Suzanne M. Schunk has been the vice president of Family Support Services at Southwest Human Development since 2000. Under her leadership, the department has tripled in size as the number of programs has increased significantly. Most of the programs address child welfare prevention or intervention and the department and agency are highly respected and known for excellent services and outstanding outcomes for children and families. The specialized program developed by Suzanne for families with a parent accused of medical child abuse (“Munchausen by Proxy”) has achieved national recognition.
Prior to coming to Southwest Human Development, Suzanne was the CEO of Family Services Agency in Elkton, Md. for 14 years. An Arizona Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Suzanne has nearly 40 years of experience providing mental health and child welfare services to children and families and she has been an expert witness for courts in several states, including Arizona. She was a clinical consultant for several programs in Maryland and now completes specialized clinical assessments for the AZ Department of Child Safety. Her areas of expertise include child welfare and child medical abuse, Factitious Disorder Imposed on Another, domestic violence, professional court-ready documentation, and Critical Incident Stress Debriefing.
Suzanne has provided professional training for more than 25 years and has presented at many state-wide conferences, as well as the national conferences for the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children and the National Association of Social Workers.
Suzanne earned her bachelor’s degree from Fordham University in Bronx, N.Y. and her master’s degree in Social Work from Catholic University in Washington, D.C. In 2006, she earned the “Infant Family Specialist Certificate” from the Harris Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Training Institute. She has been also a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional since 2016. She has personal experience as a foster parent and as an adoptive parent and grandparent.
Suzanne is actively involved in the National Association of Social Workers – Arizona Chapter (NASW-AZ) where she is a past president of the Board of Directors. Suzanne represents Southwest Human Development on the Child Welfare Committee of Children’s Action Alliance, the Healthy Families AZ Advisory Committee, and she is a past treasurer for the Protecting Arizona’s Family Coalition Board of Directors. She is active in advocacy on legislative issues affecting programs for children and families.
Suzanne received numerous awards during her work in Maryland. Since coming to Arizona, Suzanne was honored on 2005 as the “Social Worker of the Year” for NASW-AZ. In 2014, she received the “Hope Award” from Prevent Child Abuse Arizona and the “President’s Award” from NASW-AZ.