SplitSimple.com Announces 2020 Winner of $500 Social Work Scholarship

Denver, Colorado -

SplitSimple.com, an organization focused on assisting Denver based individuals with uncontested divorce mediation, announced Emily Townsend as the winner of their $500 scholarship contest. Emily is currently pursuing a Masters in Clinical Social Work at Western Michigan University with a focus in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for children and families who have sustained trauma. “As I prepare to work with children from the most vulnerable populations, I am learning about narrative therapy techniques, how to help children tell their stories without shame or fear, but instead by recognizing the strengths they possess," writes Townsend in her moving essay. Her essay chronicles key events in her life that have led her to choosing social work as her life's passion, including her own journey - and the lack of support networks and services specific to Trauma Based Therapy (TBT).

In discussing the events that inspired her to become a social worker, Townsend wrote: “Since my time with TBT, I have known that I wanted to work in a setting where I helped people tell their stories and gain strength from it. I have known that to create a more socially just world we must start with the wellness of our minds. My route to social work has been winding and cyclical. I grew up in a tight knit neighborhood in downtown Lansing, Michigan. In my neighborhood, I learned that rights and social equity must be hard fought for by the oppressed and their allies. I witnessed systemic discrimination, gender inequity, and the prison pipeline system keeping my neighbors from living well.”

SplitSimple founder Chris Griffith created the scholarship opportunity as a way to help make college expenses more affordable for those who have chosen to help others by becoming social workers. Griffith and his panel of scholarship judges selected Emily Townsend as the recipient of the $500 scholarship based on the quality of her essay and her demonstrable desire to help others. She won out over dozens of other applicants.

Participants in the scholarship contest were required to hold a GPA of 3.0 or higher, as well as submit a letter of recommendation and unofficial transcript of their grades along with a 500-1000 word essay answering the question, "What Inspired Me to Study Social Work?"

For more information, visit https://www.splitsimple.com/.