Michelle Pliske, DSW LCSW RPT-S
Areas of Research & Specialization
I am an assistant professor of Social Work at Pacific University and serve as the Director of BSW Field Education. Much of my career has been focused on pediatric healthcare and trauma across the lifespan. I earned a BA in psychology, studying developmental psychology, at the University of Washington. There I worked with several research labs investigating infant mental health and early childhood development. I received my MSW from Portland State University. My graduate school education offered a pathway into hospice and palliative care. This opportunity allowed me to see a gap in service to build a pediatric program offering play therapy and bereavement support to children of families impacted by death and dying. I earned my doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania. My empirical work utilized qualitative methods of inquiry and grounded theory to explore early childhood adversity, social determinants of health, and post-traumatic growth. I built a non-profit in Oregon centered on providing care to individuals across the lifespan, harnessing principles of trauma-informed care with social justice advocacy. I continue to work in the field and provide clinical social work services to children, adults, and families wounded by adversity and trauma. I specialize in expressive arts, primarily play therapy practice, and incorporate movement and animal assisted human health into direct care and treatment. I work in partnership with my therapy dog, Mercury. Together, he and I seek to support those most vulnerable who have experienced profound trauma and life-altering events. My research goals involve qualitative design to explore the effects of adversity, social determinants of health, and relational-cultural theory in application to education, supervision, and direct clinical care.
Education
Doctor of Social Work, University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy and Practice, Philadelphia, PA in 2020
Master of Social Work, Portland State University School of Social Work, Portland, OR in 2010
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA in 2003
Why I Study Social Work
I remember as a child watching my father demonstrate what it means to give to your community courageously. I saw him responding to emergency calls as a Firefighter and later as our community’s Fire Chief. He supported those impacted by tragedy and provided aid to families in need. Social workers move towards what is uncomfortable, come running when others are in pain, and do so courageously in effort to better the lives of everyone in the community. As an undergraduate college student, I knew I wanted to help others, so I began my journey as a pre-med student with long-term goals to study physical therapy. Internships provided me with the hands-on experience to understand that although I wanted to alleviate suffering, the story of a person’s life about their lived experiences was what spoke to me. The story often held beautiful and agonizing truths capturing our collective humanity. My clinical practice honors and values the relationship between a social worker and client. Mutual empathy and mutual respect bridge presence and awareness to support life change. My research parallels my clinical and supervisory lens, drawing upon qualitative methods to respect the story and provide space for participants to have a voice. Social workers create change. Change for individuals, families, communities, organizations, and societies. They do so courageously and often unceremoniously. I see social work as the unseen infrastructure of society.
What I Would Tell a Student Considering Social Work
Social work has a broad spectrum of service delivery opportunities for all those interested in the field. Whether a student wants to work one-on-one with clients, support groups, organize communities, or write policy and legislative action to create social change, they can find their place in this field. Students interested in studying a specific issue or population can do so with an ability to transform thinking and generate new ideas for solving society’s most difficult problems. The work is engaging, never boring, and always changing. This work also asks the social worker to look deeply into their own past, unpack intersecting identities, and critically examine the self with an expectation of continuous personal growth. I wouldn’t say social work is easy, but it is the most rewarding career I could have imagined. I find myself without regret for choosing this field every day, whether I’m walking into a classroom and seeing a student connect theory to practice or stepping into the therapy room and joining with a client who is navigating change.
Professional Affiliations
American Counseling Association
Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing International Association
Association for Play Therapy
National Association of Social Workers
World Professional Association Transgender Health
International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies
Select Publications
Pliske, M. (2022 in press). Mindfulness-based techniques in play therapy supervision. In S. Born & C. Baker (eds.) Play therapy supervision.
Stauffer, S. & Pliske, M. (2022 in press). Art and movement in play therapy supervision: Working through inevitable trauma stuckness. In S. Born & C. Baker (Eds.) Play therapy supervision.
Pliske, M., Stauffer, S., & Werner-Lin, A. (2021). Posttraumatic Growth Following Adverse Childhood Experiences: "My Creative Arts Teacher Got Me Through It" [Manuscript submitted for publication]. School of Social Work and Social Policy, University of Pennsylvania.
Pliske, M., Stauffer, S., & Werner-Lin, A. (2021). Healing from Adverse Childhood Experiences Through Therapeutic Powers of Play: "I Can Do it With My Hands" International Journal of Play Therapy.
Pliske, M. (2020). Changing the outcome of adverse childhood experiences: How interpersonal relationships, play, and the arts support posttraumatic growth. Doctorate in Social Work (DSW) Dissertation. University of Pennsylvania.
Pliske, M. & Balboa, L. (2019). Integrating yoga and play therapy: The mind body approach for healing adverse childhood experiences. United Kingdom: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Pliske, M. (2018, June). Restructuring the practice model to create space for professional growth. Play Therapy,13 (2), 10-13.
Guest Lectures & Presentations
Stauffer, S. & Pliske, M. (2021, October 12th-17th). Humpty Dumpty in Supervision: Using Storytelling and Art to Overcome Trauma "Shattering" [Lecture session, 3hr]. Association for Play Therapy International Conference, Little Rock, AK, United States. https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.
Pliske, M. M. (2021, January 19-22nd) Changing the Outcome of Adverse Childhood Experiences: How Interpersonal Relationships, Play, and the Arts Support Posttraumatic Growth [Oral Paper]. Society for Social Work and Research.
Pliske, M. M. (2020, October 28th). Relational Trauma [Lecture session -1hr]. University of Pennsylvania School of Social Work and Social Policy, Philadelphia, PA, United States.
Pliske, M. M. (2020, April 22nd -26th). Integrating Play Therapy & Yoga for Healing Adverse Childhood Experiences [Conference session - 3hr]. Expressive Therapies Summit, Los Angeles, CA, United States. -Cancelled due to COVID-19; deferred to 2021 http://www.cvent.com/events/expressive-therapies-summit-los-angeles-2020-registrationsite/agendada483bc75ba04137805a35e2ebf28d64.aspx
Pliske, M. M. (2020, April 14th -17th). Integrating Play Therapy & Yoga for Healing Adverse Childhood Experiences [Conference session - 3hr]. International Summit on Preventing, Assessing and Treating Trauma Across the Lifespan, Honolulu, HI, United States. -Cancelled due to COVID-19; deferred to 2021 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5dab45989a9f9f7b4aa96521/t/5e4c42d41cd8ee0458de9b63/15820561520 52/FINAL+17th+HI+Registration+Brochure_Reduced+Size.pdf
Pliske, M. M. (2019, November 6). The Neurobiology of Trauma: Integrating Expressive Arts into Clinical Practice for Children and Adolescents [Lecture – 3hr]. Portland State University, Portland, OR United States.
Pliske, M. M. & Balboa, L. E. (2019, October 1-6). Relational-Cultural Play Therapy [Conference Research Poster Session - 1hr]. Association for Play Therapy International Conference, Dallas, TX, United States. www.a4pt.org/resource/resmgr/annual_conference/2019/2019_Annual_APT_Internationa.pdf
Stauffer, S. D., & Pliske, M. M. (2019, October 1-6). Inevitable stuckness: Supporting play therapy supervisees through art and movement [Conference session - 6hr]. Association for Play Therapy International Conference, Dallas, TX, United States. www.a4pt.org/resource/resmgr/annual_conference/2019/2019_Annual_APT_Internationa.pdf