NAPRHSW 2019 Gala Journal

The 36th Anniversary Awards Gala

Enmanuel Garcia, BSW Fordham University, MSW Candidate International Institute for Community Wellness, Intern

Presenting the 2019 Scholarship Awardees

Enmanuel Garcia is a first-generation American and the first person in his family to have earned both a High School Diploma and a Bachelor’s degree. He is on track to becoming the first person in his family to achieve a Master’s degree. He aspires to finish his degree in social work so he may give back to his community in America, as well as his parents community in the Dominican Republic. His dreams are to provide more accessible services such as physical and mental health care in impoverished areas within the Dominican Republic. This scholarship will help convert his dreams into a realistic objective to achieve his goals. Lorena Zavala is completing her final year at Columbia University School of Social Work. She has worked in the social work field for 10 years and decided to go back to school for her MSW to hone her clinical skills and continue to service young women of color, survivors of gender violence. Another factor that drove Lorena to return to school was the lack of women of color in managerial positions within the agencies she served. This was especially challenging when seeking culturally relevant support and guidance around issues particular to the immigrant, undocumented and monolingual population she serves. Lorena decided it was time to return to school and strive to become the leader and support system she wants to see in the organizations she served. Lorena is extremely grateful for the opportunities she has received. Her father and mother have an elementary level education and immigrated to this country from Mexico seeking a better life for their children. She and her family were once recipients of the same services she now provides therefore this journey has been somewhat of a full circle for her. She is thankful to the National Association of Puerto Rican and Hispanic Social Workers for investing in her future and giving her the vote of confidence she needs to finish off her last year in graduate school strong!

Bidania Criscuolo is a second-year graduate student in the School of Social Welfare at Stony Brook University. She earned her Bachelors in Psychology at SUNY College at Old Westbury in May 2010. Bidania spent three years working with a large undocumented immigrant population within a local school district, advocating for them as well as connecting them to resources within the community. In her last internship as a School Social Worker, she worked closely with the newly registered undocumented students and their families to help them with the transition into not only a new school, but a new country. She has been a panelist in the Long Island LGBT Conference for the last two years speaking to LGBTQ middle and high school students about building families in same sex headed households. In April 2019, Bidania received a scholarship to attend the National SexEd four- day conference in Newark, NJ in which she was able to learn from leaders in the sexual health field about a range of topics. She was also chosen as a grant recipient for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grant for her second-year field placement within the Suffolk Care Collaborative working exclusively with Spanish speaking clients as a Care Coordinator. Bidania is an MSW candidate for May 2020 and hopes to pursue a career in either school Social Work or Higher Education Social Work. Bidania currently resides in Massapequa, NY with her wife and two children. Her family and friends know Millerlandy Acevedo as Milly. Millerlandy immigrated to the United States from Colombia at the age of five. Growing up in the borough of Queens and raised by a single mother Millerlandy’ s Latin roots and culture helped shape and nurture her into the woman she has become today. Millerlandy’s studies combined with her bilingualism and socio cultural background have provided her with the sensitivity necessary to relate to others on a professional level to address their needs with empathy and compassion. Millerlandy is currently a fulltime student for the MSW program at Stony Brook School of Social Welfare. She aspires to become a licensed social worker sooner than later so she may continue assisting the underserved communities to make a difference in other individuals lives continually. Mayra DePeña received her BA in Psychology from CUNY Brooklyn College. For the last twelve years, Mayra has served in the Division of Child Protection with NYC's Administration for Children's Services (ACS) as a Child Protective Specialist (CPS). The role of CPS is diverse, challenging, and forever changing - Yet, this role has also been extremely rewarding. Mayra has dedicated her career to ensuring equity and improving access to services for the children & families known to ACS. Mayra is a daughter of two immigrant parents from the Dominican Republic, who raised five children to be successful college graduates and professionals with families of their own. Mayra is also a mother of two girls, Saniah & Ava. She hopes to influence their young minds to appreciate their blessings and to share their blessings with others. Ms. DePeña recognized the need for empowerment & motivation with the families she serves. In 2017, She returned to school to study for her MSW. Mayra plans to graduate with an MSW from Stony Brook University, and to continue her drive for improved, effective policies within her agency, ACS, which will meet the needs of black and brown families in the NYC area.

We want to thank our sponsors and supporters who believe in our students in aiding NAPRHSW to achieve its goals!

“Legacy-Promise-Leadership”

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