The 2006 Fellow

Holly Mattson

In a recent tribute to Susan Schechter, Fran Danis, assistant professor at the School of Social Work, University of Missouri-Columbia, wrote: “Social workers have a particularly important role to play in carrying out Susan’s vision. As a profession, we can and must do more to join with the battered women’s movement. Social workers must learn about the complexities of domestic violence. Social work educators must also prepare future professionals for the cross-cutting issue of domestic violence." (2006) Danis’ statement is a charge to the social work field of education and future professionals, and is a challenge that Holly Mattson is dedicated to addressing.

Currently, Holly Mattson is receiving her Masters Degree in Social Work at Boston College. Her emphasis is on Community Organizing, Planning, Policy and Administration with a concentration in Children, Youth, and Families. Holly’s background in service demonstrates a desire to share a feminist consciousness within the social work field, participating in the feminist movement in various facets on a grassroots level.

Holly began working in the battered women’s movement as an advocate for sexual assault and domestic violence survivors through an organization, the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services of Whatcom County (DV/SAS), in Bellingham, Washington while receiving her B.A. in Human Services at Western Washington University. While at the organization, she also focused on the children who had been exposed to violence, and developed a program curriculum to address the trauma experienced. Her feminist voice was developed as she volunteered at, and later became employed as the coordinator of, the campus Women’s Center. Through her leadership, Holly organized events such as, “The Vagina Monologues,” and the annual Take Back the Night event.

Like Danis (2006) noted of Susan, Holly is committed to maintaining the feminist roots of the antiviolence movement, and to foster the feminist voices of the social work community in a stance against violence against women, children, and families. During Holly’s fellowship, she will undertake a national scan of social work graduate programs that receive funding through Title IV-E. She will survey educators and graduate students about the extent to which current curriculums address the co-occurrence of domestic violence and child maltreatment within a social justice theoretical framework.

Holly aims to document the progression of the social work field in preparing future professionals to address the complexities of domestic violence, it’s connection to children’s needs, and to make curriculum recommendations to advance the field. It is her hope that the scan will yield itself to identifying gaps in current curriculum around the discussion of Violence against Women (VAW), and that through distribution of the results, schools of social work nationally will benefit by making proper adjustments.

The 2005 Fellows

Over the last year, CONNECT, Inc. in New York City, the Family Violence Prevention Fund based in San Francisco, and their partners across the country have supported two extraordinary individuals chosen to carry on the work of the late Susan Schechter. Sharwline Nicholson and Andy Wong, were selected as the first Susan Schechter Fellows.

Sharwline Nicholson

Sharwline Nicholson, in her writing, underscored what guided Susan Schechter herself: "keeping a mom safe will result in safety for the child." She is an immigrant woman from the Caribbean who works for Home Depot where she began as a cashier, going on to be promoted over the five years she has been employed there. She is also a domestic violence survivor who experienced the worst of the child welfare system. Ultimately she turned pain into power by beginning a lawsuit which became a landmark case: Nicholson v. Williams. In this case, a federal judge decided that the practice of removing the children of battered women from their custody was erratic and unfair, further punishing mothers already victimized by domestic violence.

Nicholson pursued this suit at great personal risk because she wanted to help other mothers and their children faced with similar issues. As a result of her success, she has been invited to many domestic violence conferences and colleges to speak, conduct workshops, participate in plenary sessions and facilitate dialogues. She has been active in several organizations in New York City including serving on the board of the Child Welfare Organizing Project and on the advisory board for the Child Welfare Watch. Her goal is to work collectively at addressing the systemic issues which directly affect mothers and children. She truly is an emerging leader who has a platform from which to launch a career that holds the potential of changing the landscape with regard to the response to child abuse and domestic violence.

Nicholson’s proposed project is producing a video on the landmark case that bears her name for law students, child welfare workers, domestic violence advocates and survivors. She believes that professionals who hear directly from someone affected by the issues in the case about the changes in law and the rights of battered women and children will be more likely to act accordingly. This policy and practice change strategy is linked to local organizing work through which she wants to educate residents in her own neighborhood (Central Brooklyn) about the ramifications of her case thereby empowering victims who may face challenges similar to those she has experienced.

