Personal Statement: Reflection

11 Competencies
Wayne State University
Trevor Verrier

SW 4997
Professor Weiner
April 6, 2015

The past two years have flown by barley allowing me time to

comprehend all that I have learned and experienced. I have battled ADD and
Dyslexia my whole life and if you had lain out everything I have
accomplished over the past two years in this program, I would have been
overwhelmed and thought there is no way I am going to be able to do this.
However, looking back at everything I have accomplished to this point so far
has at the very least instilled a confidence in my ability to handle whatever
social work and life will throw at me from here on out. I have also learned
and begun to grasp the many competencies that Wayne State has set forth
for us to comprehend.
2.1.1 Identify as a professional social worker and conduct oneself
accordingly
This was something that I struggled with and something I feel most
social work students do. As a student, I was unsure of my knowledge and
lacked confidence in what I did know. Recently I have become more confident
in my role as a professional social work thanks in part to my field placement
where I have had the opportunity to present workshops to licensed social
workers. I was also given some sound advice by a professor to fake it until
you make it. You have to carry yourself as a professional to become a
professional.
2.1.2 Apply social work ethical principles to guide professional
practice

Coming into the program I felt I was a very ethical person and still
believe that I was and continue to be. My time interning at the NASW-MI
Chapter however has continued to expand upon my ethical decision making
skills as it pertains to social work and the various ethical dilemma that can
arise in practice. My understanding of the NASW Code of Ethics has improved
in part to the ethical dilemma cases that the Director discussed with the
other interns and I.
2.1.3 Apply Critical thinking to inform and communicate
professional judgments
2.1.4 Engage diversity and difference in practice
Thinking critically is skill I have felt I have always had however, after
attending my social work classes for the last two years I have been
challenged to remove my biases when thinking critically. Upon the
completion of many papers on self-reflection and various difficult topics, I
realized that my critical thinking was not where it needed to be. Removing
your personal and professional biases is key when communicating
professional judgments.
2.1.5 Advance human rights and social and economic justice
2.1.6 Engage in research- informed practice and practice informed
research
2.1.7 Apply Knowledge of human Behavior and the social
environment

Human rights, social and economic justice have been passions of mine
long before I thought of entering the field of social work and it is partially
what drew me to this career path. Since entering the school of social work I
have been focusing my research and practice in the area of human
trafficking. Through my class room assignments and various awareness
events I have hosted on campus, I have sought to spread awareness about
human trafficking and how we as social workers need to be on the fore front
of providing services to survivors and policy change. As I mentioned before,
through my internship I have had the opportunity to present a few workshops
on human trafficking and will be presenting another at the NASW Annual
Conference this week. With a responsibility as big as presenting to
professionals who may know as much as me if not more, I have done
extensive research and interviewed legislators and social workers to make
sure I am providing the most accurate information I can.
Human behavior and the social environment influence my policy
section of the presentation. One area in which policy is affected or should be
affected by what I have learned in my human behavior class is in regards to
treating victims as victims and mandating the offer of free services. When a
young girl or boy is taking at a young age and forced into sexual slavery
there are stages of development that the girl or boy do not go through not to
mention the trauma they have now experienced. When they are rescued, in
many states, they are treated as prostitutes and treated as criminals, when
what they need is to assumed victims and help to receive free services

because now often times they are houseless with little to no money to pay
for food or court fees or shelter or services. This could be turned into a full
paper on its own and currently in Michigan, while there are some protections
for minors, they are still forced to prove that they are victims and not
criminals.
2.1.8 Engage in policy practice to advance social and economic well
being and to deliver effective social work services.
2.1.9 Respond to contexts that shape practice
My internship has afforded me many and invaluable learning
experiences that most other BSW students and even MSW students may
never have. Currently at the NASW-MI Chapter they are working on policy
changes at the state level dealing with the gaps in services to the Deaf and
Hard of Hearing populations here in Michigan. I have had the opportunity to
sit in on the DHHDB Task Force to see how they propose engaging the
legislature on various issues. It is also exciting to see how a group of
practitioners saw a need and have decided to do something about it. Now
they are shaping not only how social workers will practice but also how all
other professions that deal with community will practice.
2.1.10 Engage, assess, intervene and evaluate with individuals,
families, groups, organizations and communities
The Generalist Intervention Model (GIM) has been ingrained into our
subconscious since the first semester but it was the many role plays that

really helped me to understand how to implement the GIM in practice, along

with the papers that broke down our role plays in detail.
11 Analyze the impact of the urban context on a range of client
systems, including practice implications
My understanding of how an urban context can effect clients systems
and practice implications has greatly improved I feel due to the urban setting
of Wayne State University. I believe for your BSW degree WSU is by far the
best University in the state if not the country, due to its urban context and its
diverse student population. All Urban contexts are not the same and do vary,
however, the Urban context of Detroit has a large impact on clients systems
and practice. Wide spread poverty, violence, lack of public transportation,
lack of quality grocery stores (food deserts) are just some of the things that
can affect clients and practice.