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Msw Portfolio. Finding Purpose: A Journey Toward Meaningful Social Work Practice, Stephanie Altenhof

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

My MSW portfolio demonstrates my professional development through the University of Montana's MSW program using a multi-theoretical orientation. Through practicum experiences at the Alzheimer Society of BC and Coast Care Consulting, the portfolio showcases my mastery of the 10 social work competencies and five elements of advanced integrated practice, with a particular focus on trauma-informed care, rural and Indigenous contexts, and community-centered approaches to social work practice.

Master Of Social Work Portfolio, Eryn Eva Robinson

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio narrative chronicles my professional and personal development throughout my Master of Social Work (MSW) program, reflecting a journey grounded in Indigenous values, trauma-informed practice, and a commitment to social justice. Rooted in my identity as a Native American woman and informed by my grandmother’s survival of the Indian boarding school system, my practice philosophy emphasizes healing-centered engagement, cultural humility, and systemic advocacy. Through diverse practicum experiences, ranging from managing after-school youth programs to clinical work as a Registered Behavior Technician (RBT) supporting children on the autism spectrum, I integrated theoretical knowledge with hands-on practice. I applied frameworks such …

Msw Portfolio, Jennifer Lynn Barnhill

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

The Master of Social Work (MSW) Portfolio is a sample of the essays, presentations, projects, and experiences completed as part of my online MSW curriculum at the University of Montana (UM) School of Social Work (SSW) from 2022-2025. Throughout this narrative, I’ll describe the skills, values, theories, and frameworks I’ve learned during my three years working toward my master's degree in social work. Each of the appendices will demonstrate an understanding of the nine Council on Social Work Education, or CSWE, competencies (Texas College, n.d.) that all social workers are expected to meet, along with a tenth competency added by …

Msw Portfolio 2025, Lacie R. Ranieri

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

MSW Portfolio - 2025

Msw Portfolio, Karri Cossabone

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio provides a reflective account of the knowledge and skills I developed throughout my graduate social work education. Drawing from academic coursework, practicum placements, and professional experiences, I explore my growth in core areas such as ethical practice, cultural humility, clinical assessment and engagement, advocacy, and evidence-based interventions. I also cover my skills utilizing theory in practice, trauma-informed care, social justice frameworks, and the importance of self-awareness in effective client relationships. This paper also discusses challenges and learning opportunities and how they shaped my professional identity and prepared me to grow into a competent, compassionate, and culturally responsive practitioner.

Msw Portfolio, Andrea C. Lawrence

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Master Of Social Work, Tanner J. Bailey

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio documents my academic and professional development throughout the Master of Social Work (MSW) program at the University of Montana. Using my practicum experiences in juvenile probation and anonymous crisis intervention work, this paper integrates critical reflection, theory-informed application, and evidence-based practice to demonstrate my readiness as an advanced integrated social work practitioner.

Guided by the five elements of advanced integrated practice, the portfolio is structured around the ten core competencies outlined by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). Key theoretical frameworks such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), and trauma-informed care are discussed in relation …

Master Of Social Work Portfolio, Payten Thistlewaite

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Advocacy, Equity, And Impact: My Journey Through Social Work Practice, Stephanie L. Shaw

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio presents a comprehensive overview of my graduate-level social work education and field experiences, demonstrating mastery of the core competencies outlined by the Council on Social Work Education and the University of Montana School of Social Work. Through rigorous coursework, evidence-based interventions, and direct practice in both clinical and community-based settings, I developed and applied critical skills in ethical practice, cultural humility, policy advocacy, and research-informed service delivery. This work reflects a strong integration of theory and practice, commitment to advancing social justice, and a readiness to enter the field as a competent, reflective, and ethical social worker.

Msw Portfolio: Becoming Political, Stephanie Herther

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio captures my transformation through the University of Montana’s Master of Social Work program, shaped by both academic study and years of living and working abroad in under-resourced communities. Over three years, I have come to see the personal as inseparable from the political, grounding my practice in trauma-informed care, culturally responsive engagement, and the power of narrative-therapy. Guided by systems theory, attachment theory, and Critical Race Theory, I have woven together direct practice, community work, and policy advocacy to challenge inequities and honor the dignity of those most impacted by them. Each competency reflects not only skill development …

Msw Professional Portfolio-Glue Players, Chelsea Lucille Solberg

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Msw Portfolio, Julia Marie Sweeney

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio reflects my personal and professional growth throughout the University of Montana’s MSW program. Grounded in lived experience, child advocacy work, and academic learning, it highlights my development across core competencies and advanced integrated practice.

Becoming A Social Justice Worker, Laura Curry

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Rooted In Resilience: Exploring Indigenous Economic Models And Sustainability On The Rocky Boy Indian Reservation., Dominique Nault

Capstone Collection

This study examines how traditional practices and cultural values of the Chippewa Cree shape the economic identity and sustainability of the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation. Using a mixed-methods approach that combined demographic surveys with culturally grounded interviews, the research reveals that economic development in the community is inseparable from traditional knowledge systems, collective well-being, and ecological stewardship. Rather than centering on financial accumulations, wealth is defined by family, community, and cultural continuity, placing traditional knowledge on par with land and monetary resources.

