UNC School of Social Work

Thoughts for a Changing World

Jane Addams, the founder of professional social work, said, "The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life."

As we choose our individual and collective responses to a changing world, we share one voice in our commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive environment that does not discriminate on any basis and to the importance of high-quality intervention research and applied science to inform the questions of our time.

Addams's words call us to respond to each challenge with deep empathy, vigorous advocacy and clear thinking. The clients and communities we serve deserve our deepest commitment and our best work, today and every day. The faculty, staff and students of the UNC School of Social Work stand with those we serve. We will bring the best we have to offer to promote equity, inclusion and justice for all.

In The News

Mimi Chapman serves as adjunct professor in China

East China University of Science and Technology (ECUST) has named Mimi Chapman as Distinguished Visiting Professor to its International School of Social Work in Shanghai.

Mimi Chapman at ECUST "This is an honor that acknowledges Mimi's great contributions to the development of Chinese social work over the past decades," reported Shiyou Wu (Ph.D. '17), who is an assistant professor at Arizona State University.

This summer, Chapman, Wu and Steve Day are leading intervention research training at ECUST as part of the ongoing collaboration between ECUST and UNC School of Social Work.

Lippold promoted to associate professor

Melissa Lippold, Ph.D., has received a promotion to associate professor with tenure, effective July 1, 2018.

“Dr. Lippold brings high standards and enthusiasm to her research, teaching and service and sets an example for the School,” Dean Gary Bowen said in making the announcement.

Lippold joined the UNC School of Social Work in 2013. She serves on the faculty of the Center for Developmental Science, an inter-institutional community of researchers who are studying human development, and as a faculty affiliate with the Sheps Center for Health Services Research.

Rep. Graig Meyer to speak at 97th annual Graduation Ceremony

The UNC School of Social Work will host its 97th annual hooding ceremony to celebrate the graduation of 129 MSW students and two Ph.D. students on Saturday, May 12, 2018, at Memorial Hall on UNC’s campus.

State Rep. Graig Meyer, who represents House District 50 in Orange and Durham counties, has been selected to deliver this year’s commencement address. Meyer, who was elected in 2013, is one of only two trained social workers currently serving in the General Assembly.

Touring "The Farm" ...

UNC School of Social Work Dean Gary Bowen toured The Farm at Penny Lane on April 20, 2018, accompanied by assistant professor Amy Blank Wilson and The Farm's operations director, Thava Mahadevan. The Farm is the site for the "Tiny Homes" project for which Wilson serves as principal investigator and spans 40 acres of woods and fields in northern Chatham County.

The "Tiny Homes" project is developing a village, or very small community, for adults with mental illnesses and other health conditions. Each "Tiny Home" houses a single adult and is designed to provide an optimal living environment with therapeutic aspects.