2025 MSW Student Awards
Author(s)
Edith M. Davis Award
Jontel Monique Armstead (MSW ’25)
The Davis Award recognizes the best paper focusing on a non-dominant racial or ethnic group or a person or persons of color. The award honors Professor Emerita Edith M. Davis, who was the founding director of the GSSW doctoral program. Jontel Armstead’s award-winning paper, “Racial Trauma Among Black Americans: Context and Healing,” examines systemic oppression and racial trauma experienced by Black Americans. Grounded in a trauma-informed and anti-racist lens, the paper challenges dominant narratives, centers Black voices and critically interrogates the historical and ongoing impacts of racism. Written for the course Trauma-Informed Assessment and Interventions taught by Adjunct Professor Anthony Madril, the paper expresses a commitment to justice, equity and transformative healing that aligns with Professor Davis’s legacy of advocating for marginalized communities and advancing scholarship that confronts systemic injustice.
Tommi Frank Memorial Award
Hannah Tralka (MSW ’25)
The Frank Memorial Award is named for the late Tommi Frank, MSW ’64. It recognizes the student judged by faculty to have submitted the most creative and imaginative paper or project in social work or social welfare. The award particularly values the creation of new concepts, arrangements of concepts and/or new ways of relating knowledge to practice, profoundness of thinking and the scholarly application of such thinking to the refinement of theory and/or practice and to applicability for use in practice. For Adjunct Professor Ann Christiansen’s Human Sexuality class, Hannah Tralka created a presentation focused on the relationships between chronic illness and sexuality and the implications to clinical practice, highlighting intersections between social work theory, socially constructed definitions and the lived experience of chronically ill individuals. The presentation was recognized for its creative, expansive and thoughtful approach to clinical work with chronically ill individuals through an anti-oppressive and social-justice-oriented lens that centers lived experience, equity and inclusion by challenging beliefs and practices that are rooted in oppression and limit the expression of sexuality among chronically ill people. The presentation offered solutions and interventions that empower chronically ill people to fully embrace their sexuality.
Dorothea C. Spellmann Award
Cole Young (MSW ’25)
The Spellmann Award honors a student whose paper or project best demonstrates understanding, creativity and competence in work with groups or systems, including an understanding and appreciation of groups as a primary means of service with people. The award was named for Professor Emerita Dorothea Spellmann upon her retirement in 1972. Cole Young wrote the award-winning paper, “Social and Environmental Impact Assessment on The Stop-Work Order and Halting of PEPFAR Fund,” for Clinical Professor Sarah Bexell’s Social and Environmental Impact Assessments course. Young examined the social and environmental impact of the recent stop-work order for PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief), providing a clear problem statement and policy analysis when describing recent policy changes and critically analyzing their global impact. Young used global data sources to strengthen their argument, extensively analyzing the possible consequences of the stop-work order and the halting of PEPFAR funds.
William Bartholomew Memorial Award
Lavonne Smith (MSW ’25)
The William Bartholomew Memorial Award was established in 2018 to honor the late William Bartholomew, MSW ’04, who devoted his professional life to individuals becoming empowered, fulfilling their potential, and overcoming barriers posed by factors such as trauma, addiction and oppression. The award honors students who embody principles of social justice, preservation of human dignity and a commitment to facilitating healing of human suffering. With more than 21 years of experience in child welfare, Lavonne Smith has spent her career working at the intersection of social justice, advocacy and healing. As someone raised in the foster care system herself, Smith has devoted her life to empowering underprivileged youth and young adults in the foster care system in Miami, Florida. She states, “I navigated life without access to many of the resources or support systems that I now fight to provide for others. These lived experiences shaped my unwavering commitment to ensuring that no young person feels unseen or unsupported. My personal journey is not only a testament to the power of perseverance, but a constant source of empathy, connection and purpose in my professional life.” The Bartholomew family selected Smith as this year’s honoree for embodying the principles of social justice, human dignity and healing, which were enduring commitments for William Bartholomew.