Three central themes emerged from the data: (1) the enduring role of traditional values and cultural knowledge in …

Differential Mirna Expressions Linking Environmental Risk Factors To Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Stages At Diagnosis, Amjila Bam, Yawen Hu, Xiaocheng Wu, Meng Luo, Nubaira Rizvi, Luis Del Valle, Arnold H. Zea, Fokhrul Hossain, Denise Moore Danos, Jovanny Zabaleta, Augusto Ochoa, Lucio Miele, Edward Trapido, Qingzhao Yu

School of Public Health Faculty Publications

Background/Objectives: Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive, molecularly heterogeneous subtype of breast cancer, accounting for approximately 10–15% of all cases. While reproductive and metabolic factors contribute to breast cancer development, growing concerns about environmental exposures, alongside biological and socio-cultural influences, underscore the need for targeted prevention strategies across diverse populations. Despite increasing evidence linking biological, socioeconomic, and environmental factors to TNBC outcomes, the molecular mechanisms underlying these relationships remain poorly understood. Micro-RNAs (miRNAs), which regulate gene expression and play critical roles in cancer development, have emerged as potential mediators between environmental exposures and TNBC progression. The goal of …

Utahns’ Understanding & Support Of Environmental Equity & Justice, Dallin Johnson, Jordan Rowley, Stacia Ryder, Jennifer E. Givens, Avery C. Edenfield, Harley Thomas

Utah People and Environment Poll (UPEP)

Utah faces its fair share of environmental problems. Top concerns among residents are issues of drought, air quality, and the drying of the Great Salt Lake (1). However, research suggests that the impacts of environmental issues like disasters, pollution, resource overuse and climate change are not shared equally across society (2). This is a challenge for environmental justice, which maintains the need for fair treatment and outcomes for all people, regardless of race, ethnicity, and class, with respect to the enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies (3). Put more simply, everyone is entitled to a clean and healthy environment …

Ecological And Social Resilience In Wildfire-Prone Communities, Melissa Burnett

All Theses

Climate projections suggest extreme weather variability, introducing extremely wet years, followed by years with extreme drought. These weather conditions are creating fire weather conducive to increasing wildfires across the southeast over the next century, which can have extreme ecological consequences. The Appalachian Mountains historically had some of the highest fire frequencies in North America but have been subjected to decades of fire suppression and prevention policies, resulting in an environment subject to more high-severity wildfires. The fall of 2016 was one of the driest seasons on record in this region and resulted in intense and destructive fires in the southeastern …

A Mother And Social Worker Is Born, Gabrielle Jorns

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

Narrative describing the social work competencies that helped shape a social worker with an interest in maternal health.

Critical Communication Pedagogy At The End Of The World, Tyler S. Rife

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

This essay draws upon my experiences teaching the undergraduate course, “Communication at the End of the World,” to argue for an approach to critical communication pedagogy (CCP) contextualized by and reflexively responsive to planetary-scale ecological crises. I outline how five commitments have come to guide my classroom’s explorations through our topic of “end-times” communication: (1) Anthropocentrism and speciesism participate in the maintenance of social hierarchy; (2) environmental justice and social justice are intimately entangled projects; (3) ecological crisis is (re)made concrete, embodied, proximal, and implicative; (4) critique of language involves critique of humanism and humanist historicization; and, (5) ecologically just …

"No One Leaves For Free": A Media Analysis Of The Lived Experiences And Cumulative Impacts Of The Flint Water Crisis., Jordan Leigh Gatewood

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In April 2014, the city of Flint, Michigan changed their municipal water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River. The effects of this change have been felt far and wide as news broke across the nation that this water was contaminated with lead and residents of Flint were getting sick. This research analyzes 170 news articles from three local and three national news outlets over a 10-year span, 2014 to 2024, to determine how community voice is presented in news media to portray the lived experiences and cumulative impacts of the Flint Water Crisis. Applying a Critical Environmental Justice …

Msw Portfolio, Krystal F. Youngs

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Migration As Adaptation: Place-Based Vulnerability Near The Drying Great Salt Lake, Dallin Johnson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

The drying of the Great Salt Lake presents a complex and evolving threat to Utah residents, with wide-ranging environmental, economic, and health implications. This study explores the individual and structural factors impacting Utahns' ability to utilize migration as a form of adaptive capacity in response to these threats, using mobility justice and cumulative advantage and disadvantage theory as guiding frameworks. Drawing on survey data, a multilevel logistic regression model identifies key structural factors, including age, income, and gender, that influence perceived migration ability. Additionally, a 2x2 typology categorizes distinct profiles of vulnerability to the Great Salt Lake based on different …

Empowering The User Through Inclusive Technical Writing, Robert Enriquez

English Theses & Dissertations

This thesis examines the issues in technical writing due to a disconnect between writer and reader/user. I am basing this study on my real-life job. I am a manager at a well-known sneaker retailer. In August 2024, there was a Workforce Management (WFM) software that the sneaker retailer launched in the retail stores. The WFM itself was glitched and unfinished. Not much disclaimer, training or preparation was given other than these procedural documents the sneaker retailer gave. If all the store managers had to depend on was technical documentation to prepare for this already glitched WFM, then I argue there …

