Public libraries play an increasingly vital role as a public hub and safe haven open to all, with innovative programming and services that increase literacy, access to resources, and capacity-building. This field note describes the implementation of a federally funded academic--community partnership integrating a trauma-informed care framework and…

The National Association of Social Workers and the Council on Social Work Education identify social justice as a guiding principle of the social work profession, yet there is little consensus in the field of what the term actually means and how it can be achieved. Master of Social Work programs are likewise struggling with how to educate students…

Social work education has been greatly affected by ongoing technological advances in society at large and in the academy. Options for instructional delivery have been broadened tremendously. The University of Louisville is the first in Kentucky to put its master's of social work degree fully online, with a first cohort admitted in 2012. The…

Fisk University began the genesis of HBCU graduate programs in 1880. During the next fifty years, several other HBCUs established graduate programs. That group included Lincoln, Howard, and Morgan State. However, only Lincoln University established a PhD program. The primary goal of this paper is to provide a historical perspective regarding the…

Twelve universities and one American Indian (AI) tribal college were selected for the National Child Welfare Workforce Institute's 5-year stipend traineeship program. These tribal traineeships were designed to provide social work child welfare education for tribal and nontribal students. Twenty-two AI students and 58 nontribal students completed a…

Concerns about the cost of higher education and student loan debt have resulted in increasing efforts by policymakers and university administrators to find alternative ways to support the financing of higher education for students. The authors present a case study of a student-led philanthropy campaign to generate funding for social work student…

Experiential learning is recommended as a way to increase critical thinking and engagement, enhance theory-informed practice, increase preparedness, and improve multicultural understanding for students involved in social work education. The purpose of this study is to validate the Experiential Learning Survey (ELS), which measures students'…

Factors external and internal to social work practice have caused our profession to question its role and identity. The emergence of evidence-based or evidenced informed practices forces the profession to reexamine its unique identity and its historical roots. This article addresses the problems in the dominant paradigm guiding our profession, the…

Student-directed projects are increasingly becoming a common phenomenon in schools of social work across the United States. Students acquire a great learning experience from these projects, which sharpen their skills in leadership, innovation, and practice. Social work practitioners who go through such a process emerge having acquired knowledge…

Interdisciplinary programs in schools of social work are growing in scope and number. This article reports on collaboration between a school of social work and a school of engineering, which is forging a new area of interdisciplinary education. The program engages social work students working alongside engineering students in a team approach to…

This article reports on current and emerging trends in the use of distance education technologies in social work education. Areas studied include the extent of distance education programs, curricular areas covered, technologies used, pedagogical approaches, intentions for degree-program development, sources of pressure to adopt distance education…

The planning process and results of a three-year minority student recruitment process in a school of social work are described, including effective tasks and strategies. The recruitment and retention effort consisted of six phases: gauging the environment, preinitiation, program planning and development, implementation, evaluation, and…

An organizational model for developing partnerships between universities and community agencies for delivery of social work field instruction at new sites is described. Application of the four main components (outreach, partnership, direction planning, change) is demonstrated in three case studies. The partnerships facilitate field opportunities…

It is proposed that schools of social work typically respond reactively and defensively when workload demands increase relative to available resources. Strategic planning is offered as a tool for increasing faculty's and administrators' sense of vitality and empowerment. Conditions, tasks, outcomes, and pitfalls of successful strategic planning…

A discussion of undergraduate social work programs in historically black colleges and universities stresses their importance, examines their value in preparing students for culturally competent practice and developing more effective professional responses to problems of black Americans, and offers suggestions for advancing the profession's efforts…