DSS Announces New Richland County Director

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
803-898-7602
publicinfo@dss.sc.gov

DSS Announces New Richland County Director

Columbia, S.C. – The South Carolina Department of Social Services would like to announce Monita Dawkins as the new Richland County Director. She began her new position on Monday, June 3rd.

Ms. Dawkins began her career with the Cherokee County DSS office, where for over 7 1/2 years she was employed as an eligibility worker, Foster Care social worker, and investigator. Her social services career continued at Youth and Family Services in Charlotte, North Carolina. She served as a Child Protective Services social worker in a regular investigative unit, the specialized Conflict of Interests and Sex Abuse Unit, and as a Social Work supervisor of Investigative and In-Home Services. In addition, Monita served on the Child Fatality Prevention Team and created the monthly recognition of outstanding social workers. Monita retired from Mecklenburg County with 22 years of service. She has over 35 years of experience in Child Welfare. She then returned to Cherokee County and has served as county director for the past five and a half years. 

“I appreciate the opportunity to become a member of the Richland County team. My career has been about serving families and sharing my knowledge to grow and strengthen leaders,” said Ms. Dawkins. “Throughout my journey, I operated by the Air Force core values of ‘Integrity First, service before self, and excellence in all we do.’ I believe that nothing beats a failure but a try, and we do not have problems, we have opportunities. With these values and beliefs, I know that our team will be successful in Richland County.” 

Monita is a graduate of the University of South Carolina in Columbia, holding a Bachelor of 

Science Degree in Criminal Justice and a Master of Arts in Counseling degree from Webster University in Greenville. She also has an associate degree from the Community College of the Air Force in Transportation. She’s a retired Master Sergeant, with 28 years of service with the United States Air Force. Monita is the proud mother of two children and a doting grandmother of one. 

For more information on DSS services available for Richland County and the state at large, please visit the SCDSS website here. 

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