Her Story
About Doreen
I've been a licensed clinical social worker for 24 years, and I've been in higher education specifically for the last 6 years. Prior to that, I worked in an outpatient clinic doing therapy with court-mandated clients. I transitioned into higher education right before the pandemic happened. My journey started when I went to drafting school for kitchen design after high school, then worked as a kitchen designer for 5 years before deciding to pursue psychology and mental health. I attended community college and was given a full ride scholarship to Fairleigh Dickinson University, where I earned my bachelor's and master's degree in psychology. I discovered that with just a master's in psychology, I couldn't do therapy with clients, so I got my Master's in Social Work, which allowed me to work with children and families, my specialty being at-risk youth. I stayed in the nonprofit field at Vantage Health System, where I started as a case manager, then became a social worker, outreach worker, and eventually head clinician and supervisor of the internship program that I developed. I loved what I did there and probably would still be doing it if this opportunity hadn't come along to develop a wellness center from the ground up at Hudson County Community College. I went into the helping field because when I was younger, I was a troubled kid. My mom was a single parent who was mainly Spanish-speaking, and I did a lot of her social work, helping her get food stamps and navigate Section 8 housing when I was 12 and 13. That work of being able to give back and help people like myself, removing barriers for those starting out in life with obstacles, is something I wanted to do. I don't work at all - I love what I do. I like helping people and teaching people to become social workers. I feel that it is an honorable field. Being a social worker allowed me to help lots of people and watch people grow into who they were supposed to be.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Doreen
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to having great mentors throughout my journey who took the time to help me understand how I learn and process information, and who saw potential in me that I didn't always see in myself. Mentors like Dr. Robert Osterman from Fairleigh Dickinson taught me how to navigate my learning disability and give myself grace. Dr. Saba Danishore at Vantage Health System saw that I could become more than just a great clinician and encouraged me to pursue leadership. Dr. Sheila Dinan hired me and convinced me to get my doctorate, and Dr. David Clark has been teaching me about leadership and administration from a higher education perspective. I also believe that being driven, believing in yourself, and having a good support system like my family, my kids, and my husband is essential. My dissertation became my salvation during a really difficult time when both my parents were passing away, and most people would have taken a step back. I think understanding that life is about peaks and valleys, and that every time we fail, we learn something, has been crucial to my success.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would help her understand why she's choosing this field and help her start her journey, and just let her know that it's a wonderful field. You work to help people, you learn about advocacy, you learn about policy, you learn about understanding your role as a social worker, you understand where you came from. I understand where I came from, and that's what most social workers do - we go into this field because of almost like a self-healing journey, so we gotta understand that we have to heal first before we make those steps, because it's always going to be about the people you work with. I also want people to understand that if you have a learning disability, it does not mean that you can't become who you were meant to be. If you come from a background of living in Section 8 housing and your mom using food stamps, you can uprise and bring yourself up from that.
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