Directory

Work Experience

I greatly enjoy my work as a faculty member at Wor-Wic Community College. The opportunity to engage with students through fascinating curriculum makes my job incredibly rewarding.

Prior to starting a faculty member in the Fall 2010 semester, I worked as an academic and disabilities counselor in the Student Services Department at Wor-Wic. This position helped me to understand the needs of students and the various operations that facilitate class enrollment and student success.

My clinical experiences vary. I was a Family Crisis Therapist Supervisor with the Delaware Division of Child Mental Health Services, providing home-based, intensive family therapy to children with significant behavioral difficulties and their families.

Before that position, I provided outpatient therapy to adults with mental health disorders ranging from major depression to schizophrenia and dual diagnosis issues as a Psychiatric Social Worker II with Delaware Division of Substance Abuse & Mental Health.

My other professional experiences include providing outpatient substance abuse counseling, separating & divorcing parent education and supervising visitation between children estranged from their parent(s).

Currently, I also teach undergraduate and graduate courses for Salisbury University’s Social Work Department.

Committees

Coordination, Assessment, Response, and Education (CARE) Team
Institutional Review Board
Healthy Minds Collective Faculty Advisor
Student Services Liaison
Wor-Wic Overdose Response Program (ORP)
President, Faculty Council (2019 – 2020)
Title III Internal Evaluation Team

Community Service

Wicomico County Overdose Fatality Review Team (2024 – Current)
Hudson Health Services Board of Directors (2019 – 2023)

Awards

Licensed Certified Social Worker- Clinical (LCSW-C) in State of Maryland
Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Approved Supervisor in State of Maryland
Maryland State Board of Social Work Examiners approved supervisor for Licensed Graduate Social Workers (LGSW)
Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists Approved Supervisor for Licensed Graduate Professional Counselors (LGPC)
Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in State of Delaware
QPR Suicide Prevention Gatekeeper Instructor
Military Star Behavioral Health Tier III Mental Health Provider
Washington State University “Excellence in Online Teaching” certification
Salisbury University “Certificate for Online Learning and Training (COLT)” certification

Publications

Messatzzia, R.K. (2020). The presentation of test anxiety in a community college sample. Instructional Forum, 34(1), 20-22.

Messatzzia, R.K. (2005, August 19). Visitation centers give women a way around abusers. The News Journal, A11.

Messatzzia, R.K. (2004, October 21). Domestic violence silence must end. Delaware State News, 5.

Messatzzia, R.K. (2004, February 12). Society still lacks educational equality. Delaware State News, 5.

Presentations

“Learning the Signs and Symptoms of Addiction.” September 25, 2019. Presented by Wor-Wic’s Lunch and Learn Speaker Series.

“How Can an Opioid Intervention Team (OIT) Benefit from a Higher Education Partner: Tips from Wor-Wic Community College.” October 15, 2018. Presented by the Maryland Opioid Operational Command Center.

“The ABC’s of Stress Management:Using Psychological Research to Make Your World a Saner (and Happier!) Place.” July 15, 2016. Presented by Wor-Wic’s Lunch and Learn Speaker Series.

“Domestic Violence: An Overview for Prehospital Providers.” January 13, 2011. Berlin Fire Hall, Berlin, MD. Presented by Wor-Wic Speaker’s Bureau

“The Impact of Separating & Divorcing on Children”. March 13, 2006. Milford, DE. Presented by People’s Place II, Inc.

“It Ain’t Love: Teens and Dating Violence”. September 5, 2004. Delaware Technical & Community College Terry Campus. Ya No Mas: A community speaks out against domestic violence. Presented by the Delaware Coalition Against Domestic Violence & the DCADV Women of Color Task Force.

Interests

My research interests include the education of “wounded healers” and the presentation and treatment of test anxiety.