School of Social Work News

Dean Laura Lein and Associate Professor Luke Shaefer's books, “Making Ends Meet: How Single Mothers Survive Welfare and Low-Wage Work” and “$2.00 a Day: Living on Almost Nothing in America” respectively, were both referenced in the Vox article, “‘If the goal was to get rid of poverty, we failed’: the legacy of the 1996 welfare reform”.

Dear Social Work Community,

It is with shock, pain and deep sadness that we reflect on the mass shooting in Orlando, Florida, early this morning. We have heard from social work colleagues in Central Florida as they participate in the response to this devastating tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers go out to those dead and injured and their families, to the larger community, and to our colleagues who are engaged in work connected with the tragedy. Our School of Social Work community is invited to join a time of reflection and expression of caring and concern on Monday, June 13, 2016 in the ECC between 4:30pm and 5:30pm.

In sorrow, Laura Lein, Jorge Delva, Tim Colenback

The resources below come from Professor Gary W. Harper, Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan School of Public Health

Secondary Traumatic Stress (STS): "Secondary traumatic stress is the emotional duress that results when an individual hears about the firsthand trauma experiences of another. Its symptoms mimic those of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Accordingly, individuals affected by secondary stress may find themselves re-experiencing personal trauma or notice an increase in arousal and avoidance reactions related to the indirect trauma exposure. They may also experience changes in memory and perception; alterations in their sense of self-efficacy; a depletion of personal resources; and disruption in their perceptions of safety, trust, and independence." (NCTSN)

Assistant Director of the Office of Global Activities Katie Lopez is a co-leader on a new M-Global Education Abroad Resource Grant, "Developing Core Competencies Critical to Intercultural Fieldwork: Peace Corps Prep Program".

Through a partnership of the International Center, School of Social Work, School of Information, School of Natural Resources and Environment, the Center for Global and Intercultural Studies, and the International Institute, an initiative called the Peace Corps Prep Program will be implemented here at U-M. Peace Corps Prep prepares undergrads for international development fieldwork and potential Peace Corps service. This program intends to build the following four competencies among undergraduate students:

1. Training and experience in a specific work sector
2. Foreign language skills
3. Intercultural competence
4. Professional and leadership development

Professor Emeritus Charles Garvin was selected by the International Association for Social Work with Groups to be honored (via namesake) at its annual meeting each year. This year’s  initial Charles Garvin Lecture,"Advancing the Relevance of Social Group Work Research in the Current Social Work Practice Environment" will be a talk related to group work research by Professor Mark Macgowan of Florida International University.

Join Kelsey Tajer (MSW ‘16) in the Student Ambassador Program. You will be able to be directly involved in policy by communicating with members of Congress to advocate for change. You will also be given the opportunity to increase your understanding of advocacy through annual training and networking events on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.

Elizabeth Rhodes (PhD Social Work and Political Science ‘16) was formally announced as the lead researcher for the Basic Income study at Y Combinator Research in San Francisco. Her media coverage includes:

• cited in the Tech Insider article, "Silicon Valley's biggest startup accelerator just announced the leader of its groundbreaking basic income experiment"
• cited in the CNNMoney article, "Why some Oakland residents won't have to worry about rent"
• cited in the Fortune article, "Y Combinator Wants to Test a Revolutionary Economic Idea"
• cited in the TechCrunch article, "Y Combinator announces basic income pilot experiment in Oakland"
• cited in the Mic article, "Basic Income in California: 100 Oakland Residents Will Get a Salary Just for Being Alive"

Professors Lorraine Gutierrez and Linda Chatters were ranked high impact female social work scholars in the article, “Citation Impact of Women in Social Work: Exploring Gender and Research Culture” which was published in Research on Social Work Practice.