Social Work Training

A little over ten years ago a committee of the National Conference of Jewish Charities, headed by Dr. Lowenstein, came to see me to discuss plans for a school for Jewish social workers. They had come to the conclusion that the only way to supply Jewish organizations with trained workers was to create a school. Some years had elapsed since the old school went out of existence and it seemed that the time had come for another school. Several attempts to start schools in the interim did not meet the need. This was the first time since the old school discontinued its work that a school was planned on a country-wide basis. This time the undertaking was initiated by the social workers who were in the best position to know the need.

The plan was that the school be located in New York City, where it could use the resources of the New York School of Social Work. A national board of directors was to be created and the support was to come from the Federations. During a trial period of three years the New York Foundation and the Nathan Hofheimer Foundation were each to contribute $15,000 a year.

While I was somewhat skeptical whether the federations would support a school adequately, and while I would have preferred to see the school located elsewhere than in New York because of the feeling occasionally expressed but almost always implied that New York controls everything, the plan seemed the best under the circumstances and we decided to go ahead.

OBTAINED SUPPORT OF PROMINENT MEN

With the help of the late Dr. Lee K. Frankel and I. Edwin Goldwasser, fellow members of the two foundation boards, we secured promises from them for support. Dr. Maurice J. Karpf was brought from Chicago to head the school. We were also successful in getting the late Julius Rosenwald to accept the Presidency of the board. A board was selected and in January of 1925 the school opened its offices, with the intention of starting the first class in July of the same year.

I suppose that none of us close to the enterprise, with the possible exception of the director, had any very clear idea of the size or the importance of the job we had undertaken. The plan was that the school take only college graduates, and keep them studying for fifteen months. We had less than six months in which to develop a faculty, a curriculum, a student body, etc. We had only one fulltime person, the director. I confess that I was at first rather skeptical about the program and doubted whether we could go through with it. Others wondered whether there was a real need for a Jewish school and whether it could justify itself. We wondered also about the type of students we would get. All in all it looked a# though there would be plenty of difficulties to contend with.

HAD DIFFICULTY GETTING A CHARTER

Quite early we ran into difficulties with the State Board of Regents regarding a charter. The law requires an endowment fund of at least $500,000 before charter is granted. We had no endowment funds and no prospects of getting any in the near future. We finally secured a temporary charter which was to serve for five years on which the school is still operating. There were other difficulties which required many meetings of the board in those early days.

But despite everything, in July we inducted the first class of twelve students, all college graduates, with good college records and considerable promise for the future. An excellent faculty had been organized, a curriculum was developed and everything went along as per schedule. Fifteen months later this class was graduated and a second class was under way. Contrary to our expectations we had many more applications than we could accept and the students were selected from increasingly large numbers of applicants. The school placed its graduates easily and began to develop a reputation for good and substantial work and high standards.

During the first five years, the school more than justified its existence. Several hundred young men and women took either the full course or special courses in the school. We found, however, that the course of study was too crowded and was more than either the faculty or the students could efficiently carry. It was decided, therefore, in 1930, to expand the course of study to two academic years. Although some of us had doubts about the advisability of expanding the period of training, the new program, which has now been tested for four years, proved much more satisfactory.

RIGHT IS GRANTED TO GIVE DEGREES

The same year also saw a number of other important changes in the school. The temporary charter expired during the year and a new charter had to be obtained. It seemed desirable also for the school to give degrees to its graduates. Since the school took in only college graduates, there seemed no reason why this should not be done. The Regents, after an exhaustive study of the situation finally granted the school the right to give degrees. They did this because of the high standards of the school. They created the special degrees of Master and Doctor of Social Service. I am told that our school is the first to grant these distinctly professional degrees. They also extended the temporary charter with the recommendation that the name of the school be changed from the training to the Graduate School for Jewish Social Work. Last year we had the pleasure of conferring for the first time the Master’s degree.

With these changes the school entered upon a new phase. Its enrollment more than doubled and new needs of space, faculty, field work and library facilities, made themselves felt. But, because of the depression, needed expansions and developments could not be undertaken. While a very much larger budget was voted by the trustees in 1930, it was never put into operation and the school spends but little more today than it did in the last year or two of its fifteen months’ program.

HAS DONE FINE WORK DURING ITS NINE YEARS

We believe that in the nine years of its existence the school has made some very important contributions to Jewish social work. It has placed in the field a large number of trained men and women who are doing good work. The school always aimed to serve the entire country. In selecting and placing its students the needs not only of New York City but of the rest of the country was borne in mind. In many other ways the school served very important purposes. But the shortage of funds due to the depression and the need spending public money, as well as the question raised by some as the question raised by some whether a separate Jewish school is still necessary, made it seem desirable to review the program and future of the school.

In order to obtain a completely unbiased study, a special committee of the Board decided to ask Teachers’ College of Columbia University to make a survey of the need and effectiveness of the school, and whether it should continue on its present or modified program. This study was undertaken about the middle of last year. The activities of the school were carefully examined. Inquiries were made of leading Jewish and non-Jewish social workers, and university professors, to determine their views on the need of a Jewish school and the soundness of the present program.

STUDY EMPHASIZES PROBLEMS STILL UNSOLVED

The friends of the school will of course be encouraged and heartened by the result of the survey. But gratifying as are the findings, the problems which the school faces have by no means been solved by the study. Rather have they been empha-