Tya Johnson '24 MSW is ready to lead. As a girl, she felt let down by people in roles of authority. She often felt stereotyped and given up on. But a therapist, and her own resilience, helped inspire her to pursue a career where she could help others.
"At first, I always said I wanted to be a therapist because I had a therapist who helped me with my mental health," Johnson said. "I knew my trauma and negative experiences made me more empathetic and I wanted to help people."
The first step was pursuing her liberal arts degree from a community college. From there, she transferred to Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
"It was either psychology or social work," she said of earning her undergraduate degree. "I knew social work was more broad and when I went to Mount Mercy, I fell in love with social work because there's so many things you can do."
As Johnson prepared to graduate with a Bachelor of Social Work degree, she was sure she would continue her education with a master's degree in mental health counseling. Then she met Chris Martin, MSW, LMSW, PhD, director of the Master of Social Work program at St. Ambrose University.
"I told her my plan and she said ‘You know, you can also get your master's in social work and become a helping professional like a therapist.' I didn't know that. Social work is broad and you can show your different strengths in social work. That's what made me choose it."
Johnson began the advanced standing online MSW program at St. Ambrose in summer 2022. Earning her master's degree was an important step to advance her career. But she needed the flexibility to work as she learned.
Although online, Johnson found the St. Ambrose MSW program to be incredibly personal and accessible. With online office hours and effective communication, she felt fully supported by her professors.
"I just didn't feel alone. I felt like I had support from Martin, Jennifer Boedeker, MSW, and Melanie Rice, MSW, who was my field liaison. Even though it was online, I still felt them physically here."
Having come from a background where teachers pushed her aside, Johnson is thankful to have found champions in her professors not only at SAU but in her undergraduate experience as well.
"I would say being at Mount Mercy helped heal a lot of my trauma because those teachers helped me to be the best I can be."
"They are professors that really want to see you grow, instead of just teach to teach," she said of Mount Mercy and St. Ambrose.
Having now completed the MSW program, Johnson is ready to take the next step in becoming a changemaker.
"The ultimate goal is to continue to work in healthcare and understand how systems work and see if I can go about advocacy roles and some policy changes," Johnson said. "Not just at the healthcare level but at other levels too."
She is thankful to have found the support she yearned for when she was younger and feels prepared to advance her career in any direction she chooses.
"I feel like my confidence has increased. I feel like I can honestly pursue anything I set my mind to."
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