Master of Science in Social Work

Over the last 30 years, Dr. Acker has developed clinical expertise in mental health, end-of-life/hospice care, HIV/AIDS, adoption and foster care, and case management, and is passionate about using this experience as a catalyst for teaching and engaging students. Her teaching interests include integrating classroom concepts and theories with practical application in the field, and on the continuum of social work at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels of society.

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Professor Rotondi is a founding member of Rensselaer Child Advocacy Center, which provides trauma-focused counseling to children who have been abused and to non-offending family members. She participated in the 2013 White House summit on the Affordable Care Act with the Council on Social Work Education. Current teaching subjects include child abuse, social welfare and social policy, diversity workshop, and field practicum. Her expertise includes diagnosing and treating pediatric mental health disorders, interviewing individuals who have been sexually abused, and testifying in state and federal criminal and family court. She is was a social worker for the emergency department at Albany Medical Center.

Since graduating from Saint Rose in 2011, Professor Boutelle has worked at Albany County Department for Children, Youth, and Families, as well as at a local domestic-violence shelter. She later worked in children’s mental health and as the women’s and children’s social worker in a hospital. Her teaching interests include diversity and social justice, various components of social-work practice, and field-experience courses.

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Professor Van Alst worked as a program evaluator and coordinated a direct service program for youth aging out of foster care. She holds an MBA from New York University, and is interested in how social services are organized and delivered, as well as social entrepreneurship. She taught at Rutgers University’s School of Social Work, where she was research director of the Institute for Families and held a joint appointment with the school’s Child Welfare and Child Wellbeing Research Unit. Areas of expertise include child welfare services, disaster recovery, health services, social administration, and social policy. She is a mixed-methods researcher with a strong interest in program evaluation and intervention research.

Dr. Joseph A. Twumasi-Ankrah graduated with his Ph.D. from Indiana University of Pennsylvania – Sociology – Administration and Leadership Doctoral Program. As a licensed master social worker with fourteen years of practice experience addressing the mental health needs of urban and rural at-risk populations, Dr. Ankrah’s doctoral dissertation accordingly focused on “The Experiences of School Social Workers Within The New York City Public School System”. Before completing his Ph.D. in 2021, Dr. Ankrah was the social work site director for a NYC social work nonprofit organization based in low-performing public schools. The services provided by this nonprofit helped thousands of underprivileged and underperforming students each year overcome various mental, behavioral, and emotional health barriers. His teaching / research interests focus on diversity, child welfare, social justice, and school social work.

Formerly executive VP and chief clinical officer at Adelbrook Behavioral and Developmental Services (Cromwell, Connecticut), which serves youths diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disorders, Professor Piepenbring taught social work at Southern Connecticut State University and provided clinical therapy to children and adults in private practice. Her research and academic interests focus on autism spectrum disorder and its impact on families, culturally competent clinical practice, and organizational leadership. She strongly believes in supportively challenging students to become critical thinkers and encouraging them to work to their full potential.

Before entering academia, Professor Weldon was a social worker providing direct care and administration in mental-health and healthcare settings, mostly in trauma and crisis intervention. She focuses on helping students develop critical-thinking skills, expand their understanding of diverse experiences, and being lifelong learners. Her current research includes projects on trauma-informed care, organizational crisis management, and workplace critical incident response.

Dr. Lin, who worked as a social worker and administrator in organizations focusing on disadvantaged women and their families in Taiwan, later served homeless and immigrant older-adult populations in California. Currently vice president for a nonprofit organization working with Asian and Asian-American populations in California, she is building connections with communities in New York. She taught and helped develop online coursework at Indiana University. Her research interests center around the gendered work-family interface.

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As the clinical coordinator for a child-advocacy center in Rensselaer County, in Troy, Professor Fronckowiak provided therapy to child victims and their families and worked on several multidisciplinary teams regarding child-abuse investigations and prevention. She worked on a Federally funded project to implement an evidence-based group treatment for youth with problematic sexual behavior, and helped create a community-change team focused on systemic change.

She has been a child-advocacy trainer for New York State and currently consults to Fordham University on training for child protection-and-prevention workers. Other interests include secondary traumatic stress for practitioners and effective clinical supervision.