Order of exercise
Marshals and banner bearers
• Robert Anderson, banner bearer
• LaKesha Bennett, marshal
• Zacc Diamond-Tapper, banner bearer
• Kimberly King, marshal
• Amanda Long, marshal
• Julie Pence, banner bearer
• James Romanik, banner bearer
Processional
• Faculty and guests
• Ph.D. graduate
• M.S.W. graduates
• B.S.W. graduates
Introduction of the dean
• Stevara Haley Clark, Ed.D., interim associate dean for academic and student affairs; and associate professor in teaching
Welcome and special faculty recognition
• Gary S. Cuddeback, Ph.D., dean and professor
Commencement speaker
• Allison Gilbreath, M.S.W.
Recognition of Ph.D. graduate
• Traci Wike, Ph.D., director, Ph.D. Program
Hooding of Ph.D. graduate
• Nicole Corley, Ph.D.
• Hollee McGinnis, Ph.D.
Awarding of Ph.D. diploma
• Gary S. Cuddeback, Ph.D.
• Traci Wike, Ph.D.
Recognition of M.S.W. graduates
• Qasarah Bey Spencer, Ed.D., director, M.S.W. Program
M.S.W. student speaker
• James Orr
Hooding of M.S.W. graduates
• Cassie DeSena-Jacobs, D.S.W.
• Kimberly Compton, Ph.D.
• Ananda Newmark, Ph.D.
• Klara Prachar, M.S.W., LCSW
Awarding of M.S.W. diplomas
• Gary S. Cuddeback, Ph.D.
• Qasarah Bey Spencer, Ed.D.
Reading of M.S.W. graduate names
• Allison Ryals, M.S.W.
Recognition of B.S.W. graduates
• Stephanie G. Odera, Ed.D., director, B.S.W. Program
Awarding of B.S.W. diplomas
• Gary S. Cuddeback, Ph.D.
• Stephanie G. Odera, Ed.D.
Reading of B.S.W. graduate names
• Allison Ryals, M.S.W.
Closing remarks
• Gary S. Cuddeback, Ph.D.
Recessional
Acknowledgements
Thank you to all the administrative staff members in the School of Social Work for their contributions to the school, its students and faculty. Special thanks to all the student volunteers assisting with the ceremony.
Photography: Photo Specialties and Cindy Newmark; American Sign Language interpreters: Mosaic Interpreting Services; live streaming operations: Encore
See back cover for floor plan/seating details.
Commencement speaker
is the senior director of policy and programs at Voices for Virginia’s Children, where she leads child welfare policy and directs advocacy initiatives to improve the well-being of children and families across Virginia. A recognized leader in early childhood care and education policy, Allison has been instrumental in advancing efforts to increase access to high-quality, affordable child care throughout the state. She founded Voices’ foster care policy network, a coalition of partners, service providers, families and youth that develops a unified foster care agenda annually. Allison also co-launched Virginia’s first bipartisan Foster Care Caucus in the General Assembly and successfully led the creation of the kinship financial assistance program in 2020, supporting relatives caring for children in foster care.
In addition to her policy work, Allison is a community-embedded faculty member in the School of Social Work at Virginia Commonwealth University and serves as a field liaison, guiding second-year macro concentration students. Prior to joining Voices, she worked with Prevent Child Abuse Virginia, advocating for children’s rights and family
Recognized for her leadership, Allison was named to Style Weekly’s 40 Under 40 in 2019 and has presented at numerous national and state conferences on child welfare and advocacy. She earned her Master of Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University and completed the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership in 2016. She is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. She lives in Richmond with her husband, Ryan, and their two children, Perry and Ella.
Graduate Scholars
M.S.W.
Bill and Sherry Peterson Scholarship
Jessica Zarnegar
Fostering Success Scholarship
Deannie Barrion
Hearst Endowed Scholarship for Social Workers in Aging
Jessica Zarnegar
Joanne Kerbs Caramanica Scholarship
Eileanora Clock
Martin S. Schwartz Scholarship
Camille Starr
Rick and Brenda Faulkner Scholarship
Destiny Lowman
Rosa Jimenez-Vazquez Adelante Scholarship: Sirviendo la Comunidad Hispana
Betty McMenamy
Swank-Divine Scholarships
Destiny Lowman
Christina Sorley
Certificate & Certification Recipients
Certificate in Aging Studies
Courtney Mayo
School Social Work
Certification
Dyamon Hunt
Allison Jensen
Briana Payne
Ph.D. Graduate
Nicole Campbell
Dissertation
Understanding Identity-based discrimination: Immigrant women of African descent’s experiences in social and human service agencies
Dissertation Co-Chairs
Nicole Corley, Ph.D.
