Erick Guerrero

On his path to becoming a social worker, Dr. Erick Guerrero took several detours to study clinical psychology, business administration and economics before working in management for organizations that served ethnic and racial minorities. Guerrero studied clinical psychology at the Universidad de las Americas in Mexico City. His interest in the field grew out of past experiences with people in the community who needed “extra support to maximize their potential.” Upon moving to Chicago to continue his education, Guerrero began working in the Domestic Violence, Partner Abuse Intervention and Child Abuse fields. He was nominated counselor of the year working with victims of abuse and quickly promoted to clinical supervisor entering the management field. Awakened to the possibility of improving services, he pursued a PhD in social work in management at the University of Chicago, focusing his dissertation on organizational components that could be modified to implement culturally responsive practices in the nation’s outpatient substance abuse treatment field, one of the few studies of its kind.

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Guerrero has expanding the scope of his research studies to implementation of evidence-based practices in different health care settings. Guerrero’s overall focus on implementation drivers, such as leadership and financial mechanisms to improve quality of care services for low-income Latinos and other vulnerable populations. Guerrero has been able to provide his students with opportunities to conduct meaningful field work. Under his mentorship, students have traveled to service organizations across the nation and interview key administrators, giving them an opportunity to both understand new research methodologies and become acquainted with real-world practice.