NOMV Intern Spotlight!

The NOMV team is grateful to work with some incredible MSW Interns, and we wanted to shine a special spotlight on our former interns that have completed their internship journey with us! Thank you for supporting the NOMV mission, and we send you best wishes on the future ahead. Learn more about them below!

Cassandra Walls (she/they)

Meet our very first Masters of Social Work Intern, Cassandra!

Cassandra joined our team as a graduate student at the University of Tennessee pursuing their Veterinary Social Work certificate program. Her passion for social justice and sense of equality and equity brought her to pursue the organizational leadership path while her deep love and devotion to animals and the people who protect them brought her to pursue the Veterinary Social Work certificate.

Cassandra helped to launch our CLEAR Blueprint program and provided support to our Clinic Advocates. We were also fortunate to have Cassandra join our team at VMX 2023! 

Neyva Hernandez (she/her)

Meet Neyva! She joined our team while working toward her Masters of Social Work degree at Colorado State University.

Neyva was born in Mexico, and immigrated to the United States with her family when she was six years old. They resettled in Leadville, Colorado. At the age of 19, Neyva moved to Denver, Colorado to continue her education.

In 2019, she graduated with her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Metropolitan State University. Prior to graduating, she was doing an internship at Aurora Mental Health Center with the Trauma Resilience Youth Program (TRYP) for Refugee and Immigrants, and was later offered a job and worked at TRYP for 3.5 years. At TRYP, she worked mainly for the Hispanic/Latin community, finding resources and co-facilitating groups in schools around Aurora for youths who were trying to adjust to a new country.

In 2020, as Neyva was working part time at TRYP, she was also working part time at her now full time job with the Intensive In-Home (IIH) program at Aurora Mental Health Center. At the IIH, they provide therapeutic and behavioral coaching services for children ages 6-17 and their families.

Neyva shared, “I was born to help people, I am excited to be part of NOMV to continue to learn about this organization and contribute to expanding awareness of veterinary mental health.”

Neyva loves to spend her free time with family, friends, and her dog Aiko. She also enjoys being outdoors running, hiking, or paddleboarding.