Literary Study In The Era Of Artificial Intelligence In China, Fen Gao, Pengfei Zhang

Kritika Kultura

In view of the salient characteristics of technological innovation and human-machine symbiosis in the era of artificial intelligence, Chinese literary circles have purveyed a productive exploration of “literary study in the era of artificial intelligence.” Chinese scholars’ innovation of literary theory consists of three characteristics. First, they have established the original theory of “brain text,” systematically analyzed the definition, formation mechanism, and relationship between “brain text” and literature, language, text, and cognition, and applied this theory to literary criticism. Second, on the basis of sorting out and summarizing the core viewpoints of Western digital humanities theory, Chinese scholars have carried …

Advancing Interactive Web Cartography Through Designing And Developing An Open-Source, Data-Driven Framework For Accessible Geovisualization Of Geospatial (Big) Data, Sarigai Sarigai

Geography ETDs

The growth of geospatial big data has intensified the demand for open-source, accessible tools for interactive spatial exploration. This dissertation introduces a modular web mapping framework and details its design, extension, and evaluation to advance geovisualization through user-centered, transferable design. The first study presents the original framework, named dciWebMapper, establishing foundational cartographic and information visualization principles, with a focus on modularity and extensibility. The second study extends dciWebMapper with advanced capabilities—such as diverse map types, bivariate visualizations, temporal filtering, spatial querying, and hotspot analysis—and demonstrates its broad transferability across domains. The third study offers a structured usability evaluation of …

Experienced Latinx Urban Gardeners In San Jose, Ca, Offer Strategies For Climate Justice And Resilience, Claudia S. Damiani Fontana

Master's Theses

Low-income and underinvested communities will be disproportionately affected by climate change due to limited resources, inadequate infrastructure, and insufficient support systems. Urban gardeners are responding to the need to adapt to new climate conditions while sustaining their food sources and cultural practices. Many have adapted thanks to local interventions led by the government and non-profit agencies. For this study, I partnered with La Mesa Verde (LMV), a gardening and food justice program that works with low-income Latinx families in San José, and I documented the contributions of experienced Latinx gardeners, especially those with agricultural backgrounds, to climate-resilient gardening in San …

Health Impacts, Air Pollution And Electric Vehicles In California, Pufan Qi

Economics ETDs

This research examines the impact of electric vehicles (EVs) on air quality in California over the period from 2010 to 2021, as well as the implications of air pollution for respiratory health, organized into five chapters. The initial chapter provides background information and outlines the objectives, findings, and contributions. The second chapter examines the relationship between air quality and electric vehicles by utilizing fixed effect panel regression models. The third chapter employs panel regressions with Poisson control models to assess the correlation between changes in air quality resulting from electric vehicles and the prevalence of respiratory diseases. The fourth chapter …

Making The Macc: Communities Of Practice And Cultural Citizenship In Austin, Texas, Cassie Lynn Smith

Anthropology ETDs

Meaningful community engagement is a challenge for local governments without a thorough understanding of constituents’ histories and their relationship with City government. This dissertation investigates the City of Austin’s (COA) Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center (MACC) in Austin, Texas, to understand how this culture and arts institution engages with and is influenced by its patrons. This study analyzes the role of the MACC’s community of practice (Lave and Wenger 1991)—an evolving group of educators, activists, artists, and COA staff—in shaping public policy and educational programming as well as creating places of belonging for marginalized people in the city. …

Listening To Facilitate Change: Youth And Indigenous Voices Call For Critical Environmental Justice At Great Salt Lake, Sarah Woodbury, Christina Morgan

Transforming Communities

As Great Salt Lake faces rapid ecological decline, nearby communities face serious environmental injustices. Yet, despite threats ranging from toxic dust to migration inequality, state actions have been insufficient to maintain recommended water levels and ecological health at the lake. Our critical commentary uses the lens of critical environmental justice to consider human values connected to the lake. We briefly describe current advocacy efforts for the lake including a 2023 gathering and resultant panel at the 2024 Community Engagement Conference in Moab, Utah. Ultimately, we argue that braiding together multiple types of knowledge encourages the growth of new approaches to …

Public Understanding Of And Engagement With Community Health Workers And Promotores De Salud: Findings From Two National Surveys, Elizabeth A. Rohan, Julie S. Townsend, Andrea Torres, Hope L. Thompson, Dawn M. Holman, Avid Reza, Felicia Solomon Tharpe, Erin Caple, Ashley Wennerstrom

School of Public Health Faculty Publications

INTRODUCTION: Community health workers (CHWs) can improve health by helping people navigate health care services and systems and connecting them to community services that address nonmedical factors such as food insecurity, housing, and transportation. While CHWs have long been part of the US public health system, there are no data, to our knowledge, on the public's familiarity and interactions with CHWs. METHODS: We analyzed data from the 2022 Porter Novelli FallStyles and Estilos surveys, online market research surveys of the general public delivered in English (FallStyles) or primarily Spanish (Estilos). Each survey asked the same 4 questions on familiarity and …