Susan Van Vleet Reflects on Five Decades of Leadership, Global Impact, and the Rutgers Education That Shaped It All

As she prepares to celebrate her 80th birthday this December, Rutgers School of Social Work alumna Susan Van Vleet, SSW '75 finds herself reflecting on a remarkable career that has taken her from the front lines of child welfare in New Jersey to boardrooms and organizations across nearly 20 countries.

Over the past five decades, Van Vleet has become an internationally recognized leadership consultant, executive coach, and organizational development expert, helping companies and leaders navigate change, strengthen workplace cultures, and build more inclusive organizations. Yet despite the global scope of her work, she says the foundation for everything she has accomplished was built during her time at Rutgers School of Social Work.

"I think from the very beginning, my school taught me a lot about what social work was supposed to be about," Van Vleet said. "We looked into everything. From policy and community organization to administration and funding, everything was covered. It was really helpful because social work was a broader profession than I initially knew.” That broad-based education, she says, distinguished Rutgers from many schools at the time and gave her a perspective that would shape every stage of her career.

Van Vleet's path to social work was inspired by her father, who had dreamed of becoming a social worker before family obligations led him into the family business after serving in World War II. Although he never pursued the career himself, his respect for the profession left a lasting impression on his daughter. "His view of social work was one of reverence and respect," she said. "For me, that looked like, 'This is a respected profession. My father respects it. I'm going to be a social worker.'"

After graduating with an MSW from Rutgers School of Social Work in 1975, Van Vleet began her career in child welfare, where she developed the practice skills and leadership abilities that would later propel her into organizational consulting. She eventually founded a consulting firm that her husband joined, combining expertise in organizational development, executive coaching, diversity, communication, and leadership to help organizations around the world navigate increasingly complex challenges.

Today, their work has reached companies and leaders across nearly 20 countries, including China, Brazil, Chile, Venezuela, Japan, and Russia. Throughout that journey, Van Vleet says she has leaned on the values and perspective she developed at Rutgers. “Having the background from Rutgers was incredibly important in my work, particularly overseas," she said. "It gave me an advantage because I understood people and cultures in ways that many others didn't."

Whether helping executives in South America understand the cultural expectations placed on women in the workplace or supporting organizations in China through periods of sweeping societal change, Van Vleet found herself relying on the same social work principles she first learned in graduate school.

Those experiences also reinforced something she has observed throughout her international career. “In many other countries, social work is a much more revered profession than it is here in the United States," she said. "They see clearly what we do and how we contribute to the culture of the country.” That belief has fueled one of her lifelong professional missions: elevating the understanding of social work within the corporate world. "I literally had to explain to three CEOs what a social worker was," she said with a laugh. "I'd like to be remembered as someone who raised the level of social work, at least in corporate viewpoints, so that people do, in fact, respect it."

Her work has also reinforced another lesson she first encountered at Rutgers: meaningful change rarely happens overnight. "I reread something I said years ago: that lasting change requires patience. I still believe that," she said. "It's constant water dripping on the stone that changes the shape of the stone."

She credits not only her Rutgers education but also the mentors she encountered throughout her career with teaching her that lasting leadership requires persistence. "I had an incredible social work supervisor who would say, 'Susan, we need to age this,'" she recalled. "What she meant was, we need to let this be for a while and see what happens. I've carried that lesson with me throughout my career."

As the pace of change accelerates, particularly with advances in artificial intelligence and the evolving workplace dynamics, Van Vleet believes the next generation of social workers must be prepared to adapt. "We have to be able to pivot much quicker than I ever had to," she said. "Change is coming to our profession at a much more rapid rate than ever before." She hopes schools of social work will continue preparing students not only for clinical practice but also for leadership roles in organizations, communities, and systems.

"We need a lot more emphasis on community organization, finance, funding, and teaching social workers how to pivot," she said. "Marketing, sales—all of the things that are taught routinely for business people need to be taught for social workers because it's how they will survive."

She is equally passionate about helping future social workers recognize their own value. "We need to teach social workers how to ask for more money for themselves," she said.  "It's not okay with me that social workers may have to work another job in order to be a social worker."

Even after five decades, Rutgers remains an important part of Van Vleet's life. As a member of the Rutgers School of Social Work Alumni Council, she values being surrounded by people who share a common language and understanding of the profession. "It means everything to me," she said. "When I say 'generational trauma' to the advisory committee, I don't have to explain what that is. Everybody knows." In the corporate world, she often finds herself introducing concepts that social workers instinctively understand. "I have to literally step back 10 paces to explain what I'm talking about," she said. "Staying connected to the School of Social Work is very important for my own mental health because these people know what I'm talking about."

As she approaches her 80th birthday, Van Vleet is celebrating in a way that reflects her lifelong commitment to service. Rather than asking for gifts, she plans to use her company's newsletter, which reaches more than 2,000 clients around the world, to raise funds for Rutgers School of Social Work initiatives, including the Center for Research on Ending Violence, programs supporting youth in foster care, and the Allen and Joan Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life.

Looking back on a career defined by leadership, service, and global impact, Van Vleet remains inspired by the people she has encountered along the way. "What inspires me are all of the people that I have worked with over the years and their commitment to getting better and making things better for everyone around them," she said. It is a philosophy that has guided her for half a century and one that began in the classrooms of Rutgers School of Social Work.

Nearly 51 years after earning her MSW, Van Vleet continues to demonstrate the power of a social work education to transcend traditional boundaries. From child welfare offices in New Jersey to executive suites around the globe, her career stands as a testament to the enduring impact of Rutgers School of Social Work, and to the countless lives that can be changed when social work principles are applied wherever people lead, work, and grow.