Circling back. As a teenager growing up in Levittown, Pennsylvania, Rachel Greenberg, SSW ’18, ’19, struggled with mental health challenges. But her life changed after meeting with a social worker whose warmth and understanding gave her confidence. Now, Rachel endeavors to help others the same way through her position with Our Minds Matter, a D.C.-based nonprofit focusing on teen mental health across the country, including at three schools in the Philadelphia area.

For students, by students. In her role, Rachel oversees evidence-informed curriculum and content development for all OMM programs, including the organization’s signature program, which involves partnering with high schools and middle schools to engage student-led clubs to prevent teen suicide. “We know from lots of research that teens are very likely to turn to each other for help before turning to an adult,” Rachel says.

Two degrees in four years. Rachel took advantage of the university’s 4+1 master of social work program and enrolled in extra courses to graduate with two diplomas in the time it’s supposed to take to earn one. Not everyone in Rachel’s network went to college, and she credits her parents for instilling within her a drive to achieve. She was attracted to Temple for the dynamic energy she felt on campus and a sense that it was a place that rewarded hard work. She was right.