Mr. Dennis S. Baker '66 and Mrs. Emalie J. Gibbons-Baker

A desire to encourage others in caring and sharing was the goal for Dennis Baker ’66 and Emalie Gibbons-Baker as they established Frostburg’s first-ever scholarship in social work. “I’ve volunteered throughout my life in organizations dedicated to the betterment of the human spirit, giving one, sometimes two hours for every hour on the job,” Dennis said. He has worked as business manager for zoos in Washington, D.C., Atlanta and the Wildlife Conservation Society at the Bronx Zoo in New York, but his volunteer energy was spent with Special Olympics and organizations such as the President’s Committee for the Employment of the Handicapped.
While in Atlanta, Dennis fittingly first met Emalie Gibbons at a volunteer event for the Atlanta Zoo. The sixth time he asked her out proved to be the charm; she finally agreed to go out with him because he had tickets for a Tracy Chapman concert. They quickly discovered much more in common than just their musical tastes. Emalie’s care for other people is where she found the energy and inspiration to pursue a career as a certified nurse midwife, laborist and clinical resource manager at MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital in Leonardtown, Md. “My pathway was challenging, and I did not have the money or the support at home to go to college,” she said. “I want to make that different for a student who needs the help and wants to attend Frostburg.”
The Bakers chose to support social work students because of their love for children and the experience they have had helping others. “I trained to be a physical education teacher, always wanting to be a football coach,” Dennis said. “I never made it to a formal classroom, though I’ve spent my entire career teaching. I have taught others to respect those around them, to be inclusive, regardless of the venue, and to see the worth that each human being brings to the table. In living that credo, I’ve reaped far more personal benefit that I ever expected or thought possible.”
In addition to a rigorous slate of academic coursework, FSU’s social work majors must complete 450 hours in an unpaid internship in their final semester. “Many of our students come to Frostburg without a lot of financial resources,” said Dr. Terry Russell, chair of the Department of Social Work. “While social work can be a good path to a secure job, anything that lessens the financial burden of our students is a huge help.” The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics anticipates that the need for social workers will grow by 25 percent by 2020, almost twice the average growth rate for all occupations.
“The thing I most appreciate is that we now have a fund to which others can contribute for the education of future social workers,” Russell said. “Our graduates might not get rich in social work but they will make a difference. Our graduates work with everyone from troubled children to aging adults. When you get the privilege of watching a young child open the only real present he or she has ever received, it is hard not to think it is all worth it.”
“The significance of this scholarship is the faith that we are touching a student who will touch others,” Emalie said. “For us to know that one person has breathed easier or that a social condition was remedied because we lived is to have succeeded in life.”
[Published Fall 2012]