National Social Work Month Highlight: Kara Smith

Ohio University Southern is helping celebrate this year’s Social Work Month in March with the theme “The Time is Right for Social Work” to highlight how social workers have enriched our society for more than a century and how their services continue be needed today.

We are highlighting some of our Bachelor of Social Work graduates on social media to thank them for making our community a better place to live.

Kara Smith

Degree: Bachelor of Arts in Social Work, 2021 (MSW 2022)

Job Title: Mental Health Counselor

Place of Work: Mended Reeds, Inc./CCO Girl’s Home

What made you decide you wanted a career in social work? It took me a while to begin college, but I always knew that I wanted to help people. I chose social work since I will have the ability to help individuals in different areas of their lives. The possibilities are endless with social work.

Why did you choose Ohio University Southern to pursue your degree? I chose Ohio University since Southern was close enough to me to obtain my goals while trying to work and be a mother. The lower tuition was a plus as well.

How did OHIO Southern prepare you for your career? The professors at Ohio University Southern took the material that we needed to learn and used real-world examples in the field to help us understand how what we were learning related to what we would experience in the field.

What do you enjoy most about your job? I love providing mental health services to adolescents. I believe that we do not focus near as much on prevention as we should, so my goal is to provide services that prevent these girls from needing services in the future.

What advice would you give to students pursuing their degree in social work? If you care about people, you are in the right place. It will be difficult at times and seem that it will never be over but keep your head up and know that you will be making a difference in the lives of others.