivers.
What’s more, it can help a facility learn about areas where it can improve – and how to support these changes.
A woman drove into a Walgreens parking lot in High Point, parked, and walked over to a group of social work students. “Hey, how’s your car doing?” asked Marella Farrington, a student interning with GCSTOP.
Amanda Clark ’14, ’18 looks forward to working with nonprofits like GCSTOP (Guilford County Solution to the Opioid Problem), which is a UNCG program that partners with Guilford County Emergency Services. GCSTOP is primarily manned by interns from UNCG’s social work and public health departments.
Rajendra Roopchan says finding someone to talk to is more important to a college student than finding someone who has all the answers.
“Having a person or a community to suggest, ‘You can do this’ or ‘These are your options’ is a phenomenal resource to have.”
One of the most powerful resources that UNCG provides to the effort, Albright says, is students.
Students in UNCG’s undergraduate and graduate social work programs are required to do internships to gain practical experience before they graduate. These internships allow GCSTOP to help more people.
Tyrance earned his master’s degree from UNCG in sports and exercise psychology. He was recruited by the Chiefs to be their clinician after working in private practice with college athletes in Charlotte for nearly a decade.
The African American Families and Kinship Care Lab at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro is conducting two National Institutes of Health funded studies that will study kinship care and its impact on families. One study examines the strengths and resources of African American kinship care families (e.g., grandparents raising grandchildren) that influence the development of children’s social, academic, and behavioral outcomes.
“I was scared to open up about my past, but as soon as I did, she said, ‘You’ll be a great asset to our Spartan Recovery Program.’ I felt wanted here at UNCG … If you have a whole community of people believing in you, you can do anything.”