March 2024 Dean's Update Newsletter

During Social Work Month each March, we have a chance to celebrate our fellow social workers. 

Our profession draws people whose hearts are pulled toward helping others. At the KU School of Social Welfare, we benefit from a large, supportive network of alumni, community partners, students, staff and faculty. Every day, we are inspired by the work our community of Jayhawk Social Workers does to transform lives and create change.

To celebrate Social Work Month, we want to know who inspires you. Recognize a KU social work graduate, professor, student, researcher or staff member by filling out a short survey. We will share responses on our social media during Social Work Month and beyond.

Earlier this month, our community contributed more than $22,000 during One Day One KU. Thank you to everyone who donated and helped spread the word about this year’s fundraising goal of supporting students in practicum. We are so grateful for your contributions.

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

The seventh annual One Day One KU set a giving day record for the KU School of Social Welfare. On March 6, 163 donors gave $22,160 to support social work students and education at KU.

Many of the 167 gifts to the KU School of Social Welfare will go toward a new fund to support students in practicum.

Thank you to all who gave, and a special thanks to the donors behind our six matching and challenge gifts this year.

Why social work? That’s a question Lauri Goheen has heard many times. A verbal answer might be that social workers find real solutions to real problems.

Goheen, an MSW student in the KU partnership program at K-State Salina, is always happy to answer with that. But she has also made sure her answer can be seen, not just heard.

"That’s what social workers do,” Goheen said. “We don’t put band-aids on things, we find real solutions.”

Stand Up KC, a Kansas City, Missouri-based organization, has been at the forefront of fighting for higher wages and better working conditions for poor workers and workers of color in the restaurant industry since the mid-2000s.

Tadeo Weiner Davis, assistant professor of social welfare, will launch a sustainable community archive commemorating this important piece of local, labor and Black history.

This research is one of four projects selected for the 2023 KU Racial Equity Research, Scholarship & Creative Activity Awards.

MSW application deadlines:

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

Red Hot Research: Systems Feedback, Assessing & Improving
Friday, March 29
Featuring research by Pegah Naemi Jimenez
4-5 p.m. - For faculty, staff and/or graduate students
Watson Library, 3 West
Free

Red Hot Research: Habitat, Community, Resilience
Friday, April 5
Featuring research by Joonmo Kang
4-5 p.m. - For faculty, staff and/or graduate students
Watson Library, 3 West
Free

Integrated Health Scholars Capstone Project Poster Presentations
Wednesday, April 17, 2024, 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. CST
BEST Building (KU Edwards Campus)
Free

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Social Work
Friday, April 19, 2024, 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. CST
BEST Building (KU Edwards Campus)
Free
CEU: 1.5

Sarah Kahn, MSW 2005, is now president and CEO of Housing Forward in Dallas. 

Kendra Long, MSW 2011, BSW 2010, joined Northwest Missouri State University as a counselor in wellness services.  

Raven Rajani, MSW 2014, was featured as No. 1 Mental Health Provider in Best of Lawrence 2023.

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.

More than 40 community partners joined us for a Practicum Day Fair + Celebration on Feb. 16 at the KU Edwards Campus.

Social work students were invited to meet with agencies about their programs, jobs and practicum opportunities. The event also included giveaways, practicum planning consultations, resume reviews and social work licensure consultations.

Photos from Practicum Day

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