PhD, Howard University
MSW, Howard University

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Wilbon LCSW-C, LICSW, is a licensed clinical social worker, a certified John Maxwell Leadership Coach, professor and author. And, because of her strategic planning, problem solving, and team building skills, she is gradually becoming an international leader in curriculum and program development.In November 2011 she was invited, by the Rev. Prof. Samuel K. Adjepong the Principal of the Methodist University in Accra Ghana, to provide leadership and consultation for the development of social work programs at the Methodist University. In April 2012 she was invited return as the opening Keynote for the International School Social Work Conference hosted by the University of Ghana at Legon. In January 2018 she was part of a delegation from the State of Maryland USA invited by the South African government, Division of Social Development, to develp the plans to meet the objectives of an MOU between the State of Maryland USA and the South African Government. As part of this project, she will be working with the Division of Social Development to establish initiatives to strengthen social programs across universities, strengthen child welfare systems, and services to help address issues of substance use disorders.

A native of Flint Michigan, USA she has over thirty-five years of professional social work experience and is an Associate Professor in the Ph.D. Program in the School of Social Work at Morgan State University, where she served as the inaugural chair of the Masters in Social Work Program for over five years, leading the program through its' initial accreditation process with the Council on Social Work Education. She has been on faculty at Morgan for twenty-two years and taught in the undergraduate, masters and PhD. Programs. Assigned full time in the PhD Program, she has chaired twelve dissertation committees and served on thirteen other committees. She teaches theory and a dissertation prep course.

Dr. Wilbon has a wealth of skills that can help strengthen any academic unit/program. She will bring problem solving, relationship building, the power of written and oral communication, building confidence, healing from life wounds, team building, interpersonal wholeness and wellness, and African centered values and ethics to everything she does. She has years of experience developing academic programs and curriculum for various courses. Her mentoring, collaborative and capacity to follow as well as lead are among her greatest strengths.

Dr. Wilbon is a Co-Founder and former Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Richard Wright Public Charter School for Journalism and Media Arts in the District of Columbia. She has a private psychotherapy practice in DC and Maryland specializing in work with survivors of trauma and couples/relationship counseling. In her private practice she specializes in creative approaches to help clients heal from life wounds. She is a Consulting Editor for Social Work, the top tier social work journal published by the National Association of Social Work. She has served on the Advisory Board for The House of Ruth Maryland, the largest Domestic Violence Prevention Program in the State of Maryland, and as a contract therapist for the DC Rape Crisis Center, working with adult survivors of rape and child sexual abuse. In 2015, Springer Publisher released her first edited text book, Social Work Practice with African American's in Urban Environments. In July 2012, she was appointed to the Council on the Role and Status of Women in Social Work Education, by the Council on Social Work Education.

She earned her bachelor's degree in social work from Michigan State University and a Masters and Doctorate degree in Social Work from Howard University. She has also served as the liaison for the Morgan State University Head Start Program. From December 2009 to March 2010, she hosted an on-line radio show "Real Talk" with Dr. Rhonda on Familynewsradio.com. The mission of "Real Talk" was to address the needs and interest of young adults ages eighteen to thirty-five, and give a voice to their unique view of the world and their daily life experiences. Real Talk covered a diversity of topics relevant to singles, couples and young families.

Dr. Wilbon was trained as a social worker in the field of domestic violence and formerly served as the Executive Director of a shelter program for battered women and their children in Arlington Virginia and Coordinator of the crisis hotline for the Howard County Sexual Assault Center in Maryland. It was during these intense practice experiences that she developed expertise in child maltreatment and sexual abuse and began her life-long commitment to helping adult survivors of sexual abuse and maltreatment. She has taught in the Afro-American Studies Program at the University of Maryland at College Park and in the MSW Program at Howard University. For over eight years, she was the Principal Investigator for a quality child care initiative grant to evaluate the quality of child care programs where she received over 1 million dollars in funding, through the District of Columbia, Department of Human Resources, Early Care and Education Administration. In 2000 she was appointed by Governor Parris Glendening to serve on the State of Maryland Judith P. Hoyer Blue Ribbon Commission for the Funding of Early Child Care and Education Programs; she is a past member of the United Way of Central Maryland Success By 6 Committee; and served on the State of Maryland Child Care Advisory Council from 1997-2001.

Professional/Research Interests

Macro Practice; Domestic Violence; Sexual Assault; African-centered Social Work; Cultural Competence; Social & Economic Justice

Recent Publications

Anyikwa, V. A., Chiarelli-Helminiak, C. M., Hodge, D. M. & Wells-Wilbon, R. (2015). Women empowering women. Journal of Social Work Education, 51 (1-15). ISSN: 1043-7797 print / 2163-5811 online DOI:10.1080/10437797.2015.10762833

Wells-Wilbon, R., McPhatter, A. & Vakalahi, H. (2015). Social Work Practice with African American's in Urban Environments. Springer Publishing Company: NY, NY.

Wells-Wilbon, R., Jones, K. & Rich, T. (2015). Mental & Emotional Wellness Among African Americans in Urban Environments: What Do We Know? How Can We Improve Outcomes? In Wells-Wilbon & McPhatter's Edition Social Work Practice with African Americans in Urban Environments. Springer Publishing Company: NY, NY.

Wells-Wilbon, R., Nebbitt, V. & Lombe, M. (2015). Youth Violence an Overview: Prevalence and Intervention Strategies to Address Violence among Urban African American Youth. In Wells-Wilbon & McPhatter's Edition Social Work Practice with African Americans in Urban Environments. Springer Publishing Company: NY, NY.

Wells-Wilbon, R. (2015). Family planning for low-income African American families: Contributions of social work pioneer Ophelia Settle Egypt. Social Work; doi 10.1093/sw/swv037