Mary Mullins has been named chair of the Department of Social Work at ETSU. The position came after eight years of teaching at the university.
“Through the years I’ve gotten more involved in the department, and I’m really excited about [being named chair],” said Mullins.
Mullins said she wants to see the department more actively engaged within the community by collaborating with agencies, consumers and residents throughout the region.
“My vision is to get us more involved directly with what’s happening in the community,” she said.
Mullins prefers interactive learning and aims to provide her students with a valuable experience before they graduate. She said she is excited to move the program forward and provide students with more opportunities to get involved within the community on and off campus.
Before becoming chair, she attend the University of Virginia’s College at Wise as a first-generation student, but she also worked a full-time job while pursuing her studies. After completing her undergraduate degree, she pursued a graduate program in social work at Radford University. She began teaching in 2005, before joining ETSU in 2011, the same year she completed her doctoral degree at Norfolk State University.
Mullins also engages in social work outside of ETSU as a member of the Homes for Youth board. Homes for Youth is a program that was implemented as a result of a regional task force in East Tennessee, which Mullins joined in 2012.
“We look at what the needs are within the community and then with the housing authority to develop new services and programs [for homeless youth],” she said.
Through the program Mullins has been able to realize new initiatives to assist homeless youth in Northeast Tennessee.
