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Melody Zuniga

Melody Zuniga

Director of Field Education – Generalist Practice
Lecturer
Phone: 254-710-3702
E-mail: Melody_Zuniga@baylor.edu

"The Field Education component of Social Work education gives students the real-life experience that will make the words from the textbooks and case studies come alive, while giving them a smooth and successful transition into the workforce when they graduate."

"How exciting to know that they will have already been an active agent of change in the lives of others by the time they walk across the stage."


Education

M.S.W., Baylor University
B.A., Baylor University
Full Curriculum Vita

Selected Publications

  • Zuniga, M., & Davis, D. (2010) Choosing safety over silence: What role can ministers play when sexual abuse comes to church? Family and Community Ministries, 23(4), 37-39.
  • Chambers, J., & York, M. (2005, December). Reaching out to rural communities. TAASA Diversity Task Force newsletter.
  • York, M. (2003, Fall/Winter). An intercultural experience. Community Connections. Baylor University School of Social Work newsletter.
  • Myers, D., & York, M. (2002, Fall/Winter). The school of social work: An incubator of vision and vocation. Community Connections. Baylor University School of Social Work newsletter.

Research Interests

  • Process of Children Disclosing Abuse
  • Child Abuse
  • Child Witnesses
  • Sexual Assault
  • Professional Bilingual Service Provision
  • Social Work with the Spanish-speaking Community

Background

Melody York Zuniga began in June 2009 as the Director of Baccalaureate Field Education for the School of Social Work and is now the Director of Field Education – Generalist Practice. She has served as an adjunct faculty member since January of 2007. Before joining the School of Social Work full time, she worked for the Advocacy Center for Crime Victims and Children in Waco. She began her work there in the roles of Victim Services Specialist and Counselor for the Advocacy Center's rural offices, serving the children, youth, adults, and families that worked or were working through experiences of sexual assault and other forms of violence. Most recently, she worked for the Advocacy Center as the Forensic Interviewer, conducting developmentally appropriate and forensically sound interviews of children to gather details surrounding their alleged witness to or experience of abuse and other crimes. She also worked closely with a multi-disciplinary team that included Child Protective Services, law enforcement agencies, and the District Attorney's Office to help ensure coordinated efforts in child abuse investigations.

She is married to Jose Zuniga and they have two children, a daughter Miriam (2005) and a son Diego Jahziel (2007) who they affectionately call "Mimi" and "Jahzy."