Eastern Student Hanna Levesque of Bristol Assists with Social Work Course Immigration Policy Event

2017 Dec 5

Eastern Connecticut State University Social Work majors enrolled in three sections of the University's Social Welfare Policy course recently assisted in sponsoring the University's annual Social Action Day. The event, "DACA 411," was the result of a collaborative effort between students in course sections being taught by Professors Isabel Logan, Paul Trubey and Pamela Chiang.

Hanna Levesque '19 of Bristol was one of the students who participated in organizing the event as a student in the course. In addition to a major in Social Work, Levesque minors in Criminology.

The event provided discourse and information about Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), the immigration policy that granted temporary protection to eligible immigrants who entered the country as minors and received a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation. The policy also allowed the eligible immigrants to obtain work permits, drivers' licenses and attend college.

The Social Welfare Policy course explores the use of social policy for meeting human needs and achieving social ideals, as well as helps foster education about the processes of policy making and implementation emphasizing the impact of the political, economic and culture climate related to social welfare policy. It also teaches the students about the roles of the public and private sectors in the delivery in social welfare services.

The students enrolled in each section of the course collaborated on three different tools of social interaction - legislative, media, and direct actions - in order to address the social issue of immigration reform. The purpose of the assignment was for students to understand processes of policy practice and to be empowered to undertake policy practice in the form of social action as social work professionals.

The students from the Social Welfare Policy class immersed themselves in planning and coordinating the event which included a mock debate, panel discussion and question and answer period that included featured speakers that included Democratic Representative Susan M. Johnson who represents local District 49 and Attorney at Law Edwin Colon, J.D., MSW, director of the Immigrant Children's Justice Project at the Center for Children's Advocacy in Hartford, among others.

Students in Professor Trubey's class, including Levesque, were responsible for the direct action portion of the assignment, which included developing and circulating petitions and the overall organization of the event. Students in Professor Logan's and Chiang's classes were responsible for other duties included media and legislative actions related to the event.

"The students were very engaged in several areas including the research study to assess the familiarity and knowledge of the DACA issue on campus. These Social Work student majors are learning the importance of a portion of social work education that involves standing up for social change and against social injustice. The students in the course embraced this challenge and put together an informative program," said Professor Trubey.

Levesque said, "The expectations I had for the event were blown out of the water. I couldn't have chosen a better group of individuals to speak with and learn from. I hope that the overall message people took away from our Social Action Day is that above all else, Eastern cares, and we are trying to help our fellow colleagues, friends, and loved ones enrolled in the DACA program feel protected."

Levesque plans to apply for the Advanced Standing Master's Program, which would allow her to take one full year of classes in an advanced social work program, as opposed to two, to achieve a master's degree. "Since Eastern's Social Work program is an accredited program, meaning it meets all of the NASW (National Alliance of Social Workers) guidelines, it has had multiple advanced standing graduates," said Levesque.

Levesque aspires to become an addiction services head counselor for the CT Department of Correction. "I tutored inmates at the Corrigan-Radgowski Correctional Center in Uncasville, a high-security level security facility, and was totally fascinated by the prison infrastructure. Due to budget cuts, the school wing had been shut down, and my tutoring was halted. But I never stopped envisioning myself possibly returning at some point, with the motive of assisting with prison drug rehabilitation programs. I am driven by the topic of addiction and feel my passion for making a difference, along with my interest in the prison system and drive to help addicts, could come together and make me a great fit for such a position."