History of Social Work
Since the first social work class was offered in the
summer of 1898 at Columbia University, social
workers have led the way developing private and
charitable organizations to serve people in need.
Social workers continue to address the needs of
society and bring our nation’s social problems to
the public’s attention.
Today, Americans enjoy many privileges because
early social workers saw miseries and injustices and
took action, inspiring others along the way. Many of
the benefits we take for granted came about
because social workers—working with families and
institutions—spoke out against abuse and
neglect.The civil rights of all people regardless of
gender, race, faith, or sexual orientation are
protected.Workers enjoy unemployment insurance,
disability pay, worker’s compensation and Social
Security.People with mental illness and
developmental disabilities are now afforded
Since the first social work class was offered in the
summer of 1898 at Columbia University, social
workers have led the way developing private and
charitable organizations to serve people in need.
Social workers continue to address the needs of
society and bring our nation’s social problems to
the public’s attention.
Today, Americans enjoy many privileges because
early social workers saw miseries and injustices and
took action, inspiring others along the way. Many of
the benefits we take for granted came about
because social workers—working with families and
institutions—spoke out against abuse and
neglect.The civil rights of all people regardless of
gender, race, faith, or sexual orientation are
protected.Workers enjoy unemployment insurance,
disability pay, worker’s compensation and Social
Security.People with mental illness and
developmental disabilities are now afforded
