Alumni Spotlight

We are proud to showcase and recognize our alumni for the impact they have had and will continue to have on our communities and society.

Katie (Comber) Gallant ’18

Katie is a Senior Research Associate in the Public Health Department at NORC at the University of Chicago.  Gallant is a macro social worker, with over 6 years of experience working in public health and suicide prevention.  At NORC, Gallant provides training, technical assistance, and evaluation on the Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment for Suicide Care (SBIRT-SC) model for health and behavioral health, community, and school-based settings.  Gallant currently serves as the Clinical Lead and Evaluation Specialist on two suicide prevention grants in North Dakota, focusing efforts on reaching rural residents, LGBTQIA2S+ youth, tribal populations and Veterans.   Recently, Gallant played a key role in the development of novel resources for professionals, communities, and families interested in supporting LGBTQIA2S+ youth.  Gallant has authored publications that have been featured in various peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, the Journal of Rural Mental Health, the Journal of Community Mental Health, and an upcoming publication in the Journal of LGBT Youth.  Ms. Gallant received her Bachelor of Arts from Providence College (’18) and her Master of Social Work (’19) from Boston University.  

Read her co-authored paper in the Community Mental Health Journal.  Community Collaboration for Suicide and Overdoes Prevention:  Attitudes, Perceptions, and Practices of Community-Based Professionals and County Leadership in New York State.

Sara Melucci ’14

As an outreach worker for, and the manager of the House of Hope outreach programs here in Rhode Island, Sara Melucci ’14 spends her days and nights connecting in deep and meaningful ways with people who struggle with homelessness. She was recently featured on NPR, This I Believe New England-Homelessness, where her and Megan Smith, an outreach worker with the House of Hope and a doctoral student in social work at Boston University, discuss the work that they do.

Listen to the NPR interview.

Anissa Latifi ’18

In her role as a Clinician for Family Service of Rhode Island in their foster care program, Anissa Latifi ’18 practices trauma therapy with clients and coordinates each individual’s clinical care. When she’s not dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s on all of the paperwork, Anissa meets with clients and conducts check-ins on their foster families.

As a recent master’s degree recipient from Boston University, Anissa spoke with Providence College to catch us up on her endeavors since graduation. Read the full interview.