By Sarah Touvell, Direct Housing Team Lead

My journey to become a social worker has been a long pursuit. I grew up in an environment in which race, socioeconomic status, and social justice were never talked about or even acknowledged. Despite being surrounded by diversity, there were a lot of things I did not understand about my peers and the rest of my community.

When I entered college as a pre-physical therapy major, I was still ignorant of many social problems. As I pursued knowledge and understanding, my eyes were open to a lot of new ideas through my friends and the organizations that I became involved in. A passion started to ignite inside me, and I realized that I was pursing the wrong career. I had a friend that was a Social Worker and as she talked to me about what being a social worker meant and what she did, I knew then that social work was exactly what I wanted to do.

Soon after I began my undergraduate social work classes, which confirmed that social work was the right career for me. I enjoyed going to class, because I truly cared what I was learning about. My passion for social work has just continually become stronger since that day.

I want to educate people about different cultures, and transform their hearts and minds. I want to help people that I had previously been ignorant about. I want to comfort those who do not have the privilege of not thinking about race, socioeconomic status, and social justice. These are the goals I hope to accomplish as a Social Worker. My life has been transformed as I have pursued this passion of mine.

This transformation began when became an intern for the Salvation Army and has continued through serving as the Multicultural Chair of my sorority, serving as a volunteer with SON ministries and by being a friend to people who are different than myself.

It has been a long journey, but as I reflect on all that I have learned and all that I have experienced, I am filled with joy.  I know I am exactly where I am supposed to be. I am currently in pursuit of my Masters Degree in Social Work so that I may be the best Social Worker I could possibly be.