Kimberly Mestizo, MSW Advanced Standing Student Named CSWE Minority Fellow for 2023-2024
"I am devoted to using my Spanish language proficiency and Hispanic/Latinx cultural background to support the mental health and well-being of youth and families within my community. I also aspire to apply my growing expertise in substance abuse and mental health within middle schools, focusing on supporting BIPOC students."
My commitment to advancing social justice with BIPOC youth and families through mental health service delivery motivated my pursuit of an MSW at Stony Brook University. I chose the Families, Youth, and Transition to Adulthood Specialization to gain the academic knowledge and skills necessary to support the mental health needs of racial/ethnic minority youth populations, especially those within my Hispanic/Latinx community. My prior experience interning at a residential substance use disorder (SUD) treatment facility on Long Island allowed me to learn and use evidence-based SUD and mental health treatment modalities. During this internship serving adult male clients, I noticed a common trend in which many of their addictions began during their youth. I became determined to use my background to intervene in a middle school setting, which is a crucial time period for adolescents who are struggling to cope with the challenges of mental health and risky behaviors. Early intervention and prevention for these issues addressed at a younger age can significantly improve overall well-being and life outcomes. As a Latina of Salvadoran descent with fluency in Spanish, I also used my background to provide culturally competent counseling services to various Hispanic/Latinx clients with SUDs and related mental health conditions. I intend to use my cultural background and these practice experiences at my upcoming internship in a middle school on Long Island.
After graduating with my MSW, my career plans include obtaining my CASAC, becoming licensed, and gaining employment within an underserved school setting to continue providing clinical services for BIPOC youth, which aligns with SAMHSA’s goals for the MFP in advancing social justice for BIPOC communities. Due to the history of segregation and discrimination in America, BIPOC individuals face significant disparities in accessing substance use and mental health services. By increasing the knowledge of practitioners, improving the service quality of prevention and treatment services, and increasing cultural competency, future providers like myself will be able to better support underserved BIPOC populations in order to increase equal access to high-quality care and improve health outcomes."
This MFP opportunity will provide me with much-needed additional knowledge and clinical skills to further aid the communities of color I intend to continue serving. Being part of the MFP would significantly impact my career path in meeting the mental health and substance use needs of BIPOC communities. As an advanced-standing MSW student entering my final year of study with a commitment to supporting BIPOC youth, I realize that I would benefit from additional mentorship outside the provisions of my formal education. In addition to the generous stipend provided to MFP recipients, which would greatly help to alleviate my financial needs and allow me to focus solely on my education, a more advantageous feature of the MFP are the in-person and virtual specialized trainings and networking. These opportunities to connect with others who are also devoted to lifting up BIPOC communities would substantially enhance my knowledge and skills in being able to support youth and their families. What’s more, the professional development provided by the MFP would allow me to network with other experts in the field, seek out career advice, and gain valuable insight into the best practices in serving BIPOC communities. Overall, being part of the MFP would not only advance my career goals but also contribute to the larger goals of diversifying the human service workforce, reducing health disparities, and improving mental health-care outcomes for underrepresented and underserved communities."
Some quotes that resonate with Kimberly's "why":
"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." - Benjamin Franklin
"Prevention is so much better than healing because it saves the labor of being sick." - Thomas Adams
"Prevention is the daughter of intelligence." - Walter Raleigh
