As an MSW, My Social Work Impact Practice Will Be - A Declaration of Excellence

by Joshua Kirven, MSW, PhD, Tinaija Brown, Camari Claiborne-Scott, Jasmine Dingle, Simone Faison, Diamond Lewis, and Kenneth Toothman

     Social work impact is pushing the human potential to actualization through raising awareness, empowering individuals, strengthening communities, and delivering results in the immediate here-and-now. It is a charge to thrust toward a social work discovery and innovation of self that propels one to contribute to something bigger than self or current job existence, whether it is grassroots, community, systems, or global. This call to action for collective activism, positive change, and holistic impact is acutely now.

     In the spirit of pushing our profession forward, the following voices of the Winthrop University MSW Class of 2020 offer their declaration.

• “As an MSW, my social work impact practice will be to assist and empower those in need. My goal is to have an impact on each person's life that I come into contact with and make a difference in their lives.” (Tinaija Brown, 2020)
• "As an MSW, my social work impact practice will be using my voice to advocate for marginalized individuals who are seeking social justice in society. As a social worker, an important part of my work is to aid individuals into knowing that they are being noticed and valued." (Camari Claiborne-Scott, 2020)
• “As an MSW, my social work impact practice will be ensuring that clients are empowered and self-sufficient. I will impact practice by helping clients gain confidence, knowledge, and resources so that they remain the expert in their lives and go on to help others do the same.” (Jasmine Dingle, 2020)
• "As an MSW, my social work impact practice will be to empower individuals to identify qualities they have within themselves that can be utilized to better their situation. Oftentimes, when individuals are in an unfortunate situation it is easy for them to point out what is wrong with them instead of what is right with them."  (Simone Faison, 2020)
• "Social work impact practice should be continuously evaluated for necessary improvements. As time changes, so does society and each individual's needs. I believe that as a social worker, it is with due diligence that I serve my clients the best way possible personalized for each individual to promote resilience." (Diamond Lewis, 2020)
• “As an MSW, my social work impact practice will be assisting veterans to cope with mental issues that have arisen from their service to our country. Veterans who are dealing with issues such as making the transition from military life to civilian life, substance abuse issues, and/or PTSD can benefit from understanding and support. As a veteran and MSW, I can use the experiences that I have gained from service and my social work education to make a positive impact on the life of fellow veterans.” (Kenneth Toothman, 2020)

     Let us be a difference and reach to new heights.

Dr. Joshua Kirven is Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work at Winthrop University with more than 20 years of community based practice and programming. This article is written with graduating students of the MSW class of 2020, Winthrop University.