Dean Catherine F. Alter Merit Award
Kerry Kleisner (MSW ’25)
Named for Dean Emerita Catherine F. Alter, GSSW dean from 1996–2006, this award recognizes a graduating student from GSSW’s Western Colorado MSW Program who most closely epitomizes the best of professional social work: a keen intellect, a passionate dedication to empowering underserved populations, and a commitment to continuously improving practice. Kerry Kleisner completed her foundation-year internship at Mountain Family Health Center’s Glenwood Springs clinic and the school-based health center at Glenwood Springs High School. In her concentration year, she interned at MidValley Family Practice (MVFP). Kleisner’s concentration-year research project was focused on ketamine-assisted therapy, and because of her research, MVFP received a grant to bring the intervention to the agency. In her concentration year, Kleisner also organized a group of students to examine environmental injustices within mobile home parks in the Roaring Fork Valley and advocate for fair and safe housing for migrant communities as part of her work for the Contemporary Ecological Justice course. Field Instructor and Adjunct Professor Jarid Rollins shares, “Kerry continues to be a leader within the student cohort and within the community. She is thoughtful, understanding and a model social worker … As a longstanding [resident] of the Roaring Fork Valley, Kerry is committed to staying in the local community and earning her clinical license. She plans to support future Western Colorado MSW students and has already referred a couple members of the incoming cohort to the program.”
MSW@Denver Merit Award
Peter Hoodes (MSW ’25)
This award recognizes a student from the MSW@Denver program who most closely epitomizes the best of professional social work: a keen intellect, a passionate dedication to empowering underserved populations, and a commitment to continuously improving practice. Peter Hoodes is recognized for his work in the Social Policy Analysis, Advocacy and Practice course taught by Assistant Professor Mónica Gutiérrez. In class, Hoodes consistently produced insightful policy analyses that reflected a deep understanding of social work values. Gutiérrez says, “His thoughtful peer feedback created a learning environment where complex policy implications were explored with nuance and empathy. As his foundation year and concentration year field supervisor, I observed Mr. Hoodes’s remarkable dedication to understanding racial disparities in Appalachia. His ability to forge meaningful connections between micro and macro practice was exemplary. He skillfully integrated individual client needs with broader community contexts, demonstrating the integrative thinking essential to effective social work practice. Most impressively, Mr. Hoodes extended his learning through an independent study where he embraced community-based participatory research methodologies with rural populations … His work has provided valuable insights into Appalachian communities, creating bridges of understanding between academia and marginalized rural populations. Mr. Hoodes embodies the core qualities we seek in exemplary social workers: analytical rigor, cultural humility, commitment to social justice and the ability to translate knowledge into meaningful community action.”
Dean Emil M. Sunley Award
Karla Chavez (MSW ’25)
The Sunley Merit Award was first presented in 1971 by Dean Emil M. Sunley, in whose honor the award was created. It recognizes a graduating Denver Campus MSW student for meritorious service to the school or the profession of social work. Associate Professor Miriam Valdovinos nominated Karla Chavez for the Sunley Merit Award “because her social work practice and community engagement exemplify social justice and meritorious work related to supporting first-generation college students.” As an intern and graduate student assistant for First@DU (a part of Student Affairs and Inclusive Excellence), Chavez supported programming to enrich the academic environment of the students and families that she worked with (for example, hosting family financial aid information sessions, assisting with college applications and developing leadership summits). In her role as director of the summer program to guide students who often doubt their potential for higher education, Chavez witnessed students’ transformation when they realized the possibility of pursuing postsecondary education. Chavez says, “It’s not just about academics; it’s about helping them envision a future they might not have thought possible. The pride I feel when they realize they belong in college is immeasurable.” Valdovinos notes that Chavez’s work also highlights her passion for advocating for immigrant rights and elevating the voices of those who are often excluded from higher education conversations. “These experiences have taught her the value of resilience, connection and the importance of believing in oneself and others.”
Ruth Marx Stark Award for Excellence in Field
April McIntyre (MSW ’25)
The Stark Award recognizes excellence in fieldwork, emphasizing innovation, creativity and commitment to social work practice. The award is named for Ruth Marx Stark, who attended the University of Denver in the mid-1930s then devoted many decades of her life to volunteering in Denver-area agencies, international development programs and political action organizations. McIntyre is recognized for “remarkable commitment to care for your clients, rebuild critical resources and reimagine processes to be more inclusive.” McIntyre was an intern in Grand County Colorado at 14th Judicial District Probation. She helped to transform the recovery court team and helped to raise the agency’s accreditation score to gold. The agency praised McIntyre’s ability to create a high-functioning team and the DEI model she created to advocate for culturally diverse clients. They say, “Her impact has been transformative — not only with her placement site but also in the lives of those she has served and inspired. She embodies the mission of the Graduate School of Social Work and represents the very best of what it means to be a social worker.”
