John Ruane

Background

About John Ruane

I am currently in graduate school at VCU School of Social Work (SSW) and intend on graduating with my Masters of Social Work May 2021. Personally, I am passionate about working with clients, community partners and organizations to better connect clients to their self-identified needed resources. I was a former student social worker (intern) with Richmond Public Schools Family Support Center formerly known as the McKinney Vento Program. In addition, I was a member of VCU SSW 2020 Policy Fellowship and a co-researcher on a faculty mentored research project. Personal Social Work Philosophy: As a practicing student social worker, I have been able to learn about and actively engage in the profession over the past few years. I am a firm believer that social work exists in every aspect of our lives and that it is the responsibility of social workers to not only identify these areas, but to also continually work towards positive change in these areas. I believe that people are incredibly resilient and are the true experts of their unique situations and lives. I believe that resources and empowerment go hand-in-hand, and that every single person has inherent dignity and worth despite what society may tell them. I believe that in order to support people and empower them through historical and institutionalized trauma, that polices need to be created and continually amended to support a more proactive care approach rather than the reactive approaches currently in place. I believe in the social work profession, but perhaps more importantly, I believe in social workers.