School of Social Work

“I have lots of challenges around my experience with law enforcement,” says Clinical Assistant Professor Daicia Price. “I have been incarcerated myself, and my son has been incarcerated for crimes he did not commit. With all that is going on now, I was trying to figure out how to make a difference.” Price decided to become trained in connecting law enforcement and mental health.

Between the pandemic and the protests in the wake of George Floyd’s brutal death, social workers have been called to action.  We checked in with a number of students, alumni and community members to hear how they are putting their training into action these last several months.  Read the stories of social work in action.

PhD student Change Kwesele recently published “‘It’s Not a Quick Fix.’ Notes for the ‘good’ white people: Insights on conversations about race at work”

Dear Michigan Social Work Community,

Clinical Assistant Professor of Social Work Abigail Eiler was appointed to the Big Ten Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition. The coalition will encourage, educate and empower student-athletes and will develop tangible and actionable efforts in a collective manner and provide viable solutions addressing the issues of hate and racism in our society.

The University of Michigan School of Social Work stands for health equity and equal human rights for the LGBTQIA2S+ community. Over the weekend the federal government reversed an important Obama administration ruling that provided access and nondiscrimination in insurance coverage for transgender and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer people in the United States. This impacts transgender individuals the most, and even more so, transgender people of color. 

In light of COVID-19, and ongoing protests in the wake of George Floyd’s death, Professor and Associate Dean of Research Rogério M. Pinto spoke to MLive about both the timing and the power of this moment of unrest.  “Protests can be a powerful strategy to enact change, and already the movement has scored some results.

"We must move past indecision to action...If we do not act, we shall surely be dragged down the long, dark, and shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality, and strength without sight.”
-Martin Luther King Jr.

Dear Social Work Community,

Professor Karla Goldman’s article in Forward discusses how the economic disruptions of the coronavirus add to the woes that have been threatening the viability of the historic institutions and programs that support Reform Judaism.

Associate Professor Shawna Lee’s research is cited in a New York Times article that discusses how the tremendous changes wrought by the pandemic can mimic, mask or amplify depression-like feelings.  According to the research she conducted in April, a third of respondents reported symptoms of depression including fatigue, insomnia and feelings of hopelessness.