Fernando Ricardo Valenzuela, MSW

Fernando Ricardo Valenzuela (they/them/el/elle), MSW, is an interdisciplinary educator, researcher, and political organizer with international and multicultural experiences across various settings. As an anti-imperialist and Marxist social worker, they are interested in a critical engagement of international social work that promotes the self-determination of all people by examining the impacts of United States imperialism, militarism, and neoliberalism across the globe, namely Latin America. Utilizing their background with participatory action research (PAR), they aim to collaborate with Latin American social workers, activists, and organizations to co-create policy analyses and recommendations that center their needs and access to resources. Fernando’s research interests are largely influenced by a travel study they did with the University of Puerto Rico in 2023, where they learned about the Reconceptualization Movement of Latin American social work and its impacts on social work theories, education, and praxis. Their ultimate goals with research are to support projects that promote divestment from imperialist interventions for the (re)construction of a much-needed social welfare state, concurrently uplifting the self-determination of international communities.

Fernando has recently engaged in projects that use post-colonial theory to understand the sociopolitical and economic influences of neoliberalism and colonialism on climate change, specifically looking at similarities and differences of impact between the Global North and Global South. They have also done research in Connecticut’s criminal legal system since 2023, utilizing PAR in social policy research to better understand the experiences of previously incarcerated people impacted by Public Act 15-84. As a labor and political organizer, Fernando aims to build their identity as a burgeoning activist-scholar by merging their background in organizing with future research. In 2020, they spearheaded efforts at Clark County School District that gave thousands of substitute teachers $4.8 million in raises—their first raises in over 20 years. In 2023, after being illegally terminated by a local nonprofit for attempting to unionize, Fernando won their case with the National Labor Relations Board and has written a critical autoethnography on their experience of unionizing in the Nonprofit Industrial Complex. They are a co-founder of Connecticut Social Workers for Palestine and are currently engaged in various organizing efforts across the state.

MSW
University of Connecticut

Area of Research Interest:
International Social Work
Anti-imperialism
Marxism
Neoliberalism
Critical Consciousness
Participatory Action Research
Critical Social Work
Community & Political Organizing
Labor & Unions
Social Welfare Policy

View Fernando’s CV