Hollee McGinnis, Ph.D.
Committee
Hyojin Im, Ph.D.
Christine Bae, Ph.D., School of Education
M.S.W. Graduates
August 2024 graduates
Acevedo, Cynthia
Argo, Amiel
Avens, Leela
Bailey, Ashley Baker, Blakely
Barrion, Deanie
Benfield, Lola
Bogdonoff, Ann Mason
Boothe, Alexandra
Bridgen, Julia
Carter, Shanta
Charles, Kendra Clark, Julianna
Clock, Eileanora
Crawford, Jamie
Davis, Patrick
Dollar, Samantha
Duwa, Reilly
Fortune, Lindsay
Fuller, Levi
Garland, Andrea
Gearey, Robyn
Griffith, Hannah
Haase, Alicia
Hadjinlian, Milen
Hayward, Brandy
Hicks, Robert
Hingle, Alexis
Ho, Ariel
Hodges, Cabell
Hoehner, Christina
Horton, Sherri
James, Maggie
Jansen, Lilly
Kaye, Julie Klauer, Sherry
Kunkel, Daniel
Lucas, Melanie
Marecheau, Kazia
Martin, Eleanor
McLane, Darcy
Merilien, Jasmine
Morrison, Dana Nickerson, Rebecca
Null, Lauren
Nur, Meena
Orr, James
Paquette, Christine
Parmiter, Madison
Peterson, Hailey
Saunders, Jasmin
Seyoum, Helen
Sillett, Hailee
Singleton, Lexy
Sorley, Christina
Starr, Camille
Territo, Paola
Tuffaha, Nadia
Via, Elizabeth
Villalobos, Rocio
Walker, Violet
Walters, Paul
Wiggins, Elisabeth
Willey, Jasmine
Willson, Nancy
Zarnegar, Jessica
December 2024 graduates
Albers, Kate
Allen, Elisha
Alsayid Betancour, Adla
Alvaro, Marissa
Attreed, Amber
Bedinger, Blair
Benson, Tiara
Birks, Bailey
Bittenbender, Tanya
Blair, Chantice
Boyce, Joshua
Brown, Shanice
Chavarria, Kimberly
Cluff, Duncan
D’Andrea, Kaitlyn
Edmonds, Ciera
Ferrell, Yasmine
Fransee, Jordan
Gibson, Rachel
Grammenos, Shelby
Gutierrez, Paul my Hill, Dorota
Hirt, Maria
Hoffman, Alex
Hunt, Dyamon
Jefferson, Alana
Jensen, Allison
Little, Denise
Litton, Libbey
Looney, Sharon
Lowman, Destiny
Marlow, Crystal
Mayo, Courtney
McMenamy, Betty
Murphy, Morgan
Nunnally, Taylor
O’Brien, Kelsey
Payne, Briana
Poindexter, Dasha
Pollard, Jannaci
Price, Jessica
Quick, Shannon
Quraishi, Billie
Rodriguez Lopez, Jessica
Scribner, Leann
Shingler, Jena
Solorzano, Sam
Steele, Jacob
Tassell, David
Thompson, Taylor
Vowell, Taylor
Wekenman, Noelle
Wiberg, Kate
Williams, Jamila
Woods, Charlotte
Wright, Neda
Yombo, Anna Marie
B.S.W. Graduates
August 2024 graduates
Cohen, Jenna
Lewis, Amber
Savage, Bella
Tapia Vargas, Carola
December 2024 graduates
Lula Abdu
Faculty
• Adrienne Baldwin-White, Ph.D., assistant professor
• Daniel Baslock, Ph.D., assistant professor
• Qasarah Bey Spencer, Ed.D., assistant professor in teaching
• Matthew Bogenschutz, Ph.D., associate professor
• Denise Burnette, Ph.D., Samuel S. Wurtzel Endowed Faculty Chair in Social Work and professor
• Jamie L. Cage, Ph.D., associate professor
• Karen G. Chartier, Ph.D, associate professor
• Stevara Haley Clark, Ed.D., associate professor in teaching
• Kimberly S. Compton, Ph.D., assistant professor in teaching
• Nicole A. Corley, Ph.D., associate professor
• Gary S. Cuddeback, Ph.D., professor
• Cassie Desena-Jacobs, D.S.W., LCSW, assistant professor in teaching
• Humberto E. Fabelo, Ph.D., LCSW, associate professor
• Mer Francis, Ph.D., assistant professor
• Maurice N. Gattis, Ph.D., associate professor
• Jacob Goffnett, Ph.D., assistant professor
• McKenzie N. Green, Ph.D., assistant professor
• Christina Huerta, Ph.D., assistant professor
• Hyojin Im, Ph.D., associate professor
• Muthoni Imungi, Ph.D., associate professor in teaching
• Erica Jackson, M.S.W., LCSW, assistant professor in teaching
• Kyeongmo Kim, Ph.D., associate professor
• Youngmi Kim, Ph.D., associate professor
• Miriam Kuttikat, Ph.D., associate professor
