Publisher's Thoughts - Spring 2014
by Linda May Grobman, MSW, ACSW, LSW
These are the Publisher's Thoughts for the Spring 2014 issue of THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER magazine. Download this issue at our digital editions page or get the print edition here.
Dear Reader,
Well, as the song goes, “It might as well be spring!” And it IS spring here in the eastern U.S., where THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER is based. We are celebrating here, because in addition to welcoming the arrival of spring, we have just completed National Social Work Month, AND this is our 20th Anniversary Issue!
During Social Work Month (March), we published a series of essays, poetry, artwork, video, audio, and other creative works about the profession of social work. Did you see it? You can still access these inspiring and creative items at: http://www.socialworker.com/topics/social-work-month-2014
I’ve been looking through our 20+ years of past issues. Technology, field placement, ethics, and book reviews have been staples of our pages since the earliest issues. We have had a focus on social work careers all along, too. More recently, we added a movie column and a series on mandated reporting. We are working on creating a searchable index of the first 20+ years of publication. Also, in this anniversary issue, we wanted to honor the many student role models we have featured over the years. See page 20 for a complete list of them. Where are they now? Some have gone on to get more advanced degrees and become social work professors and leaders in the profession. The role models have represented social work in a wide variety of settings at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels. They are a widely diverse group, as is the profession as a whole.
In this issue, we have focused on adoption, with two related articles, and on involuntary clients’ self determination, also with two articles. In addition, Melinda Pilkinton’s article on Bayard Rustin (page 26), which appeared on our website during Black History Month, provides insight into why this leader in the Civil Rights Movement was relegated to the background. Marian Swindell (page 32) urges social workers to go beyond cultural competence to a new model of compassionate competence. And D.J. Williams (page 8) invites students and new social workers to GO FAR! in their careers. Microaggressions are the focus of Ellen’s tech column (page 30), and Addison looks at the Oscars (page 18). We continue with our series on mandated reporting with a look at what happens after you make a report. A student’s first-year field reflections and an article on an art expression group round out this issue.
Have you taken our Reader Survey? It will take about 5-10 minutes of your time. Go to http://www.socialworker.com/2014-reader-survey to get started. Thanks!
To subscribe to THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER’s Social Work E-News and notifications of new issues of the magazine, go to the “Subscribe” link on our website at http://www.socialworker.com. (It’s free!)
Until next time—happy reading!
Linda