BROWNWOOD – May 6, 2016 – Howard Payne University’s Social Work Advisory Board recently presented its Spirit of Social Work Award to board member and HPU alumna Becky Smith of Brownwood. The award is presented annually to an individual whose career reflects an outstanding contribution to the social work profession or to the field of human services in general.
Smith, currently employed at Senior Care of Brownwood, graduated from HPU in 1997 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in social work. Later that year, she became a Licensed Baccalaureate Social Worker and subsequently received an Independent Practice Recognition.
In addition to serving on HPU’s Social Work Advisory Board since 2000, Smith has served the Brownwood and Early communities in a number of ways. She has participated in the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life since 1998; became a member of the Kiwanis Club in 2002; and was appointed to the Board of Directors for the Lions Club in 2005. She was selected as an ambassador for the Early Chamber of Commerce in 2008 and was appointed to its Board of Directors in 2009, a position she held until 2014. She additionally served as an ambassador for the Brownwood Chamber of Commerce in 2009.
Smith participated in Good Samaritan Ministries’ Empty Bowls project in 2008 and 2009 and spent two years as the fundraising director for the Early Volunteer Fire Department. She has additionally served her community by organizing health fairs, assisting with a variety of carnivals and rodeos, volunteering with fund-raising campaigns and helping with Early’s Pioneer Day activities.
She began supervising social work field interns in 2002 and, in that capacity, has overseen nine HPU undergraduate students and one graduate student from The University of Texas at Arlington. She and her husband of 16 years, Rafe, have two children, Arron and Rachel.
“The Social Work Advisory Board is pleased to recognize Becky Smith for her outstanding achievements in the field of social work,” said Dan Humeniuk, assistant professor of social work and chair of HPU’s Department of Criminal Justice, Social Work and Sociology. “She is a valuable member of our organization and a caring and committed member of the community.”
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Cutline: Dan Humeniuk, left, recently presented the HPU Social Work Advisory Board’s Spirit of Social Work Award to Becky Smith.