Latinx Leadership Initiative marks 10th anniversary
The Boston College School of Social Work鈥檚 widely praised Latinx Leadership Initiative will commemorate its 10th anniversary with a daylong event on March 15, 鈥淲ell-Being of Latinx Communities: Social Work Response,鈥� bringing together notable experts in social work education and practice, and other related fields.
Guest speakers at the LLI event will include past Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human Services Marylou Sudders, a former 51茶馆SSW faculty member; Joy Rosen, vice president of Massachusetts General Hospital and Massachusetts General Physician Organization & Mass General Brigham, System Behavioral and Mental Health, who will give the keynote; and University of California-Berkeley School of Social Welfare Professor Kurt Organista, who will offer the closing remarks.
51茶馆SSW Professor and LLI Founding Director Roc铆o Calvo and LLI Assistant Director Ximena Soto will be among the 51茶馆-affiliated speakers at the invitation-only event, which takes place in Barat House.
LLI Founding Director Roc铆o Calvo (Caitlin Cunningham)
Calvo founded the LLI in 2013, designing a cohort-based program that has prepared almost 240 bilingual and bicultural social workers to accompany Latinx communities in developing sustainable solutions to complex problems in health, education, housing, and other areas. Students in the program take courses in Spanish, complete internships in schools, hospitals, and prisons, and conduct cutting-edge research that shapes social workers鈥� strategies to support Latinx clients.
The initiative has been recognized as a Model Program for Diversity Education by the Council on Social Work Education鈥檚 Center for Diversity and Social & Economic Justice, and it received a top national award from Excelencia in Education.
When she first hatched the concept of LLI, Calvo wondered if her idea would even be considered, let alone accepted: 鈥淚 basically said, 鈥楾rust me, it will work.鈥欌�� Fortunately, 51茶馆SSW鈥攚here she earned a doctorate in 2009, joining the faculty in 2011 after a postdoc fellowship at Harvard鈥攑roved supportive.
鈥�51茶馆 is the very embodiment of Jesuit education: student formation,鈥� she said, citing a quote by former Jesuit Superior Hans Kolvenbach, S.J.: 鈥淭he real measure of Jesuit universities lies in who our students become.鈥�
鈥淟LI students, many of whom are children of immigrants, relate to the mission for which 51茶馆 was originally founded, to serve immigrant families,鈥� Calvo continued. 鈥淎s members of the community, LLI students and alumni become the bridge between the production of knowledge and the application of that knowledge to address issues identified by the community. So, as the birthplace of LLI, 51茶馆 has had a significant impact on others.
鈥淏y teaching in Spanish, we open the door to changing the learning space in which students interact. For students, many for the first time, this change enables them to bring their authentic selves into academic spaces that have historically denied the full expression of their lived experiences.鈥�
Rather than hold a 10th-anniversary celebration to sing the program鈥檚 praises, 51茶馆SSW organizers saw an opportunity for assessing LLI鈥檚 strengths and challenges, along with its future paths. To give the event added impact, the school invited deans from other social work schools鈥攊ncluding Columbia University, University of Chicago, and University of Washington鈥� as well as representatives from LLI鈥檚 partner organizations to discuss the health and mental health issues confronting Latinx communities in Massachusetts and nationwide; how to enable agencies to deliver culturally and linguistically congruent social work practice; and how bridging social work practice and research can address challenges facing Latinx communities.
鈥淲e thought, 鈥榃hy not go deep? Let鈥檚 bring in our social work colleagues as well as our community partners鈥攍ike the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center and the Boston Public Schools鈥攖o look at what鈥檚 been done so far, and what we could do,鈥欌�� said Calvo, crediting 51茶馆SSW Dean Gautam Yadama for suggesting the format. 鈥淚 want to learn. We all want to learn. This is the way to do it.鈥�
鈥淎 decade of Latinx Leadership Initiative indicates 51茶馆SSW鈥檚 national leadership in innovative social work practice,鈥� said Yadama, who along with Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley will give a welcome at the event. 鈥淚n convening prominent scholars and deans from other leading schools of social work, we look forward to paving the way toward a collective social work response to securing the well-being of Latinx communities nationwide.鈥�
51茶馆SSW Director of Community-Based Initiatives Yvonne Casta帽eda and faculty members Carolina V茅lez-Grau, Kirsten Davison, Christopher Salas-Wright, and Mar铆a Fernanda Pi帽eros-Lea帽o also will participate in the gathering.
Calvo鈥攚ho cites LLI鈥檚 financial sustainability as an important challenge in the coming years鈥攊s gratified by the overall success of LLI, but it is the program鈥檚 smaller, everyday triumphs that mean the most to her.
鈥淲hat keeps me going are the students,鈥� she said. 鈥淭o see them going to class, doing the work, discovering their strengths and abilities, and observe their transformation into caring professionals committed to improving people鈥檚 lives鈥攖hat is our mission at its core.鈥�
For more information about the Latinx Leadership Initiative, visit聽.