Join us for a conversation with Jacob Kendall and Valerie Groth on the versatility of the social work degree, what careers social workers are best suited for (outside of case management, government, and clinical work), and how to be successful in your career pivot!
Dr. Jacob Kendall is from the Birmingham area in Alabama, and now lives across the bay from Mobile with his wife Emily and their son Simon. He created The Versatile Social Worker to help social workers, public health professionals, and other interdisciplinary folks market themselves with ruthless precision on the job hunt. He especially enjoys working with dual degrees and those making a career pivot.
He also has a few other business endeavors. He is a speaker and consultant on chronic disease, aging, and midlife changes. Furthermore, he is co-founder of an organization that provides grant winning and other services to nonprofits and co-founder of a small mental health practice. Jacob grew up with the goal of being a certifiable Renaissance Person, and he is well on his way with a truly interdisciplinary background. Jacob studied his true love, biology, in undergrad, and he has graduate training in social work, public health, gerontology, and theology. He has taught social work and global health at the undergraduate level for several years. Finally, Jacob has passport stamps for 25 countries (so far), enjoys birdwatching, and plays various musical instruments. His favorite reading topics include evolution, animal behavior, quantum mechanics, ancient history, geography, and fiction.
Valerie Groth is a social entrepreneur and experienced nonprofit executive. Val is passionate about working at the intersection of innovation, impact, and purpose. After formerly working as a school social worker, she then served as founder and CEO of Ryan Banks Academy, a nonprofit named after a former student of hers who was lost to gun violence and which focuses on mental health, trauma-informed care, and providing holistic support to students and their families. She most recently worked as Director of Partnerships with a mental health company where she created the role for herself of "corporate social worker."
With Master's degrees in Social Work and Educational Leadership, Val is also a certified life coach where she works with social workers, founders, and visionaries who wish to use their skills to make the world a better place. She is also an international speaker and the author of the book The Power of the Possible: The Dire State of Inner City Education and One Woman's Revolution to Fix It, and recently completed the manuscript for her second book, a fictional thriller novel centered around social justice. Val has has been honored to receive accolades such as being chosen as 2023 Alumna of the Year at her MSW alma mater, being a featured guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show for her work at Ryan Banks, being featured in the I Am Chicago campaign, as well as in various media features ranging from the Chicago Tribune to CBS and NBC.