Alison Burrowes has been selected as the 2023 Alumni Rising ` Runner for the School of Social Sciences and Education. Each spring, the Rising ` Runner program recognizes CSUB alumni of the last 10 years who are already making an impact in their career and community.

Warning: Some of the following content discusses domestic abuse and partner violence. Reader discretion is advised.

Alison Burrowes recalled the time she was put in contact with a domestic abuse victim who lost part of her hearing during an altercation with her abuser. The woman was left homeless with nowhere to go as she struggled to cope with her new disability. Through patience, compassion and hard work, Alison was able to offer her client hearing aids and restore some dignity to her client.

This is one encounter of many that the California State University, Bakersfield alumna has experienced through her 22-year career in professional mental health services. Currently, Alison serves as the deputy director at Kern County Behavioral Health and Recovery Services, where she works closely with community leaders to address some of the most challenging social issues such as homelessness, substance use, domestic violence and mental health.

She’s held various responsibilities during her tenure in the mental health field, including case management, direct client care, street outreach and clinical work. She’s also worked with some of the most underserved and misunderstood populations such as homeless individuals and children in foster care. Connecting struggling individuals with resources has been life-changing for both those affected and for Alison.

Her work is rewarding for both client and care provider, but it comes with its own set of challenges. Alison noted that engagement with individuals experiencing psychosis, paranoia and/or general mistrust of others can be an obstacle. Finding the funding necessary to provide assistance to these individuals is another. Alison addresses these challenges and combats them through research, grant writing and the development of specialized programs such as the Relational Outreach and Engagement (ROEM) program she established in 2021.

Alison also developed and opened Kern County’s sobering center, the Recovery Station, an innovative model combining mental health and substance use interventions into a safe environment. She has expanded service opportunities to treat trauma, including developing the department’s Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) program and implementing the Independent Placement Support (IPS) program, an evidence-based employment program for those with behavioral health challenges.

Some of the recent programs Alison has help fund and bring to Kern County include the following: a $6 million Proposition 47 Grant Services program to serve individuals dealing with the criminal justice system; the $14 million Recovery Station center; No Place Like Home, a permanent supportive housing project for the homeless; and a $10 million MHSA project to support housing infrastructure.

Alison credits her program development skills to her graduate study at CSUB. She holds both a master’s in sociology and in social work. She came back to school to improve and increase her professional skills and capacity to serve the community.

 Alison first visited CSUB to see her father — an accounting professor — on campus. 

 “It just filled me with wonder,” Alison said, reminiscing on the beauty of campus and the wildlife she saw like ducks and other birds.

Alison remembers how tough her university studies could sometimes be. She received one of her first assignments and she had no inkling of how to do it. She said she was having trouble discerning the instructions and materials given and felt like quitting the program. Instead, she reached out to her professor, tears in her eyes, and asked him for help.

Her professor had a “fantastic sense of humor” and chuckled, letting her in on a secret that none of his students knew the assignment he gave to them. He encouraged her to do her best. Alison later found out that she understood the material quite well compared to some of her classmates and that her professor’s approachable, lighthearted demeanor gave her the courage to keep going.

She faced other challenges during her master’s program. At one point, she lost her job, then she started a new job with Kern County Behavioral Health. Later, she experienced life as a working student and mother. Some of her colleagues openly told her that going back to school with a 4-month-old infant would be too hard and she wouldn’t be able to do it. This made her more determined to complete her program.

Lorre Webb, a lecturer from CSUB’s Social Work Department, commended Alison for her full disclosure of her battles with mental health issues in an admirable and “unabashed” manner that has encouraged her to do the same.

Alison has experienced depression, homelessness and many other challenges throughout her life. She admitted that it can be easy to get overwhelmed. Being able to step back and remind herself of what she has accomplished and where she comes from allows Alison to recenter and refocus.

“Given time,” she said, “everything gets to be okay.”

Alison said she remains a lifelong learner and she has stayed connected with her alma mater by serving as a mentor with the `Runner Alumni Mentor Program. She’s finishing up her second year with the program and has noticed that she sees many students who are eager to have everything figured out. Alison holds a different belief system that she shares with her mentees.

“Explore what you love,” she said. “At 22, you don’t have to know what you’re going to be doing at 40.”