March 23, 2012
March is National Professional Social Work Month. And to help raise awareness, students and faculty from Catholic University's National Catholic School of Social Service (NCSSS) were out in force during rush hour on March 23 in the nation's capital. Wearing bright blue T-shirts and carrying signs highlighting the work of their profession, they greeted commuters at the Brookland-CUA Metrorail station and five others in Washington, D.C.More than 20 students and faculty were on hand at the Brookland-CUA stop, which borders the University. "Happy national social work month," said Tosin Ogunyoku, a master's student in social work, to a woman in a purple dress who stopped just long enough to give her a smile and a fist pump. "I'm a social worker too," said the commuter."We've met a few social workers this morning," said Ogunyoku, who plans to enter the field in the area of child welfare when she graduates in May. "But mostly, we've answered questions about the profession and people have received us quite positively."
The morning "shout-out" was part of a coordinated effort sponsored by the Washington, D.C., Metro Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) to promote this year's theme, "Social Work Matters," which seeks to showcase the impact of more than 642,000 professional social workers in America. "Social workers weave together the threads of society's social safety net," says Anthony J. Hill, clinical assistant professor at NCSSS and NASW Washington, D.C., chapter vice president for social action and membership. "As the profession of hope, we help people overcome poverty, inequality, insecurity, fear, violence, trauma, loss, and pain. What social workers do and how they do it matters to our country's success."Hill noted that several NCSSS students took a leadership role in coordinating the Metrorail shout-outs. Camelia Mayfield, a sophomore social work student from Ashland, Ore., and Allie Drayden, a master's student in social work, coordinated the event at the Brookland-CUA stop, while master's student Molly Milgram coordinated the event at the Columbia Heights Metrorail station. Milgram and Mayfield are student board members for the Metro D.C. NASW chapter. "It was great that so many people took a few minutes on their way to work to stop and ask questions," said Dryden. "Today was all about awareness. I found that a lot of people think of social workers as individuals. But not as often do they think of the global reach of the profession; the important role we play in the conversation on social issues."