Humboldt State University

Pamela Brown, MSW, Ed.D.

Professor
(707) 826-4564
Behavioral and Social Sciences 542
pb4@humboldt.edu

After practice in the fields of mental health and development disabilities, I accepted a teaching position in social work in 1977 at Bodø College in the arctic region of Norway where I taught practice and field courses for six years. I have been teaching ever since. My practice interests are in family violence and poverty. My most recent research projects include two collaborative studies with colleagues in Russia, Australia, Canada and Norway on social work education, poverty and crisis shelters. I find it rewarding to forge partnerships with people who are most affected by injustice and inequity as a way to affect change in policies and practices in our social welfare system.

John Gai, MSW

Professor
(707) 826-4552
Behavioral and Social Sciences 452
jfg1@humboldt.edu

I came to Humboldt in 1975 to teach for a year. I had worked in social work for twelve years, first as the BA level then as a clinical practitioner. My interest was in working with students to develop heartfelt practice in social work. The years in this program have been absolutely rewarding for me and I find great joy in meeting the wonderful people who come to study social work here. I have taught courses from an ecological systems perspective in human behavior, social work practice, family therapy, clinical and medical social work, as well as death and dying, aging, loneliness and love, altruism, human integration. I have never interrupted my practice in the field working with Hospice, General and Mad River Hospitals, Family Service Center, Catholic Charities, Rape Crisis and other agencies serving people on the North Coast.

Jane Holschuh, MSW, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
(707) 826-4457
Behavioral and Social Sciences 448
jh91@humboldt.edu

I am very pleased to have joined the faculty in the Department of Social Work in 2004.I received my BA in Social Welfare from the University of California at Berkeley. I also received my MSW with a specialization in Community Mental Health and my PhD in Social Welfare from UC-Berkeley. I have worked as a social work practitioner in both the substance abuse and mental health arenas. The focus of my mental health practice has been on services to adults diagnosed with serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. My professional and scholarly interests include research on public mental health service delivery systems, social support and social networks, the interplay between informal and formal systems of care, labeling processes and stigma, and homelessness. I was on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Arizona State University where I taught undergraduate and graduate courses on research methods, assessment and mental health practice, case management, homelessness, and clinical practice seminars. The primary focus of my community service and advocacy efforts is on reducing stigma and discrimination and on promoting justice and equality for adults with serious mental health problems and for those who are homeless.

Christian M. Itin, MSW, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Associate Director, MSW Program
(707) 826-4451
Behavioral and Social Sciences 454
ci3@humboldt.edu

I joined the faculty at HSU in fall 2005. My BS is in Social Work from Cornell University and my MSW and PhD in Social Work from the University of Denver. I’ve been teaching in social work education since 1995. Prior to arriving here, I was the founding faculty member of the Greater Rochester Collaborative MSW Program in Rochester, NY and an Assistant Clinical professor at the University of Denver in Denver, CO. My practice experience is in the area of addictions and mental health primarily with youth, families and groups. I’ve also worked with community groups and organizational change. My specialized area of focus is in wilderness and adventure-based practice. My scholarship focuses on the philosophy of experiential education, the application of wilderness and adventure-based practice, group work, and work within the HIV/AIDS community. I enjoy music, art, gardening, hiking, backpacking, climbing, skiing, riding my motorcycle and trying new things.

Sheri Johnson, MSW

Director of Field Education
(707) 826-4452
Behavioral and Social Sciences 546
slj1@humboldt.edu

I started teaching at Humboldt State University in 1999 in the Sociology Department while working full time as the project director for the Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services Public Health Branch Domestic Violence Prevention Program. For many years, I worked in the management of the local battered women’s program where I began as a crisis line worker in 1981. For ten years, I co-instructed with law enforcement the domestic violence unit at the College of the Redwoods police academy. Before moving to Humboldt County in 1980, I lived in San Francisco for ten years and learned how to engage in community organizing in the Haight Ashbury. I remain committed to the principles of equality and social justice. I am thrilled to become the Director of Field Education and look forward to the difference our program can make for our students and for the Humboldt County community.

