February 2024 Dean's Update Newsletter

In the past five years, our supporters have contributed more than $70,000 to the School of Social Welfare during One Day One KU. Those donations have directly impacted our students through programming and scholarships.

On March 6, I hope you will join me in supporting our students for KU's day of giving. Our priorities for this year's campaign include a new fund to support students in practicum, which is a vital part of social work education at KU.

While some practicum placements are paid, many are not. Donations during One Day One KU will help offset the unseen costs of practicum and provide important financial relief for students. The School values One Day One KU contributions of any size.

This spring, the School will host several free programs offering continuing education credit. I hope you will join us for one or more of these events, coordinated with our Center for Community Engagement & Collaboration. Several online offerings are available, as well as in-person events in Salina and Garden City. More information is included in this month's newsletter.

As always, please reach out to me with questions or concerns at any time at kusswdo@ku.edu. Your feedback and collaboration are extremely important to us.

Take good care and Rock Chalk,

Michelle Carney, PhD, MSSA
Dean and Professor
KU School of Social Welfare

With this year’s One Day One KU, the School of Social Welfare is establishing a new scholarship fund to support students during their practicum.

Your gift will help students cover costs such as gas and vehicle wear and tear; professional clothing; childcare; and professional development training. Offsetting these costs with a scholarship at the start of each semester gives students room to focus on learning.

Give $25 or more to any KU Social Welfare cause to receive the latest KU School of Social Welfare T-shirt.

Support Social Welfare students on Wednesday, March 6.

Pegah Naemi Jimenez is a recipient of this year’s Steven F. Warren Research Achievement Award from KU. The award recognizes outstanding staff whose research has significantly influenced their fields and expanded intellectual or societal insights.

Naemi Jimenez is an associate researcher senior in the School of Social Welfare. Prior to her current role, Naemi Jimenez was an associate researcher at KU’s Center for Public Partnerships & Research from 2015 to 2021.

Naemi Jimenez’s scholarship focuses on cross-system approaches and community-engaged research that addresses social problems experienced by children and families in marginalized communities.

Two KU social work students are representing their BSW peers on state boards of the National Association of Social Workers.

Ella Hinson, a BSW senior at the KU Edwards Campus, is a student representative for the NASW Kansas Chapter Board of Directors. Thomas Way, a BSW senior at the Lawrence campus, is serving on the NASW Missouri Chapter board.

“I knew getting involved would give me the opportunity to work and learn from social workers who are making positive impacts on the social work community,” Hinson said.

Graduates from the MSW macro social work specialization work in agencies and nonprofits across the country. Catch up on their careers with our collection of MSW Macro Alumni Spotlights. Stay tuned for more alumni spotlights this spring.

A research partnership including KU School of Social Welfare researchers has found a parenting skills program to be more effective than child welfare services as usual in reunifying children with families, while improving the health of young children.

The project tests several evidence-based interventions to enhance the safety, permanency and well-being of children and families affected by substance use. Kiley Liming, associate researcher senior and project evaluator, and Jody Brook, professor of social welfare, are working on the project.

In a recently published research study, Dr. Sicong “Summer” Sun found the same amount of wealth does not ensure the same level of positive health outcomes for everyone.

Dr. Sun’s analysis of national data and reports of mental health and well-being showed that it takes more financial assets for people of color to have the same health outcomes as white Americans. The study was published in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities.

MSW application deadlines:

Trauma-Informed Organizational Culture: An Ethical Imperative for Social Workers
Thursday, Feb. 29, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. CST
Zoom - Virtual Event
Free
CEU: 3.0, Ethics Course

Free 3-hour Ethics Social Worker CEU Session in Salina
Tuesday, March 5
8-9 a.m. - optional Q&A about the KU MSW program in Salina
9 a.m. - 12 p.m. - CEU training
12-1 p.m. - optional lunchtime info session about the KU MSW program in Salina
KSU College Center, Conference Room 103
2310 Centennial Rd, Salina, KS 67401
Free
CEU: 3.0, Ethics Course

Research Impact Talk: Advancing Racial Equity in Wealth and Health
Friday, March 22, 12-1:30 p.m. CST
Zoom - Virtual Event
Free
CEU: 1.5

Screen Sanity: Exploring the Impact of Technology Use on Mental Health
Tuesday, March 26, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. CST
Zoom - Virtual Event
Free
CEU: 3.0

Ethical Considerations for Building a Professional Digital Presence in Rural Practice
Thursday, March 28, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
St. Catherine Hospital, Classroom B
401 E Spruce St., Garden City, KS 67846
Free
CEU: 3.0, Ethics Course

Kristine McGuire, MSW 2010, presented at the Global Collaborative Conference on Osseointegration in November. McGuire – who works at the University of Colorado Hospital – presented on the importance of patient selection and using a biopsychosocial approach to determine surgical candidacy. 

Carole Cadue-Blackwood, MSW 2019, won her bid for re-election for the USD 497 Lawrence Public Schools Board of Education. She is also the first Indigenous person to have attended USD 497 K-12. Cadue-Blackwood is a case manager and liaison to the United States Attorney General's Office for the Western District of Missouri for Missing, Murdered, and Indigenous Peoples (MMIP).

Whether you just received a promotion, started a new position or project, or moved across the country, the School of Social Welfare wants to keep updated on your life adventures. Update your contact information and share your alumni news.

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