School of Social Work Spring (May) 2026 Commencement

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Keynote Speaker Lydia Crafts, LCSW

Representative Lydia Crafts is in her third term in the Maine House of Representatives, where she serves as the chair of the Joint Standing Committee on Transportation. Crafts grew up in the small midcoast town of Belfast, where she learned that being from Maine meant needing to be a thoughtful problem solver, a strong collaborator and a champion for justice. She also learned the importance of hard work, dedication and commitment to community. These beliefs informed how she chose her profession as a clinical social worker, how she’s raising her children and her approach to public service. Crafts earned her bachelor's degree from Smith College and her master’s in social work from the University of Maine. In addition to her work in the legislature, she is a clinical social worker with a private practice and works for a foundation supporting fishing families.

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Student Speaker Nicole Portmann Muñoz

Before coming to the School of Social Work, Muñoz earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia, where she began her work in human services by leading the Latinx and Migrant Aid Program, supporting Spanish-speaking refugee communities in Charlottesville. During her time as a Master of Social Work student, she served on the behavioral health team at Hope Medical Clinic, a free medical and dental clinic providing integrated care to uninsured patients. While there, she developed a strong interest in medical social work and interdisciplinary, patient-centered care. After graduation, she plans to pursue a hospital-based social work position in Detroit. She is excited to continue growing as a social worker and to support individuals and families as they navigate complex health systems with dignity and care.

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Student Speaker Tania Bermejo

Tania Bermejo is a proud immigrant from Mexico whose journey has been shaped by resilience, healing and a deep commitment to community. She earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology from U-M and is graduating with a Master of Social Work. She is also a member of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, one of the nation’s most selective academic honor societies.

With over 15 years of experience in healthcare, Bermejo has served the Grand Rapids community in roles ranging from community health worker to community program supervisor. She completed her clinical internship at Arbor Circle and will continue serving the community there as a psychotherapist, providing individual and group therapy to individuals experiencing mental health and substance use challenges.

Her work and passion is grounded in advancing equitable and culturally responsive mental health care, particularly for Spanish-speaking communities. Her future plan is to build her private practice, La Luna LLC, where she will integrate traditional clinical approaches with somatic and holistic practices to support healing, transformation and collective empowerment. La Luna is rooted in the belief that individual healing can lead to collective transformation — because even in darkness, there is always the possibility of light.