The School of Social Work kicked off its 90th anniversary on November 19 with a day of celebration in Ann Arbor and a Worldwide Day of Service on November 20. The School hosted performances and lectures in the “atrium,” the now transformed former lower library space, and the Educational Conference Center. More intimate presentations and faculty-led discussions occurred in classrooms throughout the building. In addition, computer and personal video stations were set up around the School to capture people’s personal memories and stories about the School.
Alumni, current students, faculty, and staff all contributed to the festivities and enjoyed a day of mingling with old cohorts for an educational and celebratory day. The twoday event promoted social change and social justice through excellence in research, education, and practice “to pay homage to our past while looking forward to the futures of social work.”
The Morning Wake-up
The morning kicked off with a high-energy performance by the Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit, which performed a candid play about race and hope, Speak for Yourself! Young Detroiters Talk about Race. The student performers, hailing from local Metro Detroit communities, rapped, sang, acted, and danced for an eager audience. Mosaic’s message was sometimes light-hearted but always poignant, with observations about the national dialogue on race.
The play presented Arab, Asian, African, and Latin American teenagers engaged in an honest dialogue with the audience about racial stereotypes in Detroit; it imagined a future where people accept one another not on the basis of race but on the strength of understanding, tolerance, and mutual respect.
A Tour of the School’s art Collection
Following Mosaic’s performance, Richard H. Axsom presented “The Caring Spirit,” an explanation of the School’s extensive art collection. Axsom, curator of collections for the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art in Wisconsin and past curator of the U-M School of Social Work’s art collection, expressed admiration for the School’s art collection.
Axsom’s slideshow and lecture presented a walking tour of selected works throughout the School of Social Work building, including the area outside the dean’s office, which houses an untitled lithograph by 20th century American artist Robert Rauschenberg. The work is a representation of “third-world plight” as told through youth soccer players and is, as Axsom said, part of “an art collection in support of the excluded.” Axsom described many of the School’s works as metaphors for social justice, the underprivileged, diversity, family, and the “caring spirit of social work.”
Now 12 years old, the School of Social Work’s museum-quality art collection was initiated by former dean Paula Allen-Meares and organized by a committee of School and U-M faculty, a student representative, and outside members. The collection was made possible by generous contributions that, Axsom pointed out, were “earmarked specifically for the acquisition of art.”
A Powerful Keynote Address
Keynote speaker Michael Sherraden, a U-M School of Social Work alumnus and one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2010, took center stage to discuss his asset-based policy to fight poverty in the United States. A panel of discussants, including Assistant Professor Trina Shanks and Ismael Ahmed, director of the Michigan Department of Human Services, followed his keynote presentation.
Sherraden opened by congratulating the School for its constant innovation. “At 90,” he said, “the School feels younger than it used to feel at 50” and has “grown more vigorous,” thanks to an “emphasis on learning and knowledge to create social innovations at every level.” His keynote presentation included, among other topics, observations on the field of social work for an audience of faculty, alumni, and graduate students.
Sherraden encouraged the social work community to acknowledge their own accomplishments, saying that sometimes social workers “underrate themselves” and should be constantly aware—and even proud—that major advancements in the world are not economic or political, as one might expect, but social. “Social,” he said, “is what makes civilization possible.” Sherraden pointed out that at least 50 percent of the expenditures in most countries are social expenditures.
The heart of his presentation focused largely on his applied research on Individual Development Accounts (IDAs), for which he has received widespread recognition. IDAs are matched savings accounts that enable the poor to save money and accumulate assets. “When we began talking about this,” he said, “it was a strange idea to say ‘poor people should have assets.’ ” IDAs have been tested in rigorous experimental research and are now in demonstration through federal legislation and in more than 40 states. “The research has shown that if we set up conditions for poor people to accumulate something, the results can be promising.”
In her response, Shanks asked, “If the goal is to engage the most vulnerable populations and reduce disparities,” what do we need to do moving forward to “provide the best guidance” to these populations over time in more simple, standardized, and costeffective ways? In Ahmed’s view, the answer might be to push forward now. “No matter how smart we are in government or academia,” he said, “real meaningful reform comes from the streets.” Ahmed said that social workers are the leaders of these movements and implored the audience that they “must lead now.”
Sherraden, it would appear, agrees. “A lot of what makes the world function successfully is social,” he said, “and it’s not automatic—it’s work.” But, he said, “We should say, ‘Look, these social issues have to be resolved.’”
Breakout Faculty Presentations and Discussions
During the afternoon, separate faculty-led discussions were hosted in classrooms around the School. Individual presentations were videotaped and are available to view online.
Topics included using technology to enhance student learning, fighting poverty locally, making better child welfare workers, eliminating health disparities, shaping policy for low-income families, and discovering the role of social work in financial capability.
Worldwide Day of Service
Following the day of presentations, lectures, and discussion, the School of Social Work continued the 90th anniversary kick-off with a Worldwide Day of Service on November 20. Social work alumni, faculty, staff, and friends from around the world donated time and energy to improve their local communities.
In keeping with the anniversary’s theme of “reach out, raise hope, change society,” the organizing committee felt that a day of service would reflect the School’s mission of social justice and be a meaningful way to kick off the yearlong celebration. The Office of Alumni Relations provided shirts and helped organize volunteers and individuals who took the reins at locations across the United States, including Detroit, Ann Arbor, Illinois, and Arizona.
Among other activities, volunteers cleaned up a neighborhood in Detroit, assisted at a parent empowerment program, sorted food and donations, trimmed trees, raked, camped overnight on the Mexican border, and distributed water and food to immigrants.
The School will be hosting another Worldwide Day of Service as a part of the anniversary’s commencement celebration in November 2011. For more information, contact the Office of Alumni Relations at [email protected] or 734-763-6886.
—Tim Chilcote, freelance writer and Great Lakes enthusiast, lives in Ann Arbor.