For Claudia Contreras, a student in the Bachelor of Social Work at Pacific Oaks College, the path to an undergraduate degree has not been an easy one. She first enrolled in community college in 2004, where academic struggles and a lack of counseling support led her to stop short of earning her associate degree. However, she explains, “I had already earned my certificate in drug studies, and with that I was able to become a certified drug and alcohol counselor.”
An incident at work caused Contreras to leave the field and access support from disability insurance. During the period of uncertain employment that followed, her daughter urged her to return to counseling.
“She would say, ‘Mom, you should go back. You’re good at what you do,’” Contreras recalls. Those words would come back to her after her daughter died of fentanyl poisoning at the age of 19. “After my daughter passed away, I figured out what my purpose was,” she says. Contreras became determined to work with at-risk youth who are experiencing suicide ideation and acute mental health crises. “I know that my daughter was experiencing those things, and she didn’t let anyone know,” Contreras she says.
Contreras’ first step on her path was to complete her education. Being just a few credits shy of graduation, she chose to complete her associate degree in sociology. This time, she was able to overcome her struggles with math, and that success helped inspire her to continue for a bachelor’s degree. “I thought if I could pass statistics, I could do anything,” she recalls.
After completing her degree, Contreras was working as a monitor for residents at a drug and alcohol recovery agency and was looking to make a greater impact when she learned from a colleague about Pacific Oaks College. Her colleague said their employer would pay Contreras’ tuition. Contreras has since changed jobs, and her new employer no longer pays for her to attend Pacific Oaks, but she remains committed to the bachelor’s degree in the online Social Work (BSW) program because Pacific Oaks provides undergraduates with hands-on experience working in the field and supports working adults who are returning to complete their educations, Contreras experienced such support recently when another of life’s challenges presented itself. “During my field seminar, my mother had triple bypass surgery,” she says, “but I pushed through. I was there in the hospital waiting room doing my coursework on my computer.”
Contreras credits her fieldwork supervisor, Sean Taitt, MSW, with helping her through that experience. “He’s been very patient with me, because sometimes it’s hard for me to grasp things when I’m overwhelmed with life.” Contreras says her Pacific Oaks classmates also help her maintain connection even though her courses are online. She keeps in touch with her fellow learners via a group chat outside of class, and she has utilized the tutoring program available from the Student Success Center.
Contreras is currently completing her internship with the Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol and Drug Abuse (L.A. CADA) at Allen House, a residential treatment program with longtime ties to Pacific Oaks College. She currently works for L.A. CADA’s Female Community Reentry Program (FCRP), which helps incarcerated women transition back into the community. Contreras manages four groups for the FCRP, with a caseload of 16 women.
Additionally, she has founded a nonprofit called Beauty from Ashes, from Loss to Purpose, in honor of her daughter, which focuses on fentanyl education and overdose prevention. As part of her work, she distributes naloxone, commonly known by its brand name Narcan, an emergency medication that can rapidly reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. “I educate families and communities on how to use it, what it’s for, and how to recognize signs of overdose,” Contreras says.
Contreras is on track to complete her degree in December 2026 and will receive her diploma at commencement in the spring of 2027. She plans to continue her education to earn her master’s degree. “I feel like if I continue on this path, that bigger opportunities are going to open up,” she says. “I know in my spirit that doors are going to open for me if I continue to do what I’m doing.” That work includes giving young people who suffer from addiction the help her daughter didn’t receive. “She never got the chance to ask for help, and I never got the chance to say, ‘Let me take you somewhere to get help.’”
Through her work, Contreras hopes to honor her daughter’s memory and, in doing so, to save lives and to make families whole.
Cover photo: Claudia Contreras (right) and other mothers bring fentanyl poisoning awareness to the community.
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