Columbia University School of Social Work

The Columbia University School of Social Work is a professional program within Columbia University. With an enrollment of over 900, it is one of the largest social work programs in the United States. It is also the nation’s oldest, with roots extending back to 1898, when the New York Charity Organization Society’s summer course was announced in The New York Times. The combination of its age and size has led to the School becoming a repository for much of the reference literature in the social work field.

History
In 1898, the Charity Organization Society established the first Summer School in Philanthropic Work at 105 East 22nd Street in New York. Twenty-five men and women attended the first classes. The Summer School continued as the primary training source until 1904. That year, the first full-time course of graduate study was offered at the newly renamed New York School of Philanthropy.

The name of the School was changed in 1917 to the New York School of Social Work. The Landmark Bureau of Children's Guidance was established in 1922. In 1931 the School moved into the Russell Sage Building at 122 East 22nd Street.

In 1940, the School was affiliated with Columbia as one of its graduate schools and began awarding the Master of Science (MS) degree. The first doctoral degree was awarded in 1952, raising the academic level of social work. In 1949, the School moved to the Andrew Carnegie Mansion at 2 East 91st Street, and later to McVickar Hall on 115th Street near Columbia’s Morningside Heights campus. In 1963 the name was formally changed to Columbia University School of Social Work. In 1966, building on its pioneering work with children, the school launched a major longitudinal study of foster children, their families and the agencies serving them.

The first fully endowed professorship was set up in 1991, followed by the full endowment of the Kenworthy Chair and nine additional endowed professorships. In 1997 an agreement was concluded with the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to provide new program support and a fellowship. In that year, the school’s endowment surpassed $40 million.

In 2002 construction of the current School of Social Work building began on Amsterdam Avenue near Columbia’s campus. The building was completed in 2004 and was first used by students and faculty during the Fall semester of the 2004-2005 academic year.

Achievements
The Columbia University School of Social Work has played a significant role in advancing the profession of social work and raising public consciousness of social services, both in the U.S. and beyond. In addition to being the oldest and largest school of social work in the United States, the School has had many notable achievements in developing social security policy, furthering advances in social work education and fostering social change. CUSSW is ranked third best in the country according to US News rankings of America's Best Graduate Schools in 2004, see US News Social Work Rankings.

In the arena of national social security policy, the School assisted Roosevelt's Secretary of Labor, Frances Perkins to write and implement the Social Security Act. During and after World War II, the School helped to extend the social work role into the military. The 1966 study on foster children and their parents has also had a major impact on national policy.

Many advances in social work education have been initiated by the School: requiring fieldwork instruction in social work education, pioneering psychiatric social work and introducing the first curriculum on social work in the workplace. In 2003, the School began publishing the Journal of Student Social Work The Journal is a scholarly publication featuring articles related to multiple aspects of the social work profession, including clinical practice, public policy, and social administration.

Over the years, the School has contributed a many leaders in social work education. Its graduates hold thirty-nine deanships in schools of social work around the world. The School has always been an active force in social change. In this regard, it has been instrumental in forming coalitions that led to national movements for change, such as the Urban League and the White House Conferences on Children. The School was one of the first to develop an ecological approach to social work.