06/02/2026
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
Shana Smith is a senior in the Bachelor of Social Work program at the University of Alabama and will graduate this December. She has maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA throughout her academic career, belongs to several honor societies while balancing life as a wife of 19 years, mother of three, and hobby goat farmer. Shana has served as a School of Social Work Ambassador for the past two years and plans to continue in the role during her final year. She has also participated in the highly competitive School of Social Work Washington, D.C. Fly-In, where she gained firsthand experience in policy advocacy and legislative engagement at the national level. Most recently, Shana was awarded the prestigious Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship, a nationally competitive award that supports study abroad opportunities for American students. She was one of only six University of Alabama students selected to receive the scholarship. Through UA Abroad, she is currently studying in Vienna, Austria, as part of the Global Perspectives on Crime and Justice program. The program includes coursework and professional engagement with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), exposing students to international approaches to crime prevention, human trafficking, victim services, organized crime, and criminal justice policy.
Her passion is rooted in supporting families impacted by the criminal justice system, with a particular focus on victim advocacy, survivors of intimate partner violence, and helping incarcerated parents rebuild healthy relationships with their children. Beyond the classroom, she remains actively engaged in community service through a pregnancy resource center and other initiatives that support women, children, and families. As she prepares to begin her practicum and complete her degree, Shana remains committed to lifelong learning, service, and advocacy, while looking forward to the opportunities that lie ahead in the field of social work.
