Liz Franklin Wins 2023 CEHD Distinguished Alumni Award

Established in 2010, the College of Education and Human Development UMN Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes the alumni who have brought distinction to their professions and communities.

This year, one of our own, Elizabeth Franklin, has won.

Liz received her Master of Social Work degree from the UMN School of Social Work, and is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker. 

In her current role as Associate Director of Behavioral Health at CLUES - Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio, Liz oversees the mental health programs and provides administrative support to programs across the Behavioral Health department. She focuses her direct clinical work on supporting kids, teens, and their parents as they heal from experiences of complex trauma, and particularly enjoys supporting young people with developmental differences in their healing process. 

Liz is passionate about helping families and caregivers understand and work with the multiple systems that impact their children in a more empowered way — advocating for processes more inclusive, culturally affirming, and equitable processes.  She believes strongly that building connections across settings and creating access to high-quality educational and supervisory experiences for providers is central to improving experiences for service participants.  Liz has led the creation and chairs the Board of El Consorcio, a nonprofit supporting the work of Latine-serving providers, and is Secretary of the Board of MACMH (Minnesota Association for Children's Mental Health).

Liz, we are so very proud to call you our alumna. Onward!