We would like to take a moment to introduce and highlight our intern, Jessica McMillan. She is currently a graduate student in Social Work at the Colorado State University – Pueblo. With a passion for mental health her ultimate goal is to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. 

Jessica graduated with her Bachelor of Social Work with a minor in Psychology from Colorado State University Pueblo in May of 2016. While in pursuit of her bachelor’s degree she completed a four-month, full time internship with Parkview Medical Center on their adult/ geriatric inpatient psychiatric unit. Upon graduation she accepted an offer to be a case manager at Health Solutions CARE Team. Jessica gained valuable experience there as part of an active community treatment team, working with a small caseload of severely ill clients with the goal of assisting these clients in building and maintaining community tenure. “As you can see, mental health is my background. I come from a family with high mental illness rates, which is what drives my passion for the population” Jessica shared.

Jessica has since moved into the role of full-time student in the “fast track” program at the Colorado State University – Pueblo to obtain her master’s degree in Social Work. Her future is bright with opportunity.  “I have always wanted to work with children and families at St. Jude’s hospital, I see this happening maybe 10-15 years down the line. That kind of work will be very emotionally challenging I think with more experience in the field I will be more successful” she says.

Here are some Fun Facts about Jessica: 

•    She was born in Dallas, Texas, however moved to CO before her first birthday.  While she still has many family members in Texas, the mountains will always be her home. 
•    She says, “I am a Colorado girl to the core, the mountains are my peace and my happy place.” 
•    In the summertime, she loves to be outdoors exploring and camping and, in the winters,, she enjoys making homemade soups and cuddling up with a soft blanket and a movie. 
•    She is a firm believer in adopting shelter pets and has a 14-month-old Pitbull rescue named “Pepper” that she adopted back in April.