by Chris Hilburn-Trenkle
Carl Baumann dedicated his career to business, yet social work has held a special place in his heart for decades.
As a steadfast member of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Social Work’s Board of Advisors, Baumann, and his wife Susan, have supported the School’s efforts through collaborations and financial investments, including a generous donation in recent weeks to the School’s unrestricted fund.
In 2021, he and his wife committed $1.6 million to create the Carl A. and Susan H. Baumann Macro Student Opportunity Scholarship Fund to support social work students pursuing careers in community, management and policy practice. The motivation behind the donation was to increase access to higher education, especially among students passionate about changing systems and policies affecting marginalized individuals.
Students in the macro concentration—community, management, and policy practice—learn the leadership skills to pursue careers in community organizing, human services administration, policy development, or advocacy. Macro graduates of the School have gone on to impact the social work field in a number of ways, from starting their own non-profits to working in the North Carolina state government.
Baumann has also helped five groups connected to the School write business plans through his work with SCORE Chapel Hill, including most recently providing support for the plan that created the School’s Office of Community Engagement and Outreach. Just last month, he made a significant donation to the School’s unrestricted fund to support discretionary spending by the Dean’s Office.
We spoke with Baumann to learn more about his passion for social work, what he would tell others interested in contributing to the School and more. This transcript has been edited for clarity.
Why did you first become a donor to the School of Social Work?
I didn’t know much about the School of Social Work until I was introduced to one of the professors, Gary Nelson. I began helping him, working with several of his groups by helping them write business plans. I saw the great work they were doing and that got me interested in the School. That’s when we started contributing.
The reason we contribute to the School of Social Work is its graduates are 100% out there trying to help other people. We think that’s wonderful. They help them in all different areas. The graduates that go into private practice help many individuals and the macro graduates go out and work for non-profits or start non-profits and help even more people. We give to the School because of the impact that the graduates of the School, and the School itself through its research, have on making life better for so many people.
As someone who did not study to be a social worker, why has supporting the teaching, research and community engagement pillars of the School been so important for you?
Because of the impact it has on other people. I did well in business. My wife and I want to take the funds that we have and do the most good with them. I found through the School of Social Work that they’re out there doing great work and helping many people who are disadvantaged in many ways. That’s the primary reason.
Are there any instances that have resonated with you in the way you’ve seen social work make an impact in your community?
One example is Hope Renovations. Hope Renovations was founded by Nora El-Khouri Spencer ’17 (MSW). That is an organization that trains under- and unemployed women to be able to do jobs in the construction industry and greatly improve their income. They have training programs in Durham and Raleigh. Hope Renovations is expanding and helping more and more women increase their ability to make more money in an industry that is male-dominated.
Why do you feel like it was such an important time to donate to the unrestricted fund of the School?
Because of the times and the unrealistic pulling back of federal funds without even looking at how they’re going to be affecting people, that just triggered me. When I was talking with Dean Ramona Denby-Brinson, Associate Dean for Advancement Kandace Farrar, and Board Chair Louise Coggins, Dean Ramona was saying it was so important that we really donate to the unrestricted fund. I’ve donated to that before, but I felt it was necessary to make another contribution, in addition to our scholarship money.
How does it feel to be able to speak with the student recipients of your scholarship fund and hear how thankful they are for it?
It’s not as much getting thanks from them as it is knowing we’re helping students get an education. We focus on the macro students, the students who are going to go out and join non-profits and start non-profits. While we respect the private practice folks, we believe the macro students are going to go out and have a larger effect because they can reach more people. It’s always nice to meet them, to hear from them. I’m big on wanting to see the impact. Knowing who they are and what they’re doing is enough for Susan and me to see we are having a positive impact.
Given the growing behavioral health crisis that we’re seeing across the state, how important do you think it is to ensure we have the social work workforce and infrastructure in place to respond effectively?
It’s absolutely critical. I’m worried that’s where these funds are going to be taken away. I hope we don’t see a chipping away at the state level for all of these areas and the social support system that needs support.
Having more social workers out there is really going to help. I’m excited that we’re going to start the BSW program, and hopefully that will get more social workers to where they are needed across the state. It’s critical and sadly, the powers-that-be seem to ignore that.
Individually we can’t do everything. What Susan and I try to do is help where we can. The scholarship money we feel really helps people get their MSW, and the money we can give to the unrestricted fund helps the Dean put money in places where the School needs funding. That’s our focus right now.
What would you tell others who might be interested in donating at this time?
I would encourage them to explore the possibilities at the School, explore the options for giving at the School. I think the School is involved in so many wonderful programs that if a potential donor can learn more about the various programs, they’ll find a program or several programs that they identify with. I’d encourage a potential donor to reach out to Kandace and her staff and see what the opportunities are.
When we have Board meetings many groups come and present what they’re doing and it’s all amazing work. Different things register with different people. When I was in college, I didn’t have enough money to go through college, I didn’t have a scholarship and I was working and scraping by. That’s why scholarships are so important to me. You have to find what’s important to you and what resonates with you.
Is there anything else you would like people to know about yourself or the School?
It’s one of the schools within the University that sends people out and really helps the most people. That’s what resonates with Susan and me.
