Social innovators challenged to think big
USCNews
These social work students had no idea what they were in for. “We weren’t given any details,” said Lindsey Etheridge. “From the invitation, it had an air of exclusivity to it. So I felt privileged and accepted immediately, but I really didn’t know what to expect.” No one knew what to expect. But 15 USC Master of Social Work students, of which Etheridge was one, gave up their last free weekend of the summer to participate in two days of critical thinking designed to change the way students — and social workers — think about their roles in society.

Allison Gould is a member:
Yoga Practice as a Tool for Coping With Baby Loss
Huffington Post
Says Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Certified Yoga Instructor Allison Gould, “We tend to spend a lot of time thinking about the past and a lot of time wondering about the future. It is much more difficult to stay focused on what is happening right now. People who have experienced traumatic loss are especially prone to ruminating about their loss experience and worrying about what lies ahead.”

Emiko Tajima is a member:
UW School of Social Work awarded grant to train mental health workers
The Daily (University of Washington)
“I think that our community is really needing well-trained professionals in behavioral health around all sorts of issues,” said Dr. Tessa Evans-Campbell, director of the Master of Social Work (MSW) program. “We see large numbers of children and youth now that are dealing with challenging issues around mental health. I think it’s a huge need not just in our community but nationally.” Evans-Campbell was one of the principal investigators of the grant, along with Emiko Tajima, the associate dean for academic affairs at the UW School of Social Work. The two waited months for a response after completing an intensive application in June.

The author, Sandra Butler, is a member:
The compassion divide and why it should worry all of us — not just the poor
The Bangor Daily News
Are wealthier people less compassionate? That’s what the research of Jennifer Stellar and her colleagues at the University of California, Berkeley shows. In a series of studies the researchers published in 2012, lower-class individuals consistently demonstrated that they were more attuned to the needs of others than were those of greater means. The implications of these findings are sobering considering that most of our policymakers — at least in Washington, if less so in Augusta — have considerable means. Can we expect these decision makers to have empathy for those whose lives are so unlike their own?

Social work major a local hero, saves life of young mother
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
UALR student Kimberly Maxwell grew up volunteering at soup kitchens and distributing supplies for the homeless. She says she has always wanted to help others. The Little Rock police officer recently had an unexpected opportunity to flex her helping muscles when Reyonda Smith, 20, fell unconscious in a car with her 1-year-old son next to her.… Interestingly, Maxwell has only been an officer for a little more than a year. She is seeking a bachelor’s degree in social work at UALR and hopes to ultimately obtain a doctorate degree.

Scott Luetgenau is a member and NASW-NC Student Liaison for NC State University:
Peers help peers overcome substance abuse
The Technician (North Carolina State University)
Outside of Port City Java, Scott Luetgenau and Chris Campau, the co-founders of the Collegiate Recovery Community here at NC State, sit, their voices muffled by the rumble of a nearby train and the generalized gray noise of students enduring a rainy day on campus. According to Luetgenau and Campau, many of these students who seem as though getting to class is their only problem fighting deeper, unseen battles—an estimated 500 students at NC State that are in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction.