Danielle Jatlow remembers spending her days working on her literary magazine in San Francisco publishing stories of migrant farmworkers and others facing hardship. At night she would head to a shelter where she did volunteer work with teens without a home.
“My passion, and my heart, was really kind of moving toward human stories and human experiences and those who are experiencing different forms of oppression and adversity,” said Jatlow of those years in the early 2000s.
That realization is what led Jatlow to pursue social work — and eventually land her full-time role with ̽̽'s Department of Social Work this past August.
“I have just been so thrilled to step into a department and meet so many thinkers and so many students and social workers who come from all different life experiences and perspectives,” she added.
After graduating from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor as an English major in the late 1990s, Jatlow began working at a publishing house based in San Francisco for the first part of her professional life. That experience led her to starting her own magazine. Her writing expertise on adversity was put into practice when she started to volunteer at an organization to support adolescents experiencing homelessness.
Having discovered her passion for human stories and helping those experiencing adversity, Jatlow decided to pursue a master’s degree in social work, which she received from Columbia University.
Her transition into the College of Education and Social Services (CESS) social work community highlights the philosophy she and her colleagues share.
“The transformative philosophy that focuses so much on critical social construction, strength-based work, human rights and social justice is very much in line with the way that I was practicing,” Jatlow said. “So, it just seemed like a really good fit.”
The department prides itself on acknowledging the complexities of multiple perspectives existing at the same time, she said, emphasizing that each moment is an opportunity for transformation — interpersonally, programmatically, or systemically.
“It’s important to recognize how human relationships can be meaningful and growth oriented, and I feel like I get that with all the faculty and students in our department,” she said.
Jatlow currently teaches three classes in the Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) program, three classes in the Master of Social Work (MSW) program, and also works as a field liaison. “I also maintain a practice because I always want my social work practice to hold hands with my teaching,” she said.
Now that she is a full-time lecturer at ̽̽, Jatlow is leaning into the role and making sure students are leaving with the best education possible.
Her focus, she said, is “bringing anti-oppressive practices into everything that we do, making sure that our curriculum is top notch and that students are getting what they want and what they need.”
For Jatlow, teaching is a way to build community in the classroom. “Every time I step into the classroom, I feel like I am supporting the co-construction or the co-facilitation of community building.”
With her focus being on teaching juniors in a seminar-style class, Jatlow aims to prepare her students for field placements in their senior year. The class takes theories students have learned and asks them to consider how they look and feel in practice.
“I love digging deeper into how we can implement different theories and frameworks into our future practice” said BSW student Shannon Harness ‘23 about Jatlow’s course. “The classroom role-playing sessions help ease the uncomfortable feelings that can come with starting and expanding upon a conversation with a client, peer, or stranger. After the past few weeks of role-playing and follow-up seminar-style conversations, I feel more comfortable having difficult conversations in meaningful ways.”
“My biggest focus is supporting each student to find their own authentic social worker voice,” Jatlow said. “I hope that my students leave feeling empowered to make the changes that they want to see happen.”
Through their senior internships, social work students have an opportunity to create positive change in the community. Hands-on experience with local organizations in Vermont allows students to learn through doing as well as make connections with the school, service organization, program or group they are involved with. After they graduate, some students will stay in Vermont, serving the community that provided a home away from home during their college years.
“Vulnerability is the way forward. To be able to come as you are, authentically, and to be okay with that for yourself and for others is important,” Jatlow said. “I believe the power of human relationships can have an incredible impact on issues affecting all of us. Small changes, which are often the most sustainable, can make the biggest difference.”
