Equity, Justice, and Inclusion Lecture and Distinguished Alumni Award Celebration
Equity, Justice, and Inclusion Lecture and Distinguished Alumni Award Celebration
The Equity, Justice, and Inclusion Lecture is one in a series of events the School of Social Work offers each year. Following the lecture, the school honors the recipients of that year's Distinguished Alumni Awards, which recognize BCSSW MSW or PhD alumni who have made significant contributions to the social work profession.
October 2024 Alumni Award Winners
Sheilah M. Gauch, BA '96, MSW '01
Principal and Clinical Director, Dearborn Academy
Distinguished Alumni Award Winner
Sheilah M. Gauch is the Principal and Clinical Director of Dearborn Academy, a therapeutic day school that services students with social/emotional and learning needs. She is also a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker and educator with over 20 years experience working with and advocating for students with complicated mental health needs. In addition to her work with students, Sheilah engages with caregivers, educators, and mental health professionals through consultation, training and public speaking.
Sheilah has two of her own children, whose mental health issues were ultimately diagnosed as PANS/PANDAS (Pediatric Acute Onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome/Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Strep). She co-founded the Massachusetts Coalition for PANS/PANDAS Legislation which successfully championed the passage of both an insurance mandate and established a permanent DPH PANS/PANDAS Advisory Council, where she serves as the co-chair. Sheilah received the 2020 Commonwealth Heroine Award for her work on this legislation as well as her leadership as the Chair of her local Special Education Parent Advisory Council.
Rebecca Camargo MSW '15
Consultant, Focus Strategies
Recent Alumni Award Winner
Rebecca Camargo works as a consultant at Focus Strategies and is responsible for leading and supporting homelessness response system improvement initiatives in communities throughout the United States. She manages technical assistance engagements, designs and implements stakeholder engagement processes, and develops analytical and policy content for reports and other publications.
Prior to her work at Focus Strategies, Rebecca managed programs that directly serve individuals experiencing homelessness. She was the first Director of Resident Services at the Newton Housing Authority where she strategically developed supportive services and eviction prevention programming for formerly unsheltered individuals living with complex mental health service needs.
Rebecca describes herself as a justice-focused leader, who believes that access to safe and affordable housing is a fundamental human right.
Rebecca holds a BA in psychology and anthropology from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester and an MSW from Boston College with a concentration in Older Adults and Latine/Latinx populations.
October 2024 Keynote Speaker
John T. Butler, S.J.
Haub Vice President for the Division of Mission and Ministry
Boston College
Jack Butler, S.J. grew up in Atlanta, Georgia and attended Marist High School; entered the Society of Jesus in 1991 as a member of the Northeast Province and was ordained in 2000. Holding degrees in counseling and theology, he has worked in prison ministry, hospital treatment centers, the education apostolate, and internal formation within the Society.
Presently Fr. Butler works at Boston College and is the Haub Vice President for University Mission and Ministry. His degrees are as follows: B.A., St. Thomas University; M.A. Providence College; M.S., Loyola University (Maryland); S.T.L., Boston College (Weston Jesuit School of Theology); and Ph.D., Loyola University (Maryland).
Event Archive
United Against Racism at Mass General Brigham—a Systematic Blueprint for Tackling Health Inequities
Monday, February 6, 2023
6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Format/time:
6–7:00 p.m. In-person reception
7–8:30 p.m. Hybrid keynote and award ceremony
Location:
For in-person attendees, Gasson Hall 100
For remote attendees, a Zoom link will be sent prior to the event
About the 2023 event:
The annual Equity, Justice, and Inclusion Lecture and Distinguished Alumni Awards Celebration will be held in a hybrid format on Monday, February 6. These awards recognize the significant contributions to the field of social work made by a BCSSW alumna/us. Two awards are given each year, one to a recent graduate (5-10 years) and the other to an alumnus/a 10+ years from graduation.Research has demonstrated that social factors influence a person's health and the likelihood of healthcare access.
This year's event will feature a keynote by Dr. Taveras, followed by a conversation on healthcare inequities and solutions that can improve the well-being of underserved populations. The discussion will highlight how these inequities are presented in community-based settings, and strategies BCSSW can use to prepare practitioners to confront these issues.
Following the discussion, the school will honor the recipients of the 2023 Distinguished Alumni Awards, which recognize BCSSW MSW or PhD alumni who have made significant contributions to the social work profession. This year's winners are Sarah Coughlin, MSW '07, and Ngozi Enelamah, MSW '18, PhD '20.
