UW-Madison Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work

09/02/2026

Congratulations to three grads who finished their PhDs in Social Welfare this summer!

07/31/2026

🌟 Happy National Intern Day! 🌟

Each year, Family Voices of Wisconsin is proud to welcome interns through the UW-Madison Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work as well as the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities. Their passion, fresh perspectives, and dedication help strengthen our work and better serve families across Wisconsin.

This year, you have seen easy-to-understand policy updates, advocacy efforts, and helpful information for navigating care from Amber. You've also discovered easy-to-implement self-care tips and thoughtful guidance on navigating care as a family from Jordan—and so much more!

Thank you to our interns for sharing your talents, creativity, and commitment. We are truly grateful to be part of your journey.🧡

07/27/2026

Congratulations Ady Phillips, BSW '26 on this impactful change agent project!

Read more: https://socwork.wisc.edu/2026/07/23/student-change-agent-project-to-be-used-by-county-agencies/

07/09/2026

Congratulations to doctoral candidate, Katarina Craig, who is one of the 2026 Equity First Summer Associates to Chapin Hall! 🎉 (Photo bottom left). She is one of six students participating in six weeks of intensive professional development to learn the complex realities of conducting culturally responsive and racially equitable research in applied settings. We wish them a fruitful experience.

Copy and paste this link to see the full post from Chapin Hall https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EWVes5Cau/

07/09/2026

Congratulations, Dr. Gerassi!

06/24/2026

It is with great sadness that we recently learned of the untimely passing of our alumna and friend, Olivia “Liv” Maria Orencia.

Olivia graduated with a BSW in 2019 and an MSW in 2020 and served as a Field Supervisor and guest speaker for classes in the school while working as a social worker at UW Health and Agrace Hospice Care.

Clinical Assistant Professor Jaime Goldberg shared this remembrance:
"I had the privilege of working with Olivia at UW Health and later invited her to guest lecture in several of my classes, where she shared her extensive knowledge and experience as a healthcare social worker. Olivia was exceptionally sharp, deeply compassionate, and uniquely talented—a fierce advocate for the patients and families in her care. In the classroom, she had a rare gift for instantly connecting with students and inspiring them to be their best. I am going to miss working with her tremendously."

Senior Field Instructor/Lecturer Tim Latimer, shared:
"Olivia was a strong advocate and a compassionate supporter for patients and families. Olivia provided valuable guidance and mentorship to many students completing field work."

We extend our deepest sympathy to her fiancé John, her family, friends, and to all who knew and loved Olivia. She will be greatly missed.
https://defiorefuneral.com/obituaries/3094/olivia-orencia-

06/23/2026

Faculty from the school help facilitate a new UW-Madison program called, "Fostering Success for Independent Badger Scholars."

“Anything that we can do to wrap support around them can be helpful in better outcomes,” says Clinical Associate Professor, Alice Egan.

Educational outcomes for students who have experienced foster care are problematic. For the small percentage of foster kids who go to college, making it to graduation is difficult given the constellation of factors often present in the lives of young people who experienced foster care, including and...

06/18/2026

Associate Professor Jooyoung Kong’s work on the complex dynamics of intergenerational caregiving was recently featured in The New York Times, "The Pain of Caring for a Parent Who Abused You."

Dr. Kong "found that, sometimes, culture explained the existence of these caregivers. There were people in certain communities and certain families who never questioned their obligations. They understood that they were meant to be caregivers, whatever happened before.

"But there were structural causes too."

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/15/magazine/elder-care-parent-abuse.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

06/09/2026

Congratulations to MSW alum Haley Ingersoll for being recognized as a Top 20 connector! Click here to see the Top 20 list https://www.chamberofconnection.org/pittsburgh!

05/27/2026

In the news: Anne Wackman Oros Associate Professor Tova Walsh co-authors co-ed for The Hill: Weaponizing passports won’t help American kids

The State Department has announced plans to revoke passports from Americans with child support debt, which will disproportionately affect fathers, and is being met with criticism that it is a count…