Greetings! I am A Kai Mumpfield, LICSW, PIP and a native to Alabama with strong roots in the community. I grew up in a community that many would call undesirable, but it is where I learned respect for all, compassion and caring for others- elders, young and all those in between, service, hard work and having a heart for people. It is my foundation and at the core of who I am, including this journey to becoming a Social Worker. In 2003, I obtained my BSW from Auburn University after being led to this discipline, by a community and church member and family friend. Then in 2006, I obtained my MSW from the University of Maryland-Baltimore, where I had the opportunity to intern with the Mayor’s Office of Children, Youth and Families and serve in a local high school. My experience includes working in child welfare, as an intern with DHR, working with Therapeutic Programs Inc., now Alabama Mentor, Children’s Aid Society of Alabama and working with children and families as a Children’s Therapist at Family Sunshine Center providing trauma-focused, cognitive behavior therapy to children impacted by family and community violence. My experiences also include working in Medical Social Work, with Montgomery AIDS Outreach as a direct worker then later in an administrative capacity as the Director of Social Services. Furthermore, with each position, or “assignment” as I call them, I have been able to expand my skills to include training, coordinating and administration such as my time with the Alabama Pre/Post Adoption Connections Program with Children’s Aid Society where I transitioned into serving as the Southern Regional Coordinator as well as the Training Team and Permanency Conference Coordinator, supporting and educating families and professionals alike. I have presented multiple trainings, in-person, virtually, locally, and nationally throughout my career and continue to do so on various topics. I also provide adoption support via public and private home studies. I am currently the Director of Field Education in the Department of Social work at Alabama State University. My journey has not been linear but filled with a love for this work that I am honored to do and opportunities to serve in spaces that I never dreamed of or thought possible. Being on this board has enlighten me on sectors of this profession that I have never thought about before, like developing and maintaining accountability for practice standard and public protection. It is now, however, my pleasure to continue to grow and be pushed beyond myself as I serve, this state and our constituents, on the Alabama Board of Social Work Examiners.