1 CEU credit will be offered to real-time attendees for the EJI lecture portion of this event.
Read the event recap
Sarah B. Coughlin, MSW '07
Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient
Sarah B. Coughlin, LICSW, LADC-I is a zealous advocate for criminal justice reform, for health equity, for the use of science-based approaches to drug use and addiction, and for dismantling the systemic factors at the foundation of both racial and economic inequities. She currently works for Massachusetts General Hospital’s Center for Community Health Improvement overseeing a multisector coalition aimed at addressing social determinants of health. She has a private therapy practice in Boston, MA and serves as a social work expert for state and federal defense attorneys where she provides comprehensive aid in sentencing reports, clinical and substance use assessments, re-entry plans, as well as expert testimony at criminal trials, violation hearings, and child protection cases. In her most recent work, she also leads Transformational Prison Project’s newly formed Center for Wellness and Restoration.
Throughout her career, Sarah has been at the forefront of the systemic shift from reactive and punitive to preventative and restorative policy and has a long track record of implementing and advocating for harm reduction practices. She created a youth enrichment program aimed at increasing youth protective factors which is now a diversion program for the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. She helped develop the addiction track treatment groups for the Metro Boston Department of Youth Services (DYS) and created an alternative to suspension program at Charlestown High School for students with chronic marijuana use which is being replicated across the district. She helped create the Charlestown Division of the Boston Municipal Court’s Recovery Court and has been honored by the Boston Red Sox for her work in addiction. In 2019, she was appointed by the MA Executive Office of Health and Human Services to serve on the taxonomy commission to review evidenced-based treatments for individuals with substance use disorders, mental illness, or co-occurring disorders. She provides regular trainings throughout the state for lawyers, social workers, school systems, universities, and addiction/mental health professionals.
Ngozi Enelamah, MSW '18, PhD '20
Distinguished Recent Alumni Award Recipient
Ngozi Victoria Enelamah is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work at the College of Health and Human Services, University of New Hampshire. Her multidisciplinary research and scholarship focus on culturally grounded, evidence-based, task-shifting, and transdiagnostic approaches to interventions for mental health disparities in the maternal and child dyad and among sub-Saharan African, Black US-born, immigrant, and refugee families. Her research addresses intergenerational risk, resilience, and protective factors for mental well-being and functioning in conflict settings and minority health across the life course. Dr. Enelamah has an undergraduate degree in Pharmacy from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, an MBA from the University of Lagos, an Ed.M. from Harvard University, and her MSW and Ph.D. from Boston College. Dr. Enelamah has over two decades of macro practice, community, and public health professional experience that have helped to address social issues and strengthen health systems.
Elsie M. Taveras, M.D., M.P.H.
Elsie M. Taveras, M.D., M.P.H. is the inaugural Chief Community Health and Equity Officer at Mass General Brigham and Executive Director of the Kraft Center for Community Health at Massachusetts General Hospital. She leads system-wide strategies to improve health equity and the health of the communities served by Mass General Brigham. She is a pediatrician at Massachusetts General Hospital, the Conrad Taff Professor of Pediatrics in the Field of Nutrition at Harvard Medical School, and a Professor in the Department of Nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Dr. Taveras is a leading expert in community health equity, childhood obesity, maternal-child health, and health disparities. Her research and community health leadership have influenced the development of national programs to improve health outcomes and eliminate inequities for socially at-risk populations. She is a recipient of the Public Health Leadership in Medicine Award from the Massachusetts Association of Public Health for her work improving health and health care in community-based settings.
Dr. Taveras received her Bachelor of Science and medical degrees from New York University and completed her internship, residency, and chief residency at the Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics at Boston Medical Center and Boston Children’s Hospital and holds an MPH from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.
“Weathering the Storm: Staying True to DEI Values”
Monday, January 22
6-8:30 p.m. ET
In-person reception in Gasson Hall 100,keynote and award ceremony
About the January 2024 event:
This year’s event will feature a keynote by Beth Chandler, the president and CEO of YW Boston, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing equity for the past 150 years. Her talk, Weathering the Storm: Staying True to DEI Values, will focus on YW Boston’s commitment to helping organizations achieve more inclusive environments where everyone—especially women and people of color—can succeed. After the keynote lecture, we will honor the recipients of the 2024 Distinguished Alumni Awards, which recognize BCSSW MSW or PhD alumni who have made significant contributions to the social work profession.
1 CEU credit will be offered to real-time attendees for the EJI lecture portion of this event.
Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient
Scune Carrington, MSW '09
Director, Integrated Care, Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers
Scune Carrington, MSW, LICSW, is the Director of Integrated Care at the Mass League of Community Health Centers. Apart from her primary role at the League, Scune serves as the chair of the Board of Health for the city of Malden. Scune’s commitment to social work extends to various committees and commissions, including being appointed by Governor Baker to the Social Worker board. She is on the Board of Directors of National Association of Social Workers-Mass Chapter, the Mass Medical Society's Committee on Oral Health, MassHealth DentalAdvisory Committee, Oral Health Advocacy Task Force. She is also the founder and owner of her own private practice BennuCare. She holds a BA from UMass Amherst, and an MSW from Boston College ’09, where she was the recipient of the Dean’s Leadership Award. She is a candidate for Doctor of Health Science '24 at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.
