Faculty and Staff
Maria "Sal" VelezFall 2023 Cohort |
Maria Salome “Sal” Velez earned both her BSW and MSW from East Tennessee State University. She worked with Department of Children’s Services for 10 years in both foster care and investigations gaining extensive experience in child welfare and the juvenile court system. She also worked with teens who were at risk for foster care or psychiatric hospitalization providing intensive in-home care and support to the youth and family to prevent hospitalization or state custody. She subsequently worked at a boys shelter for unaccompanied minors and also worked in private practice providing individual therapy to clients with depression, anxiety, eating disorders, personality disorders, grief and loss, among other mental health issues.
Sal’s experience in the shelter proved to be transformative and launched her trajectory into her areas of interest, the mental health of unaccompanied minor children and lack of access to resources. In her pursuit of her PhD in social work Sal intends to address the challenges faced by minor children and their access to care post custody and the policy level barriers that prevent the children and families from receiving the care they need.
Sal chose USF as her home for her PhD program because the faculty were supportive and encouraging throughout the application and acceptance process. Once Sal arrived on campus she was welcomed by knowledgeable and experienced faculty and staff who were quick to provide support, assistance, and encouragement.