George Warren Brown School of Social Work

Infobox University
name = George Warren Brown School of Social Work


established = 1925
type = Academic unit of Washington University
dean = Edward F. Lawlor
faculty = 32
city = St. Louis
state = MO
country = USA
campus = Urban
postgrad = 458
website = [http://gwbweb.wustl.edu/Pages/Home.aspx gwbweb.wustl.edu]

The George Warren Brown School of Social Work, sometimes referred to as the Brown School or GWB, is one of the world's leading schools for the training of social workers, ranking 1st [http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/grad/rankings/hea/brief/sow_brief.php ("US News")] and 9th [http://www.socialpsychology.org/gsocwork.htm ("Gourman Report")] . As one of the academic units of Washington University, the Brown School was founded in 1925 as the department of social work, and became an endowed school in 1945. With one of the few social work post doctoral fellowships in the nation, and partnerships with the Open Society Institute, and the headquarters of the Gephardt Institute for Public Service, the Brown School is an international research center. The Brown School offers a two year MSW as well as the PhD.

Vision and Mission

The Brown School's Vision:

"Our vision is to create positive social change through our path-breaking research and educational excellence."

The Brown School's Mission:

"Our Mission is to educate and prepare future social work leaders in areas of policy, practice, and research; to pioneer research and apply results to impact policy and practice locally, nationally, and internationally; to collaborate with organizations to use evidence to improve access to and quality of social services and to address social and economic justice."

History

1925 Washington University introduces a social work program under the leadership of Professor Frank Bruno. This program was initially named the Washington University Training Course for Social Workers and was part of the Department of Sociology in the College of Liberal Arts. 1926

The social work training program transfers to the School of Commerce and Finance, which was then renamed the School of Business and Public Administration.

1928

The George Warren Brown Department of Social Work is established with monies from the estate of George Warren Brown, a prominent shoe manufacturer.

1937

The Washington University community and alumni of the George Warren Brown Department of Social Work dedicate Brown Hall. Brown Hall is the first building in the nation constructed to house a program of social work education. George C. Throop, then chancellor, opened the first evening’s dedication ceremonies with a tribute to George Warren Brown and his wife, Betty Bofinger Brown, whose bequest in memory of her husband had made the building possible.

1937-1945

Brown Hall is home to the Department of Social Work as well as the departments of history, political science, anthropology and sociology. As the program, grew the school expanded to occupy the entire building.

1945

The University establishes the George Warren Brown School of Social Work as a separate school with Benjamin E. Youngdahl as its Dean. Years later, the estate of George Warren Brown donated $1 million to the University to create a permanent endowment for the school. 1998

The Brown School and Washington University celebrate the dedication of Alvin Goldfarb Hall, a four-story building that doubled the capacity of the school.

Research Centers

The Brown School is home to four research centers with distinct areas of emphasis.

* [http://gwbweb.wustl.edu/buder/ Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies] - The Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies is one of the most respected centers in the nation for academic advancement and the study of American Indian issues related to social work.

* [http://gwbweb.wustl.edu/research/Pages/LatinoFamilyResearch.aspx Center for Latino Family Research] - The Center for Latino Family Research is the only center in a U.S. school of social work that conducts research on Latino social, health, mental health, and family and community development in the U.S. and Latin America. The Center's ultimate goal is to help improve the lives of Latino families in all of the Americas.

* [http://gwbweb.wustl.edu/cmhsr/ Center for Mental Health Services Research] - The Center for Mental Health Services Research, through its national network of collaborative research partners, works with public social service agencies to build a base of evidence designed to address the challenges of delivering mental health services to vulnerable populations. The center is one of only 11 centers of its kind in the country and the only one part of a social work school.

* [http://gwbweb.wustl.edu/CSD/ Center for Social Development] - The Center for Social Development's domestic and international research focuses on building assets of individuals and families so they can invest in life goals such as homes, education, and enterprise development and thus break the cycle of poverty. The Center's work also explores issues of civic engagement to ensure the people of all ages and economic levels actively participate in our society.