Tene Kremling, MSW, LCSW

Lecturer
(707) 826-4552
Behavioral and Social Sciences 452
tlk15@humboldt.edu

Tene is a member of the Yurok Tribe and an LCSW. She maintains a consulting business with a focus on wraparound, development of a children’s system of care, American Indian cultural awareness and Positive Indian Parenting. She has worked with American Indian children and families in both rural reservation and urban settings and in schools as a therapist, trainer and clinical director.

Michelle Lopez

CalSWEC Administrative Support Assistant
(707) 826-4459
Behavioral and Social Sciences 514a
ml40@humboldt.edu

Jen Maguire, MSW

CalSWEC Coordinator
(707) 826-4458
Behavioral and Social Sciences 510a
jenmaguire@humboldt.edu

Ken Nakamura, MSW, LCSW

Associate Professor
Department Chair
Director, MSW Program
(707) 826-4447
Behavioral and Social Sciences 510c
kkn1@humboldt.edu

As a third-generation, Japanese American, I've always been interested in the unique cultural experiences of diverse ethnic children and families. As a school social worker and a clinical social worker before teaching at HSU, I was involved in developing collaborative programs for young people and their families through school-based, comprehensive mental health services that were family centered and culturally responsive. Currently, I'm active on county commissions, boards and foundations, and with human service agencies to improve the health and well being of our local communities. In particular, I remain committed to working with diverse populations and with improving public social service delivery. I enjoy the opportunity to support students to find meaning in their life choices and develop a satisfying, reflective practice guided by social work values.

Barbara J. Nowak, MSW, Ph.D., LCSW

Assistant Professor
(707) 826-5346
Behavioral and Social Sciences 450
bjn18@humboldt.edu

I am delighted to be a faculty member at such a progressive social work program as HSU’s. I received my BSW and MSW degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and then worked for 10 years as a licensed chemical dependency counselor, family therapist, and hospital administrator before returning for my Ph.D. in Urban Studies. I have taught social work courses at Carthage College in Wisconsin, the University of Houston and Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas, and was the MSW Program Director at Florida A & M University for 9 years before coming to HSU. I enjoy working with students, faculty, and community members to bring about social and economic justice. My research interests are in international social work, human trafficking, rural social work, chemical dependency and mental health issues, multicultural practice and the place for spirituality in social work practice.

Michelle Rainer, MSW, LCSW

Lecturer
(707) 826-4449
Behavioral and Social Sciences 540
mr49@humboldt.edu

 

 

Ronnie Swartz, MSW, Ph.D., LCSW

Assistant Professor
Director, Undergraduate Social Work Program
(707) 826-4562
Behavioral and Social Sciences 514c
rjs19@humboldt.edu
website »

I am particularly interested in the living wisdom and knowledge people have developed, and the processes through which this wisdom and knowledge is marginalized by dominant cultural discourses. I believe social work requires a commitment to highly ethical and effective practices that privilege people's ways of thinking, feeling, acting, and being in the world rather than universalizing experience and totalizing people's identities. As a social worker I have consulted with individuals and their families, adults, and organizations in education, mental health, substance abuse, juvenile justice, and child advocacy systems. My interests include narrative work, harm reduction, restorative justice, family-centered practices, and social/economic policy. My purpose in practicing and teaching social work is to assist people in the realization of their preferred ways of being in the world.

Lorraine Taggart

BSW Administrative Support Assistant
(707) 826-4448
Behavioral and Social Sciences 514b
llt1@humboldt.edu

Amy Walker

MSW Administrative Support Assistant
(707) 826-4443
Behavioral and Social Sciences 510b
msw@humboldt.edu

Margi Waller, MSW, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
(707) 826-5350
Behavioral and Social Sciences 544
maw62@humboldt.edu

I bring to the Department of Social Work perspective based on experience as an integrated arts therapist, family therapist, and 14 years experience teaching in state universities. My research focus is resilience theory and its application to understanding the protective factors that facilitate educational resilience in Native students and well-being in Native communities. I teach courses in human behavior, practice, capstone, and cross-cultural understanding.

 

Emeriti Faculty

Kathryn Corbett (1952-1980)

Ken Hallum (1968-1987)

Sara Turner (1976-1991)

Barbara Childers (1989-1996)

Ben Fairless (1968-1999)

Maria Bartlett (1999-2007)