ABSS names Williams High social worker LaSonya Moffett of the year

A pantry inside Walter M. Williams High School became one of the clearest signs of how LaSonya Moffett has worked for students and families in Burlington. Alamance-Burlington School System named Moffett its School Social Worker of the Year and said her service to the Bulldog community has stretched across the past three years.

ABSS did more than hand out an honor. The district pointed to the daily work that makes Moffett stand out at a school that serves about 1,200 students and opened in 1951 near Elon University. Moffett serves on the School Improvement Team, advocates for resources at the district level and runs an office-based food pantry that helps address food insecurity for students and families.

That kind of work fits the district’s broader definition of what school social workers do. ABSS says they help students improve academic success, attendance, relationships, coping skills, problem-solving skills and self-esteem. The district also says they connect families with community resources for food, clothing, housing and other needs, which makes Moffett’s pantry one part of a larger support system rather than a stand-alone gesture.

At Williams, that support network matters because school social work often becomes the point where school, home and basic needs overlap. A student struggling with attendance may also be dealing with food insecurity, unstable housing, transportation problems or a family crisis. Moffett’s role puts her in the middle of those challenges, helping the school respond before they spill further into the classroom.

Principal Curry said Moffett is willing to do whatever is needed to support others and approaches her responsibilities with professionalism, care and a solution-oriented mindset. The recognition reflects that kind of steady, practical work more than a ceremonial title. It also shows how a social worker’s impact can be visible in small but critical ways, from a pantry shelf to a family referral to a plan for getting a student back on track.

ABSS has made similar honors before, including naming Ray Street Academy’s Dustin Austin as its School Social Worker of the Year in June 2024. Moffett’s selection extends that pattern, placing a Williams High staff member at the center of the district’s effort to connect academic success with the basic supports families need to keep students in school and ready to learn.