The words came quietly, read aloud by the man who had spent 24 years teaching what they meant.
“I solemnly pledge to consecrate my life to the service of humanity and to social justice.”
Michael Duxler, Ph.D, associate professor of social work, led the Social Work Professional Oath for the last time on May 13, as the Newman School of Education and Social Work honored its 2026 Master of Social Work (MSW) class at its annual pinning ceremony in the Dugan-Gorges Conference Center. Nineteen graduates repeated the words together, received their pins and stepped officially into the profession.
It was Duxler’s final pinning ceremony before retirement. After nearly two and half decades with the program, he was ending his career the same way he had spent it: standing in front of students, asking them to reach higher.
A community that cares
Jessica Bird, dean of the School of Education and Social Work, drove three hours from Garden City, Kansas, to be present.
“Tonight is especially meaningful as we recognize Dr. Duxler during his final pinning ceremony before retirement,” Bird said. “Your impact on this program and on the many students you have guided throughout your career will continue long after tonight.”
The ceremony moved through the pinning of each graduate, followed by a candle-lighting. Each student passed the flame to the next, a symbol of the shared commitment to service they were carrying into their careers.
Emily Stuart, LMSW, LMAC, MSW program grant coordinator and faculty member, opened the evening with an invocation that drew on the example of St. Louise de Marillac, patron saint of social workers. Stuart asked that graduates “listen deeply, advocate fiercely and serve humbly without losing sight of their own humanity.”
Larry Heck, professor emeritus and Pi Gamma Mu faculty adviser, recognized six graduates as new members of Pi Gamma Mu, the international honor society in the social sciences. New members introduced included Rachel Breaux, Lauryn Goode, Maythe Ibarra, Tera Moore, Vanessa Myers and Janie Stephenson. The organization celebrated its centennial in 2024. Newman’s chapter has been active for 53 years.
Newman’s one-of-a-kind support
Duxler was not originally scheduled to deliver the closing reflection. Vanessa Rials, director of field education, had been asked to offer the final words but was unable to attend the ceremony. Yelando Johnson, division chair and MSW program director, asked Duxler to step in.
He didn’t soften what was ahead of them.
“You’ll be entering a profession that is desperately needed in this world,” Duxler said. “You will work with people who have felt unseen, unsafe, abandoned. What they don’t need is words of brilliance or solutions or fixes. What they hunger for, what we all hunger for, is to be seen. So never underestimate the power of showing up.”
Showing up, he said, is easy when things are going well. The test is showing up when they’re not. And the way to sustain that over a career, he said, comes down to something simple.
“Give your best energies to the people that love you, people that bring you joy, happiness, laughter,” Duxler said. “And I think our clients will be the better for it.”
Graduates ready to make an impact
For the graduates stepping across that threshold, the night carried real weight. Manuel Perez, who balanced a new family and a full-time job at Mirror, Inc. while completing the program, said the department never let him feel like he was doing it alone.
“The social work department has been super supportive from the beginning,” Perez said. “They’d say, just take your time with things, communicate with us. If there’s something you’re falling behind on, let us know and we’re here to support you.”
Delphine Sosu, a native of Ghana who came to Newman to play soccer two years ago, completed her MSW field placement at the International Rescue Committee in Wichita. She said the work ahead felt like a calling that she had been moving toward long before she had words for it.
“I believe that from here I’ll be able to touch a lot of lives,” Sosu said. “Be it whichever way, small or big, I’m looking forward to being a bigger change in society and the world at large.”
The 2026 Master of Social Work graduates are: Mussawir Ahmed, Rachel Breaux, Theresa Carillo, Stacy Corwin, Lauryn Goode, Scottney Hesketh, Ana Hernandez, Maythe Ibarra, Antoinette Knapp, Tera Moore, Vanessa Myers, Virginia Myers, Manuel Perez, Elizabeth Peters, Sindy Reyes, Desarae Rowe, Rachel Self, Delphine Sosu and Janie Stephenson.
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