• Nicole L. Lee, Ph.D., associate professor in teaching
• Yifan Lou, Ph.D., assistant professor
• Hollee A. McGinnis, Ph.D., assistant professor
• Ananda Newmark, Ph.D., associate professor in teaching
• Stephanie G. Odera, Ed.D., associate professor in teaching
• Klara Prachar, M.S.W., LCSW, assistant professor in teaching
• Nicole L. O-Pries, M.S.W., LCSW, associate professor in teaching
• Naomi Sutton Reddish, M.S.W., assistant professor in teaching
• Allison K. Ryals, M.S.W., LCSW, associate professor in teaching
• Sunny H. Shin, Ph.D., professor
• Rebecca Smith, Ph.D., instructor & program manager, undergraduate research
• M. Alex Wagaman, Ph.D., associate professor
• Traci L. Wike, Ph.D., associate professor
Administration and staff
• Robert Anderson, M.S., upper-level B.S.W. student success advisor
• Allison Bell, M.A., senior financial specialist
• LaKesha Bennett, B.A., senior recruitment specialist
• Qasarah Bey Spencer, Ed.D., director, M.S.W. Program
• Matthew Bogenschutz, Ph.D., co-chair, School Assembly
• Sarah Burton-Everette, M.Ed., assistant director, M.S.W. Program administration
• Stevara Haley Clark, Ed.D., interim associate dean, academic and student affairs; director, online education
• Lakeita Clarkson, M.S., M.S.W. student success advisor
• Gary S. Cuddeback, Ph.D., dean; associate dean, research; interim associate dean, faculty affairs
• Zacc Diamond-Tapper, B.A., academic coordinator, B.S.W. Program
• Kiara Faulks, M.A., academic coordinator, Ph.D. Program
• Nicholas Fetzer, M.P.A., assistant provost, finance & administration
• Liana Fino, B.S., senior research administrator
• Anna Givens, M.P.A., leadership annual giving officer
• Janina Holly, B.S., communications specialist
• Kristin A. Hopkins, M.A., assistant, M.S.W. admissions specialist
• Rebecca Johnson, Ph.D., student success writing advisor
• Kimberly King, administrative coordinator, field education; president, Staff Council
• Lacy, Caroline, M.Ed., M.S.W. student success advisor
• Geoff LoCicero, M.L.I.S., director, communications
• Amanda Long, M.S.W., coordinator, community engaged child and family well-being initiatives
• Jackie Maroney, fiscal services specialist
• Katy Martin-Poindexter, A.A.S., HR generalist
• Vanessa McCauley, B.S.W., HR generalist
• Mieko Michelle, MA.Ed., coordinator, M.S.W. Program
• Sterling Murray, B.S., student success administrative coordinator
• Bennett Newman, M.B.A., senior financial administrator
• Stephanie G. Odera, Ed.D., director, B.S.W. Program
• Kristal Parada, M.S., lower-level B.S.W. student success advisor
• Julie Pence, M.Ed., senior student success advisor
• Jazmyn Porter, M.P.H., M.S.W., interim director, field education
• Ieesha Ramsey, Ph.D., director, student success
• James V. Romanik, M.B.A., senior director, development
• Allison K. Ryals, M.S.W., LCSW, assistant director, B.S.W. Program
• Mary Simpson, M.S.W., M.S.W. student success advisor
• Leetah Stanley, M.Th., senior development coordinator
• Dannita Trice, M.Ed., alumni engagement officer
• Annie Wade, M.B.A., HR business partner
• Micah Weedman, Ph.D., term prep designer
• Henrietta White, B.S., HR generalist
• Traci L. Wike, Ph.D., director, Ph.D. Program
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Social Work
Academic Learning Commons
1000 Floyd Avenue, Third Floor Box 842027 Richmond, Virginia 23284-2027
Phone: (804) 828-1030
Email: sswinfo@vcu.edu
Website: socialwork.vcu.edu
Greater Richmond Convention Center floor plan/seating details
