Exceptional, Dynamic Teacher

West Ashley resident Shirley Ford looks out at the world and sees its vast potential. As a social worker and educator, her strategy is to look around the bend, break through the limitations people encounter, and find the possibilities that exist.
Ford is the executive director of a behavioral health agency, Options for Social Change. While attending a conference in Baltimore, she noticed that many of the disabled population she was traveling with encountered appalling types of oppression. Taxis wouldn’t stop for them, restaurants wouldn’t allow seeing-eye dogs to enter their buildings, and yet she says her companions met the discrimination with courage. They deserve more respect and assistance, she believes. Ford’s agency also seeks to enhance and strengthen people’s lives, offering services such as counseling, independent living skills, and tailored treatment plans. And as an adjunct professor at Limestone College, she encourages her students to “raise the bar, and dream big.”
“Think outside the box,” says Ford. “Turn threats into opportunities.” Those threats could be education levels, economic situations, or social limitations. Whatever it is that hinders people actually contains hidden opportunity, she believes.
A native Charlestonian, Ford has worked for many years in areas of health, education, and welfare. Currently an independent contractor working with aged and disabled populations, she possesses a Master’s in Social Work, and is a member of the Academy of Certified Social Workers (ACSW), as well as the National Association of Social Workers (NASW), symbols of excellence in the field. She is also a Licensed Independent Social Worker Advanced Practice and Clinical Practice (LISW AP/CP).
Ford’s legacy, to teach, encourage, and uplift people, makes her a true asset to the Charleston community, says long-time colleague Edith Miller, founder of Choices Women’s Center, and education coach for four schools in the USA. Ford is an “exceptional teacher,” says Miller. “She inspires her students and many in the disabled population to view the world as a place with unlimited possibilities and limitless boundaries.”
It is exactly this type of thinking that has made fans of Ford’s students. They are pursuing degrees in social work so they can help others while empowering themselves. No dead-end, glass ceilings for them. They are aiming higher. Many are going to fill a niche in South Carolina by creating their own jobs.
With the current sequestration likely affecting social work employment, Ford encourages her students to take advantage of a growing trend. “Over 50 percent of the aging population may at one point need assistance,” says Ford. “The longer we live, our chances of becoming disabled increase.” Many people now move to Charleston because its climate has more than one season, unlike Florida, less rain than Seattle, and less snow and cold than parts north. These retirees will age, and if their families are unable to move to Charleston to help them, a need emerges. Take the bull by the horns and preempt the need, Ford says. In addition, she also pushes students to broaden their educational scope, to pursue psychology, foreign language, and business courses. This equips them to better navigate the future.
Ford’s combination of entrepreneurship and passion for empowering the disabled has proved irresistible to her students. “She’s very compassionate,” says Lovett Seabrook, who says he sees Ford’s face shine when she talks about people she’s helping. Students are able to call on her, regardless the hour. “Even on days when we don’t have class,” adds Seabrook. Thanks to Ford, Louchetia Robinson says she’s certain about a future in social work. Yolanda Drayton believes Ford “goes above and beyond the call of duty, and provides extra resources.” Daren Graham wants to work with youth, and says Ford is a “compelling, inspiring person.” He expects to open his own business, and credits Ford for igniting that dream. “She’s an excellent teacher,” agrees Manish Mazyck. “She gets us to absorb the world in terms beyond what’s taught in books.” For example, “she shares innovative ways to create business as social workers in the practical world, and how to increase our networking skills.”
Ford benefited from strong mentors as a youth, and says she is now passing that forward to the next generation.
Area resident Shakia Koger had already earned a Master’s in Social Work, and decided to work towards her LISW. With Ford as her mentor and supervisor, Koger will soon start counseling people at Options for Social Change, and perhaps open her own agency one day. “She’s awesome, and very dynamic,” says Koger.
Ford’s brother, Alonzo “Lonnie” Steplight, says his sister doesn’t allow the what-ifs to stop her. “She’s a great motivator,” says Steplight. “She’ll do anything in the world for you, and she’s resourceful, too.” He recently started a new church in Ridgeville, and shortly afterward, got a call from Ford. “She said, ‘I know where you can get carpet for your church.’” She’s the type who sees what you need before you know it yourself. That’s another reason many people trust and admire her, said Steplight.
 
Journalist Lisa Weatherwax earned the Promise of Excellence Matrix Table Award for Women in Communications.