When Vanessa Frando began working in child welfare in 1999 after earning her B.A., with a major in psychology and minor in criminal justice, she confesses, “In all honesty, I did not know what child welfare was all about other than helping families, and that’s what I wanted to do.
“It wasn’t until I started working in child welfare that I realized what a professional child welfare social worker was and wanted to be a part of changing lives,” Vanessa says.
Her first job was as an entry-level social worker (Social Services Worker I) in Kern County Department of Human Services assigned to a caseload of court-ordered Family Maintenance cases. “I was helping to support birth parents who had regained custody of their children. I saw the transition from foster care back home to sometimes be difficult, but thought if the birth parents could overcome the challenges that brought their children to the attention of child welfare, they would be able to work through these challenges,” says Vanessa.
“I helped families link to community services that could suit their needs and taught them how to access services,” she says, recalling, “One mother’s way of showing her appreciation was to name her newborn daughter after me.”
Of those early years on the job, Vanessa says, “Because of what I learned in undergraduate studies, I understood human behavior. I understood that parents could not achieve what social workers and judges were asking of them when their basic needs of food, shelter and clothing were not met.”
Today, she says, “My perspective has not changed much, other than learning more effective tools and about more about trauma- informed care.”
Pursuing Her MSW at CSU, Bakersfield While Working
“It was the stories of children enduring trauma that inspired me to learn more, so I could help empower them to do more for themselves with some guidance,” says Vanessa. Thus, while working at Kern County Department of Human Services, she entered CSU, Bakersfield’s Department of Social Work MSW program in 2000 as a Title IV-E stipend recipient, joining approximately a dozen of her coworkers in the department’s first part-time cohort.
The demands of work and school were familiar to her. As an undergraduate, she explains, “I worked part time and attended school full time, so when I started the MSW program part time and worked full time, it was a schedule I already knew. I did not have any children at the time, so I devoted my time to work and my studies.
“I learned a lot in the MSW program.” Vanessa says. “There are two classes that were the most impactful—Grief & Loss and Working with African American Families. The Grief & Loss course, taught by Larry Etue, LCSW, was therapeutic for me and, in all honesty, helped me deal with my personal grief and loss issues, and I am convinced addressing this has made me a better social worker. Growing up in a small community there was only one African American family I knew and did not really know the culture, and Patricia Henry, LCSW, was instrumental in helping me learn more about this culture.”
Reflecting on that experience, Vanessa says, “The CalSWEC Title IV-E Stipend Program brought together a cohort of students to learn and practice social work. The students were my peers at school, as well as in the office. We learned together, supported each other, and now impact lives in Kern County through our partnerships.”
She adds, “I have met Master’s-level social workers in a variety of fields—hospitals, mental health, child welfare, schools—and no matter the setting, we all want to, and do make, a difference in the lives of our families.”
Since graduation, Vanessa has enjoyed a continued partnership with CSU, Bakersfield, as a Field Instructor on and off since 2005, “to help others like I was helped and through approving internships in my programs.” She notes, “One of the main lessons I try to teach is to look at situations from the client’s perspective.”
Developing a Career of Leadership
Since starting out as a Social Services Worker 1, Vanessa has been Social Services Supervisor and Human Services Program Specialist, where she was responsible for the System Improvement Plan, data reviews, and legislation.
Currently Kern County Department of Human Services Program Director, Vanessa says, “I’m back working with social workers and supervisors in the various programs. I enjoy collaborating with social workers, managers, other counties’ representatives, and state representatives to reach our objectives in the various programs I oversee—in approving families to foster children, in finding and engaging extended family, and in finding permanency through adoption and guardianship. Some of the challenges are doing more with less, but at the same time it is a good challenge that helps us to be innovative and think outside the box.”
She describes what that entails. “I am able to have a vision, or what I refer to as a ‘wish list.’ My wish list is based around streamlining as much as possible. In doing so, it has heavily relied on technology. In Kern, we were able to implement Resource Family Approval Program Orientation online in Spanish and English. We were able to implement templates that allow the adoption social workers to complete their adoptive placement and Kin-GAP documents in a reduced amount of time. We are currently piloting online scheduling to see if we can reduce the clerical staff’s call volume. These ideas have all come about through collaboration and hearing ideas of the staff and supervisors and partnership with our technology team.
“I enjoy program implementation—starting something new and making adjustments to make it better!” says Vanessa. “I enjoy the people I work with because they truly care about the children and families they work with and want what’s best for them.”
Considering improvements to the social work profession, Vanessa says, “Some of the biggest challenges are a high need for graduate-level social workers, ensuring self-care as we care for others, and workloads.”
As for her own experience, Vanessa remembers, “Once in training as a new social worker, I was worried that I would not be able to do the job for a long period of time. But, she concedes, “I was wrong; 19 years later, I am still here.”
