Dierdre Wallace-Hines
Concordia Class of 1987
B.S. in Social Work
Project Administrator for the AIDS and Hepatitis C Treatment Programs
Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center

“A liberal arts education is an essential foundation to the clinical field of social work. Writing and communication skills will be your greatest asset. Learn them now, and they’re yours for life.”

Please describe one experience that most influenced you while at Concordia. I had received a scholarship to play basketball and was coached by Mr. John Westerman.  Our team had some great players on it.  We had fun, but as young women we learned early the importance of being on a team and the roles we had to play.  I found that my team experience is so applicable to the workforce.  Team building is an integral part of how we work here at our program and at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center.  I work well alone, but I love being on a team.  I went back to my high school for an alumni game and found that most of the girls I played basketball with were in management-type positions.  They were not only leaders, but also team builders for their various professions. I continue to applaud, support, and watch women’s sports. 

What inspired you to pursue a career in social work?  Social work was in my blood.  I used to go to work with my mother, a social worker for Harlem Hospital in the 1970s.  I always thought she had the most interesting job.  There were many patients who seemed so sad and lonely.  I used to wonder how she could make someone feel better by talking to them.  I realized that people want to be heard,, listened to and respected, but not always helped.  It seemed so simple, but yet it’s so powerful.  I was very shy, but I loved to talk with the patients.  I fell in love with people and I learned to respect whatever they chose to share with me because it was a precious gift that at times was very fragile.  I learned to handle this gift with care and give it back as needed. 

As I researched the career, I found out that there were so many roles that social workers play in the professional world!  I also learned by searching for colleges that there is a big difference in choosing psychology or sociology as opposed to social work.  I could have majored in any of those careers and had been offered scholarships to schools that did not offer social work as a area of study (or at all).  I wanted a social work degree from an accredited school like Concordia because I had already planned that my next move would be graduate school.  The Bachelor’s in social work degree allowed me to attend graduate school needing only 33 of 60 credits, due to Concordia’s CSWE accreditation.

Please describe the Merit of Service Award you’ve received from National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and what it means to you. The Merit of Service Award (March 2006) was very special to me because it is a humbling experience to be awarded by your peers for work that you love.  You do this work because it needs to be done and you never expect to be physically rewarded for it.  There are so many unsung heroes in this profession—the hours are long, the pay is not always great, you may not have anything tangible to show for your work, but it’s worth it!  I accept this award for all those who are doing the work and have yet to be recognized.  I hope to encourage them to hold on to why they do what they do, so that they can reward themselves at the end of every day.

What is your fondest memory of your experience at Concordia? My fondest memory was my first day of school.  I was sitting in the Somer Center filling out some papers and this girl started talking to me.  I remember thinking, “Is she going to take a breadth?”  She began asking me about where I came from, about my basketball scholarship, and my family.  She talked all day.  Somehow through all her talking, I got a word in and we became friends.  Over the past 23 years, we have remained best friends, she is my son’s godmother and we have worked together for 11 years.  She has not changed a bit.  I’m still trying to get a word in…but we have great fun doing difficult work and meeting the challenges with which we are faced.