Stephanie Massey and Jessika Poisel are students in the new UNCW Human Services Technology - Bachelor of Social Work (HST-BSW) extension program. Both recently graduated from Carteret Community College with their associate’s degree and were influenced by life-changing events that led them to pursue an undergraduate degree and career in social work.
In 2021, UNC Wilmington partnered with Carteret Community College to create the first transfer program within the University of North Carolina System for students wishing to pursue a BSW degree.
Students who have successfully completed an associate degree in the Human Services Technology program at Carteret Community College and meet admission requirements of UNC Wilmington’s Bachelor of Social Work program are admitted to the program. This means that students have a straightforward pathway to completing a bachelor’s degree. Social work courses are offered online and once admitted, students receive individual advising on the program and required courses. UNCW has similar agreements with 25 other North Carolina community colleges.
Massey is a senior and chose social work because of its broad range of opportunities to make a difference in communities. Massey’s advisor at Carteret Community College knew Poisel has a big heart and wanted to make a difference. Her advisor suggested she pursue human services. Within a year, she decided a career in social work was where she belonged. Massey experienced homelessness on two separate occasions over a decade ago and as a result, has dedicated her life helping others.
“I know what rock bottom feels like. It was freezing in Michigan and I was bundled up inside my car. It was so bad that snow was actually coming into the vehicle. I remember one day I was walking on the sidewalk and came across gloves and mittens attached to trees in a park,” she said. A charitable organization attached them to the tree with a message indicating the hand warmers were free to take.
“I want to do that for people and I want people to see that you can hit rock bottom, but you can always change your life around. From where I started from being homeless to where I am today, I want to use my lived experience to show others you can do it too. Life is not hopeless. I want them to see that there is light at the end of the tunnel. And yes, it's not going to be an easy, paved road. Yes, you're going to have obstacles. Yes, there's going to be setbacks, roadblocks, but you just have to keep moving forward until you find a door that opens,” she said.
Poisel is a senior who chose social work as a career path because of her own traumatic childhood experiences. When reflecting on her past, Poisel says, “I found that instead of just being bitter and pitying myself about everything that I've gone through, I can recognize my ability to connect with people as a gift. I'm able to engage with people of all different ages, ethnic backgrounds and different professions. So, I decided to become an alcohol and drug counselor and help those who need it understand that your traumas do not define you. They really don't, you can seriously do anything you want to do. You can overcome anything.”
Poisel enjoys witnessing her patients achieve milestones within their personal journey. “It’s just the most fulfilling feeling, especially when they experience something like receiving their first clean drug screen in 10 years,” she says. “I created a certificate, and it may sound silly, but I present it to them because it is important for them to work towards something and to let them know that their personal success is being recognized,” she said.
Poisel plans to pursue the Master of Social Work program at UNCW and continue focusing on mental health counseling at the treatment center she currently works at. Eventually, she hopes to open a private practice in the city of Havelock, N.C.
Dr. David Conley is an assistant professor in UNCW’s School of Social Work working to address issues preventing lawmakers and policymakers from passing mental health-related bills. Earlier this year, Dr. Conley published “Factors Influencing Policymaker Decision Making in the Behavioral Health-Related Legislative Process: A Scoping Review,” an article exploring the influences of legislator voting behavior on behavioral health-related bills.
“Most of the behavioral health related or mental health related bills fail to pass, so I ask, ‘What can we do as social workers and advocates to do better and get bills passed at a higher rate?’ One of the things we need to do first is figure out what actually influences a policymaker’s vote on mental health related bills.” he says.
Conley searched different databases using specific terms related to behavioral health such as mental health, addiction, substance use, and substance abuse.
He found internal and external characteristics that influenced a legislator’s vote. Internal characteristics of the legislator, like their gender, race, educational level, and what specific committees they were on affected their vote on these bills. External characteristics included political party, advocacy coalitions, lobbyists, interest groups, public opinion, and the media.
For Dr. Conley, this research topic is a small part of his broader calling to help and treat those with mental health issues. “Fifty seven percent of people with mental illness don’t get any treatment whatsoever. Therefore, a lot of what I’m trying to do in my career is exploring how we can get more mental health services to people who need them, whether it’s just more services in general, or better access to services. One of the ways we can do that is through policy at the legislative level, whether it’s local, state, or federal,” he said.
Dr. Conley’s interest in this topic first began as a student at Virginia Tech University on April 16, 2007, when a fellow student Seung-Hui Cho opened fire on students and faculty, killing 32 and injuring 17 others. Dr. Conley said, after investigating the tragedy, “If you look at his background, obviously what he did was terrible but there were many instances where he was failed by the mental health system and fell through the cracks. That really got me thinking about what I could do to help fix this problem,” he said. This led to his decision to earn his Master of Social Work and focus his career path on the political side of the mental health system.
Dr. Conley’s research is far from over. Earlier this year, he received a Charles L. Cahill Grant for Faculty Scholarship and is working with social work students to create a data set full of behavioral health-related bills in Congress that were introduced during the last 10 to 15 years. Similarly, they will examine what legislative factors affected the passage or failure of the bills as well as how the factors differ during the Obama and Trump administrations.