Project Update:

Nicholson is in production on a video titled, "Balancing the Harms," that focuses on issues and discussion that emerged from the decision in the landmark case that bears her name. This compelling video reveals an unintended and often overlooked consequence of domestic violence and child welfare practice – the trauma of removal. Professionals and survivors share their experiences to help all of us understand how the removal of children in domestic violence cases deeply affects the lives of children and their families. Understanding that exposure to abuse is harmful to children, this film reminds us that removal is not the answer. Balancing the Harms will stimulate new discussion, thought and solutions to help children who are exposed to domestic violence and are involved in the child welfare system. It is time for us to balance our focus and protect our children from further harms. Children can and do recover from witnessing domestic violence. What are we doing for our children who were removed, still in care and or aged out of care? Everyone who cares about children and domestic violence should not miss this film by Sharwline Nicholson. The intended audience for this video is social service professionals, law and social work students and advocates who work with families. This is meant to be an empowerment tool for women and children.

She believes that professionals who hear directly from someone affected by the issues in the case about the changes in law and the rights of battered women and children will be more likely to act accordingly. This policy and practice change strategy is linked to local organizing work through which she wants to educate residents in her own neighborhood (Central Brooklyn) about the ramifications of her case thereby empowering victims who may face challenges similar to those she has experienced.

View Balancing the Harms video trailer

Over the last year, Nicholson has presented at a number of conferences, trainings, and events such as conducted a workshop on putting a human face to the issue of domestic violence at CONNECT’s training Institute, (CTI), delivered a keynote address at Grafton County Greenbook Project’s Cross Systems Training, participated in a plenary titled, “The Strength of Mothers and Children Together: Transforming Adversity through Courage, Determination, and Hope,” and led a workshop for the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges conference, “Changing the Buzz, participated in a plenary discussion titled “Balancing the Harm: Looking at Issues of Child Protection and Domestic Violence,” and led a workshop for the Muskie School of Public Service, participated in the University of California at San Francisco’s conference; “Ending Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking in the 21st Century,” convened a community forum discussion of Susan Schechter’s Fellowship and the journey to the Nicholson class action lawsuit for the Family Violence Prevention Fund, and many others.

If you would like to hear more about Sharwline’s video and her work in the community please email: fellowship@endabuse.org

Andy Wong

Andy Wong, a young man engaged in a variety of social justice organizing work in San Francisco, wants to take his commitment to addressing issues of violence in the family national. As a young child, he witnessed his mother endure years of domestic violence, an experience that fuels a dedication to making a difference that has already been expressed in remarkable ways. He currently serves as the Director of Development and Communications at Community United Against Violence, a respected Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender community-based anti-violence nonprofit.

His commitment to issues of social justice has been demonstrated by serving as President of a campus-based Feminist Majority chapter, the first male to hold the position, and by organizing a public awareness campaign on dating violence. He provided legal counseling to low-income survivors of domestic violence at Women Against Abuse Legal Center, the nation’s first legal clinic for victims. He organized a conference to educate more than 100 lawyers on how to effectively prosecute cases on adult rape and sexual assault while at NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund, and helped raise funds for the Polaris Project, a startup nonprofit organization that has since been recognized by Ashoka for its efforts to end sex trafficking. All of this from someone in his early twenties.

Project Update:

Through the fellowship, Wong has been invited to speak about his experiences as a child witness to audiences at events organized by the Family Violence Prevention Fund, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, and California Partnership to End Domestic Violence.

In addition, Wong has been asked to serve in a number of leadership roles to address issues of child welfare and domestic violence, including as a Steering Committee Member of the California Intimate Partner Violence Consortium, a Children and Youth Cabinet Member of the United Way of the Bay Area, and a Trainer for the Sheila Wellstone Institute

Wong's project is to develop a call-to-action statement to encourage child witnesses to organize to end violence against women and children. In addition, Andy is currently developing a website to serve as an online resource for child witnesses everywhere who want to take action against domestic violence.

Wong is creating a movement that organizes young people who themselves witnessed violence in their youth to find their voices, and that empowers these individuals to work toward better policy through organizing and activism. As a child witness to violence himself, he has a natural focus on childhood exposure to violence and can talk about issues of violence in the home with both young people and movement professionals.

Susan Schechter understood how important her work was to women and children everywhere who live with violence in their homes and communities. Sharwline, Andy, and now Holly will carry the torch that Susan held so high.