Cessie Alfonso
American forensic social worker, mitigation specialist and activist
Cecilia "Cessie" Alfonso (born January 14, 1945) is an American forensic social work, domestic violence prevention and response, and organizational development consultant and activist who has protested against the Vietnam War and the use of the death penalty in the United States to prosecute criminals and in support of improved civil rights for women and the LGBT community.
The founder and president of Alfonso Consultants, Inc., she trained and worked as a social worker and has collaborated with civil and criminal defense attorneys nationally and internationally for more than three decades to provide psychosocial assessments and other social work support to their clients. During the course of her work, she and her colleagues have undertaken more than one thousand mitigation investigations.
Formative years
Born in New York City, New York in the United States on January 14, 1945, Cecilia "Cessie" Alfonso is a first-generation, Caribbean American who attended the Montefiore School of Practical Nursing, where she earned her Licensed Practical Nurse degree in 1965. She was then awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology and sociology by Hood College; in 1977, she earned her Master of Social Work degree from the Graduate School of Social Work at Rutgers University.
Beginning in 1982, she was awarded a series of certifications and licenses, including the:
CSW by the State of New York's Board of Higher Education (1982);
ACSW by the National Association of Social Workers, Academy of Social Workers (1983);
LCSW by the State of New Jersey's Board of Social Work Examiners (1983); and
Diplomat status by the National Association of Social Workers (Clinical Registrar, Certified Social Work, School Field Instructor, 1985).
Activism
During the 1960s and 1970s, she protested against the Vietnam War and for civil rights, women's rights and LGBT rights. She has also been a member of the Combahee River Collective, and has been active in trying to end the use of the death penalty in the United States.
Nursing, social work and legal career
From 1969 to 1972, Alfonso worked as a licensed practical nurse in the operating room of Morrison Hospital in New York City. Her work related to the gynecological aspects of surgery.
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