Student Achievements
A Nontraditional Student Finds Various Successes Through GVSU
March 16, 2020
Glen Brookhouse, a nontraditional student with a Bachelor of Social Work degree, will graduate from the Master of Social Work program from GVSU this April. Through this program, Grand Valley has given him new perspectives that will impact the way he views the world around him. He had the privilege of being a Graduate Assistant as part of his academic experience. This provided him with the opportunity to be a teaching assistant for undergraduate classes and to research materials for the School of Social Work accreditation process in 2019. In 2020, he had the privilege of leading a breakout session presentation at the GVSU conference on the Art of Science and Aging.
He was given the opportunity to be a contributing author to two chapters of a case study book written by Dr. George Grant and Dr. Jerry Johnson which is currently in print. The opportunity for Glen to work with Dr. Johnson and Dr. Grant on their upcoming book is a continuing work that will extend beyond graduation. This project is a chance for him to apply many of his research skills and advance to the next level of writing by being a published contributing author on the topics of best practices for co-occurring disorders and trauma informed care.
In 2020, he had the privilege of leading a breakout session presentation at the GVSU conference on the Art of Science and Aging. The conference and the book are closely correlated with his interest in working with people experiencing addiction and poverty. He is interested in providing an often-overlooked population with ways to become healthy contributors to their communities.
The work he has done to prepare for the conference = gave him the opportunity to learn the logistics of developing a presentation plan with a team of researchers. His team researched and prepared a presentation that provided contributing factors, statistics and the best practices to address the social issue of homelessness in older (50+) adults. The takeaway from this experience is the confidence he gained in being an informed professional in his field with the ability to deliver accurate and credible information in a public speaking role. This presentation was the pilot study portion of a research project that will culminate with the writing of an article to be presented in a peer reviewed journal.
The opportunity to be a presenter at a conference and to be a contributing author in a published text will provide exponential benefits for his career path. Presenting and public speaking have strengthened his skill set which will be beneficial to advancement within an agency. The credential of being a published writer has similar benefits in skill set improvement and potential for advancement to an administrative position in an agency. . Another honor he has received is being nominated by the School of Social Work faculty to be inducted into the Phi Kappa Phi honor society this March.
GVSU has provided numerous experiences in the classroom and within the community through internship opportunities that have expanded Glen’s comprehension of society and issues that impact social equilibrium. GVSU has given him perspectives of learning and professionalism that go far beyond the rigid professional standards that are presented in textbooks. He has learned leadership skills that he will take with him into the field. This will be beneficial to the populations he will serve through clinical and therapeutic work and eventually through an administrative role. GVSU has been an incredible experience. He looks forward to applying his learned skills, but he will miss the Laker environment.