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In honor of Social Work Month, CaseWorthy would like to recognize the vast contributions of social workers to the field of human services. Across the United States, more than 715,000 social workers are serving in schools, home health agencies, child welfare offices, nonprofit organizations, mental health providers and numerous other settings. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), there are more professional social workers than any other type of mental health service provider. Social workers not only work directly with individuals to improve lives, they are also involved in planning, administration, policy development, grantmaking, systems design, and yes, even technology for human services!
We took a moment to interview two of our own social workers here at CaseWorthy.
Did you ever work in direct practice?
Stefanie: Yes! I have worked in a mental health counseling program, provided case management services to legal aid clients, and worked in job training and readiness programs. I love getting to meet and talk to all kinds of people trying to improve their lives and I love the puzzle of figuring out how to connect people to the resources that would best meet their needs.
Sara: Yep! I cut my teeth right out of undergrad working in a charter school in an underserved neighborhood in Kansas City. I supported connecting students and their families with community resources. It is an incredible experience. I put myself through graduate schoolworking to find foster placements for children and youth in states custody.
Do you consider yourself a social worker today, now that you work in tech?
Stefanie: Absolutely! At its core, social work is about promoting changes in all types of systems so that people can meet their needs and live the best life possible. In my job, I get to help organizations use software to make their work easier and more impactful so they can better help people in their communities. It hard for me to imagine something more social work-y.
Sara: Heck yes! Working in sales gives me so many opportunities to hone my skills. I frequently say that a phenomenal salesperson is nothing more than a half decent social worker. You are constantly thinking on your feet and finding the best solution for problems at hand. Motivational interviewing, being solution focused and strengths based. All these tools that my MSW armed me with is what I use every day in supporting organizations on their journey to becoming data informed.
What surprises you most about working in the software industry?
Stefanie: Working at CaseWorthy has given me an even greater appreciation for the heroism of social workers and other human service professionals. Organizations are required to navigate complex eligibility rules, data collection guidelines, grant requirements, and more to deliver quality services that impact lives. Despite the challenges, I feel hopeful when I see strides being made to almost eliminate homelessness among veterans in some communities, vastly increase healthcare coverage rates and quality of care, and more.
Sara: The importance of language and how different disciplines use the same words in wildly different contexts. For example, our developers have a standing meeting they call “Grooming.” This is apparently a very common terminology in the world of developers. As a child welfare social worker, it stopped me in my tracks. It also made for a very enlightening conversation with our VP of product development. We both learned so much from each other that day!
What do you love most about working at CaseWorthy?
Sara: Hands down, and without question, it’s the people. A team of folks from all over the country and from all different disciplines and perspectives and skills coming together to work towards a common goal. A goal that that is bigger than each of us individually. It is such a treat to get to be part of this team.
Stefanie: I agree with Sara on this one. It is so exciting to get to work on teams that bring together professionals from diverse technology and human services backgrounds to collaborate and find innovative solutions to tough challenges.
What do you love most about your role at CaseWorthy?
Stefanie: As a solutions consultant, I help organizations figure out how they can best use the features available in CaseWorthy to achieve their data goals. I absolutely love talking to people in human services about their work and what they need and then thinking through options for how those needs can be met. It makes my day when I show a service provider how CaseWorthy can help make their work easier and their eyes light up thinking about the possibilities.
Sara: As an Account Executive on the sales team, I have the unique privilege of getting to talk to passionate people day in and day out about the work they do to support their communities. I hear from and build relationships with some of the greatest humans in the world. Humans with passions toward being part of something bigger than themselves. This is the greatest gift. Regardless of winning their business or not. I absolutely love learning about how communities are coming together in unique and innovative ways to best support the most vulnerable in their community. It truly is the greatest gift.
Meet Sara & Stephanie
Sara Nagel is an Account Executive at CaseWorthy and has been with the company since 2019. Prior to joining CaseWorthy, Sara spent over 15 years supporting Quality Improvement and Compliance activities for human service agencies. This included database administration and data utilization. She has received recognition from the Council on Accreditation for her leadership in leveraging data in the pursuit of operational and performance outcomes. Sara has a Master of Social Welfare Administration and Management and is fueled by her passion for putting meaningful data in the hands of human service professionals.
Stefanie Lopez is the Solutions Consultant Lead at CaseWorthy and has been with the company since 2022. Prior to joining CaseWorthy, Stefanie spent more than 10 years working in non-profit organizations committed to expanding economic opportunity for low-income individuals and families through workforce development, entrepreneurship, increased access to financial institutions, and other initiatives. Stefanie has experience in program management and development, facilitating collaborations, measuring impact, and continuous quality improvement. She has a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in Social Work.