OUS social work organization has been assisting community for more than a decade

“It’s a see a need, fill a need organization,” Joy Shytle says of the Ohio University Southern’s Social Work Student Association.

Shytle, who is associate professor of instruction, social work and field liaison at OUS and has been there for 12 years, said the group was formed by her 11 years ago.

And through it, students work to provide for those in need across the Tri-State in a number of ways.

When Shytle and a group of students spoke with The Tribune in February, they were meeting in the school’s social work classroom, where they were organizing donations collected for those impacted by that month’s storms in Kentucky and West Virginia.

“Today, we’re sorting items to take to flood victims of this past storm,” Brittney Marinich, the group’s president, said.

She explained that, originally, the donations they were sorting were collected for unhoused populations in the Tri-State. But, when the need for relief following the storm became apparent, they allocated some of those donations toward that effort.

“Now, we’re splitting between the unhoused and the flood victims,” she said.

As they sorted, the group said they were also conducting a drive over the following several days to collect more items.

The group was meeting in the school’s social work learning lab, where they typically organize.

Shytle mentioned the facility is stocked with books and other resources students can use in the program. And, two years ago, they received a grant for virtual reality headsets to allow students to do social work simulations.

Of the student group, Shytle said they stay engaged, looking for ways to help throughout the region.

“This group is very active,” she said.

A typical meeting will have five or six members, though she said they are never the same members, with students coming in to help, depending on their schedule.

“It varies, but everyone is involved in some way,” she said, noting they have nearly 50 members signed up on their distribution list. “But everyone on the list is involved in some way. They’ll make donations, or they’ll attend events.”

She said the motivation among members is strong.

“They’re a group that wants to create social change in the community,” she said. “And, even if they can’t come to a meeting — most of our students are parents or work full time — they will help in what whey they can.”

One way she said that many contribute is through the basket raffles they do several times a year, as a fundraiser for the group’s efforts.

“They can donate items to the baskets,” she said. “Or sell tickets for the baskets. Or they can bring in items for drives like this.”

Shytle spoke of some of the activities they do regularly, such as the collection for the unhoused.

“We did this last year,” she said. “On Saturdays, we take them to places we know unhoused populations congregate, like the Ashland park or Ironton City Mission. We collected all kinds of cold weather items — body warmers, lip balm, socks, and thermoses. We also have things like instant soup that they can put in the thermoses, and instant coffee.”

Other activities the association has taken part in are hosting a trunk or treat in Ashland annually, as well as restocking blessing boxes throughout the Tri-State.

“There’s a list of all of them and we drove around, and filled them,” Shytle said.

Other initiatives have included food drives, and baking cookies for residents of the Sherman Thompson Towers senior apartments in Ironton.

“It depends on the makeup of the group,” Shytle said. “They have their pet projects. One year, we did a suicide prevention walk. Another, we did an Alzheimer’s walk. And we do some recruiting for the program, when we can. We set up tables at events things like that.”

Shytle said the group regularly visits The Neighborhood, a nonprofit assistance organization in Ashland, Kentucky.

“We see what kind of needs they have and we do a tour of the facility,” she said. “Sometimes, just an odd request will come in and we’ll figure out how to fill it.”

One project they did was through The Dressing Room at The Neighborhood.

“We’ve done drives for prom dresses and we donate those to The Dressing Room,” Shytle said.  

Another time, she said they asked everyone on the OUS campuses to donate extra purses, collecting 325 of them.

“We collected hygiene items and money,” Shytle said. “And we went to different homeless encampments and Church Without Walls. We distributed 275 purses filled with things. And the rest, we took to Ironton City Mission.”

Shytle said the aim of the group is to have their work impact all of the Tri-State.

“We have students from Kentucky, West Virginia and Ohio,” she said. “And we do our best to make sure we are spreading our resources in those communities. Brittany lives in Charleston, and some of the stuff goes to Charleston. There was flood damage in Huntington. I’m going to go up and take stuff to that fire department.”

And they have new projects in the work, Marinich said.

“We are talking about doing a dinner at the Ronald McDonald House in Huntington,” she said. “For all the families who stay there.”

The group recently earned accolades from the university, receiving the Dr. Charles Jarrett Emerging Leader Award in January, as part of the school’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Awards.

Shytle said it is the group’s nature to be flexible and aware of both longstanding concerns, as well as more urgent emergencies.

“When there are needs in the community, we figure out how to help them,” she said. “But, if something is more urgent, then we do what we can to help there. We just try to reallocate where the need is the greatest.”

She said they have done fundraisers for needs across the nation, such as those impacted by wildfires in California or Hurricane Blair in North Carolina.

“I have a friend who boards horses at a rescue in North Carolina,” she said. “And her farm was hosting mule teams there.”

Shytle said these teams were used to deliver supplies to areas that were not traversable for vehicles.

“The mule teams from Montana, Texas and Colorado came in and set up shop at the farms,” she said. “And, on their own dime, they picked up debris and made trails to get water and food to people.”

The group at OUS decided to help by donating to the farm, sending gift card from Lowe’s and Tractor Supply.

“They needed feed for mules, straw and blades to replace on chain saws,” she said.

Shytle also said she is proud of a new project social work students have undertaken.

In the fall semester, they focused on mental health, following a conference on the topic in October. And the results were displayed in the spring semester, in the form of a photo documentary in the Riffe Building.

“There were three groups, and they each picked a mental health issue,” she said.

Topics could include “What does ADHD look like in girls?” post partum depression and “Faces of Depression in Scioto County.”

“We are telling the story of specific mental health issues through pictures,” she said. “There are little narratives underneath, but very they are minimal. The pictures are powerful.”

Marinich expanded on the project.

“Mental health, if you’ve ever experienced it or dealt with it, can be overwhelming for people to read about,” she said. “But we all know a feeling we have felt. And, sometimes, you think you’re alone in that feeling. But there are millions of people who share the same issue. So, by using pictures, it connects with an audience who might not have otherwise received that information.”

Shytle said the group is always looking for needs to fill. She said they often hear about them when they are doing projects, such as gift wrapping at the Ashland Town Center.

“People ask about stuff, and have questions about social issues in the community,” she said. “We are responsive to needs, as they arise. That’s why we continue to do fundraising. We’ll plan things we want to do, but have freedom in what we do. All of these students are in their practicums, working in the community, and they know what the needs are.”

Next on the schedule for the group is their annual spring yard sale, which will take place on the OUS parking lot in mid-April. Shytle said the fundraiser for the group raised $700 last year.

“And anything doesn’t sell in yard sale goes to community churches and they can distribute to those who need it,” she said. “Our fundraisers pay for things like the gift cards. And we’ll take donations and augment them with our own funds for things like drives.”

Rachel Miller, one of the group members, summed up their experience doing their work.

“I think its very fulfilling to be a part of something bigger than ourselves,” she said. “Even though it’s a small Tri-State area, we’re making a very big impact, helping those around us in our community and extending help to other communities.”

— For more information on the OUS Social Work Student Association, contact Shytle at shytle@ohio.edu. σ