In the 1960s, Jane and the rest of the Wenger family joined a national grape boycott in support of farm workers’ demands for fair pay and better working conditions. Early on, these experiences created a passion for social justice that instilled in her the desire “to do what I could do for the betterment of all people,” she said.

Clemens’ desire has led to a 40-year career in , including 17 years as an associate professor at ˛ÝÝ®ÉçÇř (EMU). Her dedication was recently recognized by the Virginia Social Work Educators’ Consortium. At their annual “Rally in the Valley” this fall, Clemens was awarded the Ann Meyers’ Lifetime Contribution to Social Work Education Award.

“I feel surprised and humbled to be chosen to receive this award by my colleagues,” Clemens said. “It is a tremendous honor and I am very grateful. I value the opportunity to teach emerging social work professionals about ways to work toward social and economic justice in our world, and to receive this honor for my contribution is very rewarding.”

Besides expertise and teaching skills, Clemens also brings personal investment to her students – a quality recognized by her colleagues in the at EMU.

“She helps students understand that self-care is a cornerstone of the ability to care in a sustainable professional life over the long term,” wrote professors and and professor emeritus Elroy Miller in their nomination of Clemens.

Former students of Clemens shared their appreciation of her shaping influence upon hearing of the recognition.

“She was one of those professors who considered the personal development of students to be just as important as the professional development,” said Chaska Yoder’ 14, who is serving Habitat for Humanity with the service learning organization . “Jane often talked about the importance of seeing the gifts and skills that clients bring to the helping process. This strength-based approach goes hand in hand with the asset-based approach to community development that I’m currently working with in Pittsburgh.”

Clemens was also a social worker in Pennsylvania – notably, working in a prenatal clinic years ago as part of a team dedicated to reducing the infant mortality rate. In Philadelphia, certain areas had a disproportionate infant mortality rate, and Clemens’ team spread awareness about prenatal resources and worked to break down barriers between families and health care.

Clemens has also worked in retirement communities and a school for children with disabilities in Pennsylvania, participated in Mennonite voluntary service on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in Montana, and promoted continued education for adolescents in Ohio. During her 2012 sabbatical, Clemens lived and worked with low-income families in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico.

A lifetime of hands-on work and anecdotes has enriched Clemens’ teaching style for students such as Litza Laboriel ’14. “Her experience and passion for helping others motivated me throughout my time at EMU,” said Laboriel.

Alicia Horst ’01, MDiv ’06, executive director of , also remembers Clemens fondly. “Jane taught a caring way of being that calmly listens and lowers potential anxiety in the room,” says Horst. “She brings a gentle curiosity and laid-back conversation.”

Seeing her former students in leadership positions and advocacy roles in the field of social work is “extremely rewarding,” Clemens says. People go from being students to colleagues, and some, like Horst, now supervise current practicum students. Clemens sees this stage of her life’s work – contributing to students’ education – as the planting of seeds. Her students go on to sow and cultivate exponentially more social work ‘fruit’ than even Clemens did in her proliferous career.

Clemens’ personal values of social justice and peace led her both to a profession and to teaching at EMU. “We work at social justice as a community,” she said. “To empower students to go out and work for social change” is the capstone of a vocation spanning decades.

The students were cited for their “significant and verifiable impact” on the university and on student life, for their contributions to developing EMU’s positive image, for substantial contributions to the Harrisonburg/Rockingham County area and beyond, for their high academic and social standing, and for their embodiment of EMU’s values of Christian discipleship, community, service and .

The blue cord represents the strength of conviction that one person can help to create a better institution or community. The gold cord represents the love of spirit and yearning towards creating a better university environment or community in which all may take part.

The recipients were:

• Christine Baer, a and major from Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania
• Aaron Erb, a peacebuilding & development major from Harrisonburg, Virginia
• Laura Glick, a major from Lancaster, Pennsylvania
• Nicole Groff, a major from Lancaster, Pennsylvania
• Ardi Hermawan, a major from Parsurvan, Indonesia
• Rose Jantzi, a major with an recipient from Harrisonburg, Virginia
• Litza Laboriel, a social work major from Trujillo, Honduras
• Krista Nyce, a major from Harrisonburg, Virginia
• Melody Tobin, a liberal arts major with an elementary education licensure from Harrisonburg, Virginia
• Brandon Waggy, a peacebuilding and development and major from South Bend, Indiana