Norma Mercado recognized for community-led social work in Bastrop County

Norma Mercado, LMSW, is being highlighted for her leadership at Bastrop County Cares, where she focuses on housing, transportation and other non-medical drivers of health in Bastrop, Texas. Her work blends social work, education and research to advance community-driven solutions for vulnerable families and students.

Why it matters: - Norma Mercado’s work targets the root causes of instability for vulnerable families, not just short-term symptoms. - Bastrop County Cares is focused on housing instability, transportation barriers and access to resources that shape health and opportunity in Bastrop County. - Mercado’s approach centers residents as co-creators of solutions, which can make local services more durable and responsive.

What happened: - Norma Mercado, LMSW, was recognized by Influential Women for her leadership as executive director of Bastrop County Cares. - Mercado is also an educator, researcher and lecturer at Texas State University. - Her profile highlights more than 24 years of experience in social work, education and community development. - Mercado’s work is based in Bastrop, Texas.

The details: - Mercado holds a master’s degree in social work from Texas State University. - She is pursuing doctoral studies in adult, professional and community education. - Her research interests include immigration, resiliency, adult learning theories and community development. - Bastrop County Cares works on the non-medical drivers of health and uses community voice and collaboration as a core method. - Mercado has worked with youth experiencing homelessness, children in foster care and teen parents. - Her background includes Head Start case management, K-12 school social work and nonprofit leadership. - At Texas State University, she mentors future social workers as a lecturer and field instructor. - Her teaching emphasizes cultural humility, trauma-informed care, ethical practice and strengths-based supervision. - Her dissertation examines the resiliency of undocumented immigrants. - Mercado’s profile says she has been featured in The New York Times and Univision for advocacy related to homeless youth and community-led problem-solving. - The article says she draws motivation from lived experience as a pregnant teenager navigating unsupportive systems and from her family’s history through the Bracero Program. - Mercado is a mother of five and says faith, family and church remain central to her life. - More information is available through her Influential Women profile.

Between the lines: - Mercado’s message is that funding alone does not solve systemic problems if the underlying barriers remain unchanged. - Her focus on humility, trust and honesty reflects a service model that treats community members as experts in their own lives. - The recognition also spotlights a broader shift in social work toward prevention, collaboration and local problem-solving.

What’s next: - Mercado says the next phase of impact depends on expanding community-led partnerships and matching resources to actual needs. - She continues to guide students and early-career social workers toward purpose-driven practice and resilience. - Bastrop County Cares is positioned to keep building solutions around resident input, especially where housing, transportation and economic stress overlap.

The bottom line: - Norma Mercado’s career shows how social work, education and community organizing can combine to address systemic barriers from the ground up.