Schools/Programs
Arizona State University
The BSW and MSW programs in the School of Social Work both
have a significant number of Indian students. Field
placements are available in tribal and urban Indian
programs. The Office of American Indian
Projects, which is
headed by Edwin Gonzalez-Santin, MSW, serves
as a resource for Native American Social Work students and
students who are interested in practicing social work in
Native American communities.
University
of Minnesota - Duluth
The priorities of the Department of Social Work include
preparing culturally competent advanced generalist social
workers, emphasizing services with American Indians and
their communities, services to children and families, and
social work education for practice in rural settings.
The American Indian Projects
(AIP)
provides support and advocacy for American Indian social
work students, dialogs with Elders, and field placements
in Native communities. AIP, which is seeking to
effectively serve Indian people, receives guidance from
an Elders’ council.
John Day, Leech Lake
Band of Ojibwe, is the director of AIP. Other AIP
faculty members are Priscilla A.
Day,
Anishinabe, MSW, EdD; Muskadee Montano, Red Cliff
Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Tribe, MSW; and
Evie Campbell, Leech Lake
Band of Ojibwe, MSW.
Dr. John Day says, “According
to a Council on Social Work Education’s 2006 survey, the
UMD Social Work program ranks 6th among MSW programs in raw
numbers for both enrolled American Indian students and
American Indian graduates: and first in percentages
relating to both of these categories (i.e., in 2006, 15% of
our enrolled students and 14% of our graduates were
American Indian- both of which were highest in the nation).
We continue at this pace for the 2010/2011 academic year
where 6 of 46 (13%) of the entering students are American
Indian. There are four American Indian graduates out
of 27 (14%), among the graduating class this year.”
University
of Utah
The active
recruitment of Indians into social work by faculty
members, Dan Edwards, Yurok,
DSW, and Margie Edwards, dates back to 1971. A variety
of support services are available for Indian students.
The vast majority of the University of Utah’s 185 Indian
social work graduates are working with American Indian
populations or with populations that include American
Indians.
Washington
University
The
Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian
Studies is
charged with developing Buder scholars who will serve as
leaders in Indian Country . Buder scholars have the same
MSW program requirements as other George Warren Brown
School of Social Work students. In addition, they are
required to take the American-Indian-focused courses
that the Buder Center offers each semester.
Molly Tovar,
EdD, former director of leadership for the Bill and
Melinda Gates Millennium Schools Program, was appointed
director of the Buder Center in 2010.