Meet Dawn Shedrick

We recently connected with Dawn Shedrick and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Dawn , thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?

I was raised in a family- on both sides- that values hard work and a solid work ethic. My mother took pride in her decades-long work at our local utility company. She arrived early early to work, wore the spiffiest threads, participated in company community events, and took additional trainings to acquire new skills and expand existing ones. My parents and grandparents are and were Baby Boomers who were raised to commit to the same career and job for their entire working lives. Although that seems limiting to my GenX self, I now recognize that they each cultivated ethical careers that they were proud of. They were good at their work, if not exemplary.

My mother, paternal grandmother, and uncles were actively engaged in their respective labor unions. I learned early on that workers rights didn’t always align with employer intentions and that a good work ethic would not only cement my professional reputation, but also fuel the pursuit of fair compensation and working conditions. Their unions were also vibrant communities that were comprised of the most colorful people who, in many cases, became lifelong family friends.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

First and foremost, I am a social worker. I have come to own that I was a social worker at hearts years before I passed my licensing exam. Growing up I was not only the compassionate, empathetic one in the bunch, but- thanks to my socially conscious older cousin Traci- was able to critically examine the impact of oppressive systems on individual lived experiences.

However, my love of math and entrepreneurial energy had me pursue a bachelors degree in Finance. But it didn’t take long for me to realize I really wanted to do my part to co-create a just, equitable world where all people can thrive. So I pursued my Masters in Social Work and that was that! I began my career in the 1990’s working with people living with HIV/AIDS and their families before advances in treatment ensured more people could live longer lives with the chronic condition. I learned how to best organize with and advocate for communities that are consistently pushed to the margins because they dare to exist outside of the dominant culture. I went on to work with families who were unhoused, trauma survivors, my beloved LGBTQ community, and people living with severe mental illness. Those experiences form the bedrock of my current work ethic and praxis.

These days you’ll find me at the helm of JenTex Training & Consulting, a professional development and continuing education company that serves the health and human service sectors. I love that my work marries my 28+ years of experience as a community organizer, caseworker, psychotherapist, supervisor, educator, and holistic healer. I get to create transformative learning experiences for professionals and teams through trainings, consulting projects, and leadership development coaching. I’m blessed in that I have delivered learning experiences for folks in most U.S States as well as China, Canada, Puerto Rico, and Tanzania in-person and online. I consider myself a learning artist, as my creativity is best expressed when I’m designing learning events and experiences. As much as we talk about theory and best practices in my trainings, we also mediate, color/doodle, pull oracle cards, write songs, jam to 80’s pop and R&B, and engage in sensory soothing practices. I believe helping professionals deserve to do their best work without sacrificing their wellness.

I’m currently working with my trusted web developer to co-create a customized website that offers dynamic…dare I say fun!…online webinar and workshops for my clients! Stay tuned at www.jentextraining.com!

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

I can say with certainty that empathy, integrity, and compassion area the most impactful qualities in my journey. They fertilize all other qualities and skills that serve me in my life and my work. I can’t do any of my work or be a responsible human without them. I encourage others to focus on cultivating and nurturing their inherent gifts and personal values, as they will certainly inform any professional or social skills and experiences you aspire to.

Tell us what your ideal client would be like?

My ideal client is a social worker, mental health practitioner, or healthcare professional who is authentically committed to creating real change in the world. They understand that we live and operate within systems that privilege some people’s needs over those of many others who don’t look like or live like them. They understand the value of the work they do, whether it’s on an individual level as a psychotherapist or a broader level as an activist or organizational leader. They embrace the value of lifelong learning and understand that their wellness is as important to their client and patient outcomes as the work itself. Most importantly, they understand that unlearning the ways we were conditioned to sacrifice our own wellness for that of others is as important as acquiring new hard skills. They know that when they thrive, we all thrive and they’re willing to invest- time, effort, and/or money- in the experiences that will allow them to do just that…thrive!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://jentextraining.com
• Instagram: @dawnshedrick
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dawnshedrick/

Image Credits

Dawn’s two headshots (with the black shirt and white shirt) @Tamara Fleming Photography

JenTex logo @Natalie Walstein

Photo of Dawn in red dress and the Social Work Supervision banner @Dawn Shedrick

The other three photos (Black woman writing on flipchart, the sunflower pic frame, and the pic of the flip chart) @Ania Volovique