91¶ÌÊÓƵ

Assistant Professor

Office: Lindquist Hall 322
Email: ‌lizbethvelazquez@weber.edu
Spring 2024 Office Hours: Thursdays Noon - 3 p.m. or by appointment

Lizbeth Velazquez, PhD, CSW is an Assistant Professor of Social Work and Gerontology at 91¶ÌÊÓƵ. She is a first-generation Chicana from East Los Angeles, California. After graduating high school, she moved to Ogden, Utah and attended 91¶ÌÊÓƵ where she earned a double Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and Sociology.  She attended the University of Utah, for graduate school where she completed her Master of Social Work and PhD. Lizbeth has worked in the social work field since 2007 beginning her career as a counselor at a secure facility then a diversion program for the Division of Juvenile Justice and Youth Services (DJJYS). After spending seven years with DJJYS she decided to make the switch to K-12 education where she could focus on preventative efforts with adolescents. She worked for Canyons School District for ten years, beginning at the district level as a gang prevention specialist and intervention coordinator and then as a social worker at the secondary level with most of her time at Jordan High School. In 2022, she joined 91¶ÌÊÓƵ as a full time faculty. When she's not teaching, she is providing clinical services to unhoused individuals through Midtown Community Health Center's Hope Clinic. Her research interests include prosocial efforts for adolescents to disrupt the school to prison pipeline and mentoring opportunities for access to higher education. She is passionate about working with and advocating for marginalized and underrepresented populations, specifically Latine students, families, and the larger community. Her work is driven by her authentic way of caring, meeting folks where they are on their own journey, all while focusing on their strengths. Her daughter Alma is her pride and joy and she loves watching her play wheelchair basketball for the University of Arizona. As a form of self care, she enjoys her cafecito, is a dedicated plant momma,and loves to weight train.