Adoption STAR is fortunate to have a host of amazing social workers on staff. The agency could not perform its work without the help of these incredible adoption professionals.
March is National Social Work Month, and for more than a century the profession of social work has grown, evolved and adapted to address the needs of an increasingly diverse population. Over the course of the month, Adoption STAR would like to introduce you to some of the ways in which social work is “Paving the Way for Change,” which is this year’s theme (as per the National Association of Social Workers, or NASW).
As the world evolves and changes, in turn social workers face complex and ever-shifting challenges.
Here’s what social workers are doing:
- Working to improve the rights of women, African Americans and other ethnic minorities, and the LGBT community.
- Pushing to strengthen the social safety net through programs such as Medicaid,
- Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act.
- Advocating for social justice initiatives such as the Voting Rights Act and the
- Community Mental Health Act.
- Helping to build, support and empower positive family and community relationships by working in schools and helping students overcome obstacles to their education.
- Working in hospitals and helping patients navigate their paths to recovery.
- Working in agencies and organizations helping to protect vulnerable children and adults from abuse and neglect.
“If you don’t like the way the world is, you change it. You have an obligation to change it. You just do it one step at a time.” —Marian Wright Edelman, founder of the Children’s Defense Fund (and while not a social worker by trade, her words speak straight to the heart of the social work profession).
Read more about National Social Work Month here.