The Wayne State University School of Social Work is proud to announce the 2023 MSW and BSW Students of the Year, LaTricia Mitchell (MSW) and Jenna Friedman (BSW).

Annually, undergraduate and graduate level students are nominated to receive the NASW-Michigan Social Work Student of the Year Award from each Michigan area university. Students are nominated by the Warrior Community and selected based on their demonstrated leadership qualities, contribution to the positive image of our social work program, commitment to political and community activities, academic performance, and the degree to which the student represents professional social work ethics. Recipients of the 2023 awards will be recognized by their home university and the NASW-MI chapter at a virtual celebration event on Friday, April 14, 2023 from 6 – 8 pm EST. All are welcome to attend.

This year we would also like to recognize additional nominated students for this award. We thank them for their hard work and dedication to the field of social work and the School. BSW student nominees included Austin Ash, Doris DeMarco, Samantha Dwornick, Tomiko Gumbleton, Hannah Mathers, Amazu Rennie -Ford, and Dorothy Ramseyer Vandekieft. MSW student nominees included Amanda Mies.

MSW student award recipient

LaTricia Mitchell (she/her/hers) is an MSW and Infant Mental Health Dual-Title Program student. She entered the MSW program with a BA in Africana Studies from The College of Wooster in Ohio and a Master of Divinity with emphasis in African American Church Studies with a wealth of professional experiences and has used her time in the program to further develop and hone her clinical skills. LaTricia participates in the Zero to Thrive Program at the University of Michigan, working in both the Infant and Early Childhood Clinic and Perinatal Women and Infant Clinic where she is gaining skills and clinical experience assessing women and children, cultivating therapeutic relationships, creating measurable treatment objectives, and implementing a variety of evidence-based interventions. LaTricia is a talented young scholar who is deeply thoughtful and reflective about the contextual factors affecting Black families raising young children and about the cultural strengths that Black families leverage to raise their children in the context of racism. She is a student member of MI-AIMH, NABSW, and NASW-MI. She is also a student leader in the Radical Social Work student organization and a student member of the MSW Curriculum Committee. She was also recently awarded the Advanced Clinical Social Work Fellowship at the Yale Child Study Center. 

BSW student of the year recipient

Jenna A. Friedman (she/they) is a BSW student who has quickly demonstrated strong leadership abilities beyond their years. Jenna currently serves as the inaugural co-president of the Social Work Disability Justice Coalition (SWDJC). The Coalition is dedicated to advancing perspectives and conversations about disability justice, a topic Jenna has personal and professional experience in. With the support of Jenna's leadership, the SWDJC is currently the School’s most active and attended student organization. Jenna is also an active member of the Jewish Student Organization and has organized various events to promote the end of stigma surrounding mental health. Finally, they are trailblazing new communication methods for social work practice by running their own disability justice focused TikTok account. To date, Jenna has thousands of Instagram and TikTok followers, all of which are hearing their modern insight on disability justice. A fellow BSW student noted, ‘I have had the honor of being a peer of Jenna for the past two semester, and [they have] left me speechless… always giving of their time to make sure other people succeed. A telling trait of a true social worker.’