Social Work Meetup: How Do We Get More of Us?

Special TUESDAY Edition! This meetup for social workers, sentencing advocates, mitigation specialists, dispositional advocates, and others in similar roles will focus on how we advocate for and get more of us in our roles in public defense offices. Are you bringing in interns who become employees? Are you using data to drive decision-making in your offices? Are you in a position of leadership leveraging the advantage of having more of “us” in your office? Come share what you’re doing, what you’re trying, and what you are interested in pursuing to create more roles for social workers, sentencing advocates, dispositional and mitigation specialists!

Stephanne Cline Thornton is the Clinical Director for the West Virginia Judicial and Lawyer Assistance Program, owner of Transform Legal, focusing on mitigation and training, and serves as the NAPD Social Work Resource and Training Coordinator. She is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker and Master Addiction Counselor focusing on access to trauma and substance use disorder treatment to ensure the health and well-being of affected individuals. Recognizing the prevalent intersection of stress, trauma, substance use, and mental health conditions with some practitioners of the law, Stephanne believes in health, sustainability, and mindful practices to ensure those in the helping professions care for themselves to better care for those they are serving.
Stephanne earned a Master of Divinity degree from Emory University Candler School of Theology in the Honors Program, and a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Georgia. She has been clinically licensed as a social worker and addictions counselor since 2004 and additionally holds certificates as Certified Addiction Counselor Level III, Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, and Certified Sex Offender Treatment Provider. Stephanne’s clinical training background is in trauma, and she is on the Trauma-Informed Care Network Speakers Bureau and presents on trauma, substance use, and self-care across the state and at national conferences.

Stephanne is a West Virginia State Advisory Committee Member to the United States Commission on Civil Rights, Chair of the Court Systems and Criminal Justice Populations Subcommittee to the Governor’s Council on Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment, and is a Board Member on the West Virginia Board of Social Work and West Virginia Association of Addiction and Prevention Professionals. She resides in Charleston, West Virginia with her husband, Richard, and their tiger tabby, Pip.