ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

LULIS DEL CASTILLO GONZALEZ MSW 1997,
Ph.D. Candidate

“I think the Ph.D. program is good. The program is strong and it’s getting stronger.”

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Lulis del Castillo Gonzalez has been involved with the College of Social Work – as a student, field instructor, mentor and adjunct faculty member – for more than 13 years and, according to her, things are only getting better.

Del Castillo Gonzalez moved to Columbia from Oklahoma in 1994 with her husband, who is a dermopathologist. She already had an undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Texas at Austin and had worked in non-profit organizations including Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Austin and The Respite Center in Wisconsin which provides 24-hour respite and crisis child care to parents experiencing high levels of stress. She had been considering pursuing an MSW but wanted her academic emphasis to stay aligned with her professional experience, so she researched the College of Social Work and was attracted to its micro/macro track option.

“That division had appeal to me,” del Castillo Gonzalez said. She graduated in 1997 then went on to work as executive director of Children’s Chance in Columbia.

“It was a staff of me and the board,” she remembered.

She went on to Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands where she was grants administrator and program evaluator, and later, assistant director of administration. The mother of two had been considering pursuing a Ph.D. but had been out of school for six years and did not want to start the program if she couldn’t give it “150 percent.”

Then she was approached by Dr. Terry Tirrito and Dr. Leon Ginsberg who saw her presentation at a conference and convinced her to enroll in the program.

“One of the biggest sells is that the Ph.D. program is a strong program and the faculty I come in contact with are excellent. It’s a good group of people to know; they know their stuff,” she said. “I like that it’s rigorous. It’s a bit of work but no one said it’s easy.”

Despite the demands of the program, she continues to mentor students and encourages them to get involved outside of the classroom with professional organizations like the National Association of Social Workers, of which she has been active as a regular member and on the board as vice president for two years.

After completing the doctorate, Del Castillo Gonzalez wants to get involved in policy at the local level.

“I think the Ph.D. program is good. I think it’s a strong program and it’s getting stronger as we go.”