Social Work Advocates Magazine

By Paul R. Pace, News staff Several staff members from NASW’s national office, along with NASW members and social work students from the University of Alabama School of Social Work and George Mason University, rallied outside the U.S. Supreme Court in February to support a key provision of the Voting Rights Act. NASW joined 20 other national organizations in the ... Read More »

By Paul R. Pace, News staff As health care in America explores new territory with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, social workers need to stake a claim to their roles as part of the health care team. That sentiment was consistent among social work leaders from various health care settings who recently participated in a meeting called “Strategies ... Read More »

By Rena Malai, News staff News anchor Jennifer Livingston made headlines last year when she publicly responded to an email that attacked her because of her weight. The viewer who sent the message said obesity is one of the worst choices a person can make, and he hoped Livingston would reconsider her responsibility as a local public personality in La ... Read More »

A $476,000 federal grant will help support efforts to expand mental health treatment for three groups considered at-risk in West Virginia — children, active-duty service members and military veterans. The grant is from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration. It funds implementation of the Integrated Mental and Behavioral Health Training Program within the ... Read More »

By Rena Malai, News staff The Lunchtime Series webinar “Use of Trauma Informed Assessments of Youth entering the Juvenile Justice System” explores the impact of early childhood trauma on juvenile justice involvement. The webinar  also  discusses the need for social workers to become trauma informed and to use a range of assessments that help determine exposure to adverse childhood experiences. ... Read More »

By Rena Malai, News staff NASW and the NASW Foundation formed the Social Workers Across Nations (SWAN) initiative to provide a mechanism for social workers to offer their expertise and skills to serve humanitarian needs within the international community on a voluntary basis and to develop collaborative links with other countries around the world. Following is a roundup of recent ... Read More »

Students from the Touro College Graduate School of Social Work, and Professor Jennifer Zelnick (pictured, front row), went to Albany, N.Y., recently to lobby legislators on the New York state “Dream Act” – legislation that would extend public and private funding for higher education to undocumented New York City high school students who were brought to the United States as ... Read More »

By Rena Malai, News staff NASW’s Connecticut Chapter has campaigned for more than 20 years for qualified social workers to fill the state’s social work jobs. The effort has paid off recently, as two state service agencies agreed to give hiring preference to social workers with a BSW or MSW degree. The Connecticut Department of Children and Families and the ... Read More »

By Rena Malai, News staff Social Work Month has arrived, and NASW urges members to get involved in this nationwide acknowledgement of the social work profession. Sponsorship ads will air on NPR during March, and will reach an audience of more than 20 million, said Gail Woods Waller, NASW’s communications director. The promotion of Social Work Month will specifically be ... Read More »

By Paul R. Pace, News staff NASW has been active in White House efforts to reduce gun violence in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings that took place in December in Newtown, Conn. NASW CEO Elizabeth J. Clark participated in a White House meeting with mental health groups, where she met with Vice President Joe Biden’s task ... Read More »