Greetings, my name is Amanda Zuehlke (she/her/hers). I am a Field Faculty at the Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work. My field units are Social Work Practice in County Human Services in the full-time program and Social Work Practice in Community Agencies in the part-time program. I graduated from UW-Madison with my Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work and Psychology and then continued on to get my Master’s Degree in Social Work from UW-Madison.
In my young adult years, I vacillated between wanting to be a nurse or a child-life specialist. I had a sibling with a childhood illness, and I had interacted with people in these roles so often; I liked what they did. During college, I pursued a number of avenues that I thought would prepare me for one of those careers, such as volunteering at UW Hospital and working at a summer camp for children with childhood cancer. During these experiences, I continuously encountered social workers helping the families of the patients. Their focus on families inspired me and launched me down the path of learning about social work as a career. I have been an Advanced Practice Social Worker (APSW) in the Madison community now for 15 years, mainly in the field of child welfare. In my current position, I license and train foster and adoptive families throughout the State of Wisconsin.
There are many things that excite me about being a social worker. One is the opportunity to do better in my practice tomorrow than I did yesterday. Social work is a field driven by the opportunity to make positive, lasting change. This is especially true for social justice issues. There is a critical need to do better. In our current context, social workers are poised to take action and that includes using our voices to elevate those in the communities we support. We listen. We are advocates. We are change agents.
Thank you Amanda for all your contributions to the social work profession and to the
UW- Madison Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work!