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The University of Tennessee

College of Social Work Henson Hall

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The University of Tennessee
College of Social Work

The University of Tennessee, with over 200 years of academic tradition, is Tennessee's premier institution of higher learning. The University is committed to excellence in education and challenges its students and faculty to excel in scholarship, in research, and in contributions to economic, social, and cultural development.

The College of Social Work is committed to advancing the mission of The University of Tennessee as the state's land-grant, flagship university, to provide a quality public education for the citizens of Tennessee through exemplary teaching, research, and service. The College of Social Work provides a professional social work education program that prepares undergraduate and graduate students for social work practice and doctoral level graduate students for social work research and academia.

The College of Social Work includes:

The educational mission of the college is accomplished by faculty committed to the use of teaching methods that support critical thinking and life-long learning. The college's research mission embraces interdisciplinary collaboration and scholarship that seeks to increase knowledge for the benefit of individuals, families, organizations, and communities. Community outreach services are rendered by both faculty, staff, and students who seek to enhance the quality of life for people and human systems in Tennessee, with particular concern for improving life conditions and greater social justice for vulnerable populations.

The Master of Science in Social Work (M.S.S.W.) program is offered across the state on campuses in Knoxville, Memphis, and Nashville. The Bachelor of Science in Social Work (B.S.S.W.) degree is offered on the Knoxville campus. Foundation courses for the Doctoral program are offered in Knoxville; dissertation research may be completed on any of the three campuses. All three campuses have full-time faculty, library facilities, computer labs, and field practice resources.

The Bachelor's and Master's degree programs are accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). The Council does not accredit doctoral programs; however, the college's Doctral program consistently receives strong, positive reviews from the University and national recognition from the National Association of Social Workers (NASW).

Organizational Structure

The College of Social Work serves the state of Tennessee as the first and oldest CSWE accredited M.S.S.W. program within the state. A description of the three campuses located across the state follows.

Knoxville: The offices of the Dean, Knoxville Associate Dean, B.S.S.W. and Doctoral Program directors, faculty, and staff of the Knoxville campus are located in Henson Hall, at 1618 Cumberland Avenue, on The University of Tennessee campus. Also located in Knoxville are the Office of Social Work Research and Public Service and the Children's Mental Health Services Research Center. The B.S.S.W., M.S.S.W., and Ph.D. programs are offered in Knoxville.

Memphis: The offices of the Memphis Associate Dean, faculty, and staff of the Memphis campus are located in the Boling Center at 711 Jefferson Ave., Room W607 (6th floor) on the campus of The University of Tennessee Health Science Center. The campus is composed of the Colleges of Allied Health Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy. It is near the downtown area of the city and is in the midst of the Memphis Medical Center, one of the largest medical complexes in the nation. The M.S.S.W. program is offered in Memphis.

Nashville: The offices of the Nashville Associate Dean, faculty, and staff of the Nashville campus are located in the Polk Center at 193 Polk Avenue, Suite E. The Polk Center also houses offices and facilities of the Hodges Library, the Institute for Public Service, and Social Work Office of Research and Public Service. In addition to its full-time faculty members, the Nashville campus draws upon the research and teaching resources of 16 universities and colleges within the Nashville-Davidson County area. The M.S.S.W. program is offered in Nashville.

Research and Service Institutes

Children's Mental Health Services Research Center
The Children's Mental Health Services Research Center is one of only seven research centers in the nation that focuses on children and is funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. The Center conducts research across the state with offices in Knoxville, Nashville, and Memphis.

Purposes of the Center include promoting high-quality social work research and training of talented mental health services researchers interested in children and mental health services issues. The College of Social Work's Ph.D. program is closely linked to the Center. Four doctoral faculty members lead research teams within the Center. These teams focus on research on the structure and coordination of services, aggressive and antisocial behavior, child welfare issues, and measurement and assessment issues.

Social Work Office of Research and Public Service
The goal of the Social Work Office of Research and Public Service (SWORPS) is to improve the quality of human services practice in Tennessee, the Southeast, and the nation for the benefit of human services workers, their agencies, and their clients.

SWORPS is composed of units that work in the areas of research, publications, staff development, professional continuing education, and e-learning. The staff of 200 is made up of social workers, trainers, researchers, statisticians, editors, and other professional and support personnel. The office is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, on the main campus of the University of Tennessee with other offices in Nashville, Chattanooga, Memphis, and Columbia.

Ethics

The College of Social Work subscribes to the code of ethics of each of the following organizations:

National Association of Social Workers
http://www.socialworkers.org/pubs/code/code.asp

National Association of Black Social Workers
http://www.nabsw.org/mserver/CodeofEthics.aspx?menuContext=720

International Federation of Social Workers
http://www.ifsw.org/en/p38000398.html

 

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