School of Social Work

The School of Social Work invites grant applications from MSW and PhD students to support individual student projects for anti-racism work, with a specific focus on confronting anti-Blackness, racism against Indigenous peoples and confronting white supremacy. The goal is to inclusively support students working within SSW or in communities seeking to confront racism to the greatest degree possible. 

Dear Michigan Social Work community -

In the past few days, we have been horrified to read about racially motivated hate crimes involving physical violence and harassment, targeting elderly Asian Americans. These are not isolated events, since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, inflammatory and xenophobic rhetoric, harassmant and violence against Asian American and Pacific Islander persons, families and communities have increased. These acts damage our society and counter the values of social work practice.

Advancing racial equity and economic inclusion for people of all races and ethnicities is critical to guaranteeing the safety and security of everyone. We will work to activate every member of our community to take a stand against the structures that perpetuate and fuel discrimination and assaults on Asian American and Pacific Islander persons.

Hate against some of us harms all of us. We encourage our community — students, staff, alumni and faculty — to acknowledge, amplify, and denounce the ongoing anti-Asian hate crimes. This is our commitment as social workers.

In Solidarity,
Lynn Videka, Dean
Larry Gant, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Program Director
Ayesha Ghazi Edwin, Lecturer and ENGAGE Program Manager, Chair of the Michigan Asian Pacific American Affairs Commission (MAPAAC)
Lorraine Gutiérrez, Associate Dean for Educational Programs
Joseph Himle, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs
Trina Shanks, Director, School of Social Work Community Engagement

ENGAGE Program Manager Fatima Salman, MSW ‘15, is one of five alumni named as Racial Equity Fellows by Detroit Equity Action Lab. The Racial Equity Fellowship develops leaders who work to end structural racism in Detroit. Other alumni fellows include Michelle Anderson, MSW ‘01, Margo Dalal, MSW ‘18, Sibohan O’Laoire, MSW ‘13, and Robert Siporin, MSW ‘14.

Required Weekly COVID-19 Testing

All students – including graduate and professional students – who live on or come to campus will be required to be tested weekly through the U-M Community Sampling and Tracking Program starting February 16. Currently, over 10% of all COVID reports of students are graduate students.

Weekly testing will be required for all SSW students (including those who have received the vaccine) who:

• Live in Michigan housing.
• Are registered for any in-person courses that meet on campus, regardless of how frequently the course meets in-person.
• Are employed or have in

Associate Professor Terri Friedline and PhD student So’Phelia Morrow call on President Biden to stop the predatory burden of student loan debt in an article in Ms.“To advance his promises of racial and gender justice and to better ensure an inclusive economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, President Biden should cancel all student loan debt—not just a meager portion of it.” Their article also cites research conducted by a team at Michigan Social Work, which focuses on the physical and mental health tolls women face due to their debts and outstanding obligations.

MSW student Olivia Stillman has been named a 2021 Dow Sustainability Fellow. Designed to support the next generation of sustainability leaders in business, government, and nonprofits, The Dow Sustainability Fellows Program is among the most prestigious and productive graduate programs at U-M. Fellows are selected through a competitive process from a pool of applicants nominated by their academic units.

During the year-long program, Stillman will work collaboratively with the cohort to solve real-world sustainability challenges. Each fellow receives a $20,000 stipend, along with sustainability

The Michigan Social Work marketing and communications team has won a Pride of CASE V Award for the fall 2019 cover of Ongoing. Niki Williams’ photo of Juliana Huxtable — taken during her February 2019 performance presented by the School — makes use of lasers and fog to frame the artist. CASE is the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, a global non-profit association dedicated to educational advancement, alumni relations, communications, development, marketing and advancement services.

Professor Luke Shaefer spoke with the New York Times about Biden’s child poverty plan. “This is the boldest vision laid out by an American president for fighting poverty, and child poverty in particular, in at least half a century,” said Shaefer. 

Read more »

Researchers at the Center for Equitable Family & Community Well-Being surveyed more than 600 low-income residents across Ypsilanti about the impact of COVID-19. Their work is giving voice to the needs of those disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, ensuring that local health and economic responses attend to issues of equity.

Trina Shanks, Harold R. Johnson Collegiate Professor of Social Work is named a 2021 Society for Social Work and Research Fellow. The Society for Social Work and Research Fellows are members who have served with distinction to advance the mission of the Society — to advance, disseminate and translate research that addresses issues of social work practice and policy and promotes a diverse, equitable and just society. SSWR Fellows serve as role models and mentors for individuals pursuing careers in social work research.