As community resource coordinator at Cameron University’s Student Enrichment Center, José Andres Olivo helps students find the means they need to continue on their paths toward academic success.
“I help students find community resources and coordinate on-campus resources to handle some practical needs,” he said. “If they’re struggling with food insecurity or need housing assistance, they don’t need that struggle to turn into a crisis. My job is to intervene and offer assistance so they can focus more on their studies.”
Looking back at his days as an underclassman with no experience in a college setting, Olivo appreciates his current role as community resource coordinator.
Like many students, “I wasn’t a very strong self-advocate, so I didn’t look for resources on campus,” he said.
Olivo’s parents encouraged him to enroll at Cameron. He is the first of his immediate family to graduate college, he said.
Making connections and helping others are second nature to Olivo. As an undergrad working toward degrees in strategic communications at Cameron University, he served as director of community and member engagement for Sigma Tau Gamma and was twice awarded Brother of the Year for the fraternity’s Cameron chapter. Olivo and the fraternity helped Marie Detty Youth and Family Services’ New Directions organize a trunk-or-treat event that brought awareness to the organization’s initiatives to help victims of domestic violence. It was reported that the event drew more than 1,500 trick-or-treaters. He also became involved in student government, and was elected SGA president where he “gained tremendous insight on what it takes as a community leader,” one colleague stated.
Before receiving his associate’s and bachelor’s degrees in strategic communications in 2021, Olivo was invited to become a case manager for C. Carter Crane Center for Empowerment and Advancement. There he found helping those in need with documentation, employment and achieve short- and long-term goals was rewarding, he said. One example was of a tree trimmer who had fallen on hard times. With just a few short phone calls placed, the man was on his way to work.
“He eventually moved out of the shelter, bought a truck and is doing well,” Olivo said. “Sometimes he gives me updates.” Although he did not get into specifics, his genuine smile told a positive story.
In addition to pursuing his Master of Science in Behavioral Science from Cameron, a feat he began before earning his undergraduate degrees, and working for C. Carter Crane, Olivo began
volunteering as a visitation supervisor with Family Focus LLC. The firm specializes in conflict-free supervised visitation services for noncustodial parents across Southwestern Oklahoma and Northern Texas, their website states.
“Family Focus gives me another perspective in case management,” he said. “I’ve learned just how diverse our field is as are the occupations one can have.”
Olivo is vice president of Cameron University’s chapter of Psi Chi, an international honor society for psychology students.
His roles at Cameron University and C. Carter Crane led Olivo to actively participate in a mental health town hall last year. Sponsored by the Oklahoma Academy, mental health experts and policy experts met to discuss and develop policy recommendations for the state Legislature.
“Coming from the frontlines of the field as a case manager, that gave me a completely different perspective during discussions,” he said. “The panel consisted of insurance reps, politicians, doctors, psychologists, executive directors and other administrators. That gave me a lot of insight and a hunger to expand my current scope of practice.”
He would like to find resources to help benefit employees working in the nonprofit sector.
“I’m driven to learn how nonprofits work at the administrative levels,” he said. “I have a hunger to learn about grants and grant writing” to fairly compensate staff workers “because no matter what the organization’s mission is, if staff members themselves are struggling, they’re faced with a practical decision of looking for somewhere that will pay them what they’re worth.”
In addition to pursuing his master’s while working at Cameron’s Student Enrichment Center,
Olivo serves on the board of Lawton Young Professionals where is leads the mentorship program. He was recently appointed to the Marie Detty Youth and Family Services board.
Case management professionals who can evaluate, organize and facilitate care for clients are in high demand and Olivo seeks opportunities to help and wants others to do the same.
“Case management is a growing field,” he said. “Not just in Southwest Oklahoma, but everywhere. Whether people are needing help with finances, food insecurities, depression symptoms or general dissatisfaction, a lot of times it’s because they’re not aware of the resources that are available.”