M. Antonio (Tony) G. Alvarez

LEO Lecturer II Tony Alvarez serves as the School's point person for the use of experiential, adventure and wilderness approaches to social work practice. Professor Alvarez's research focuses on the design of effective experiential & adventure-based programs for social workers in multiple settings and with diverse populations. Professor Alvarez is active in state, national, and international organizations promoting adventure-based practice, and is currently on the Board of the Therapeutic Adventure Professional Group, the therapeutic arm of The Association of Experiential Education. He has written several articles on the application of adventure tools and techniques to social work practice, is co-author of a book, Power of One: Using adventure and experiential activities within one on one counseling sessions, and is currently working with co-authors on another book on adventure therapy with families. He continues to advocate for providing certification in this modality. Tony also teaches courses for the undergraduate students in the CASC minor, which allows him to further explore his research interests in facilitation models and in community-based youth empowerment program development.