Distinguished Recent Alumni Award Recipient
Anne Day Leong, PhD '17
Senior Director of Research, Evaluation, and Research Partnerships, UNICEF
Anne Day Leong is the Senior Director of Research, Evaluation, and Research Partnerships at UNICEF USA. Dr. Day Leong established and leads UNICEF USA’s first research office focused on bridging the gap between research and policies for children. Anne Day Leong is an expert on policies impacting children, and monitoring and evaluation research. Dr. Day Leong formally worked for the U.S. Federal Government leading policy evaluations and serving as a subject matter expert on early childhood policies. Dr. Day Leong was awarded a post-doctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health. She completed her PhD in social work at Boston College, her master’s degree in social work at the University of Pennsylvania, her B.A. in psychology, and her B.A. in women’s studies from Penn State University.
Keynote Speaker
Beth Chandler
President and CEO, YW Boston
Beth Chandler joined YW Boston in November 2012, with more than 20 years of experience in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors. In August 2018, she was appointed President & CEO. Her breadth of work experience encompasses program development, delivery and evaluation, business development, and operations.
Prior to working at YW Boston, Beth served as vice president at the Achievement Network, a national non-profit dedicated to helping urban public and charter schools close the achievement gap.
Beth also held positions at Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation, the largest funding source for civil legal aid programs in the Commonwealth, and NeighborWorks America, one of the country’s preeminent leaders in affordable housing and community development.
Beth also worked as a corporate banking associate with Bank of America incorporate banking and began her career as a research and evaluation analyst with the Urban Institute.
Currently, Beth serves on the Eastern Bank Board of Advisors, The Museum of Fine Arts Board of Advisors, the TSNE-MissionWorks Board of Directors, the Women’s Workforce Advisory Council, and the Leadership Circle of HopeCentral Church.
A former professional basketball player, Beth received her undergraduate degree from Harvard University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.
Distinguished Alumni Awards
Distinguished Alumni Award Criteria
Each year the BCSSW Alumni Board solicits nominations for the annual Distinguished Alumni Awards. These awards recognize the significant contributions to the field of social work made by a BCSSW alumni. Two awards are given each year, one to a recent graduate (5-10 years) and the other to an alumnus or alumna 10+ years from graduation.
Criteria for this award can include:
- Significant contributions that enhance the profession of social work in the larger community.
- Significant contributions made to social work education.
- Significant contributions made in the area of public service.
- Significant contributions to practice issues within the profession.
- Significant contributions to social policy and change.
- Significant contributions to the BCSSW students and alumni.
- A lifetime achievement in the profession of social work.
Nominees must be alumni of the Boston College School of Social Work (MSW or PhD). Current BCSSW Alumni Association Board members and BCSSW employees are not eligible. Both the award winner and the person who nominates the award winner will be invited to attend the annual award ceremony.
Questions? Contact the Alumni Board at sswalumni@bc.edu.
Award Recipients
2024
Scune Carrington, MSW '09
Anne Day Leong, PhD '17
2023
Sarah B. Coughlin, MSW '07
Ngozi Enelamah, MSW '18, PhD '20
2022
Leslie Dominguez-Santos, MSW’01
Keith Chan, MSW’06 and PhD’13
2021
Charlene Luma ’03, MSW ’05
Charu Stokes-Williams, PhD ’11
2020
LCDR Monique Worrell-Oriola ’03, MSW ’06
Michael Grinnell, MSW ’16, LCSW
Marvin Toliver, MSW ’16, LSW
Josh McNeil, MSW ’15, LCSW
Jesse Wiltey, MSW ’16
2019
Tanya Sharpe, PhD ’07
Lamar Polk, MSW ’09
2018
Mitzi Peterson, MSW ’97
Najwa Sado Safadi, Ph.D. ’12
2017
Debra Sosin, MSW ’77
Nick Teich, MSW ’09
2016
Daniel Gill, MSW '06
Judith S. Willison, MSW '87
2015
Colleen Fitzgerald, MSW '11
James A. Martin, MSW '70
2014
Erin McAleer, MSW '05
Amy Vosburg-Casey, MSW/JD '01
Equity, Justice, and Inclusion
The mission of our Equity, Justice, and Inclusion (EJI) Initiatives is to develop policies and practices that promote a caring, respectful, and inclusive community. EJI promotes open and honest conversations, fosters interdisciplinary collaborations, and expands access to opportunities for historically marginalized groups, including women, racial and ethnic populations, and the LGBTQ+ community.