[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 57 (Friday, May 8, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S4563]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        CONGRATULATING COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK

 Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President. I rise today to congratulate the 
Columbia University School of Social Work on the occasion of the 
Centennial of the oldest social work training program in the nation. 
Evolving from a summer program organized by the Charity Organization 
Society in New York, the School of Social Work has a long and 
distinguished history of pioneering research, informed advocacy and 
exceptional professional training.
  Throughout the century, Columbia's faculty, students and alumni have 
worked tirelessly to address both the causes and symptoms of our most 
pressing social problems. National movements, such as the White House 
Conference on Children and the National Urban League, have emerged from 
projects undertaken by the school's faculty and administrators in 
cooperation with professional and community organizations. The entire 
nation has benefitted from the work of people like Eveline Burns who 
works in Social Security; Mitchell I. Ginsberg who works with the Head 
Start program; Richard Cloward who works with welfare rights and voter 
registration; Alfred Kahn and Sheila B. Kamerman who works with cross-
national studies of social services; and David Fanshel who works with 
children in foster care.
  It is a remarkable accomplishment that social workers have played key 
roles in every major social reform movement, from settlement houses to 
labor reform, from the New Deal to civil rights and voter registration. 
Many of the things we take for granted today such as Social Security, 
child labor laws, minimum wage, the 40-hour work week, and even 
Medicare came into existence simply because social workers saw 
injustice. Social workers did not simply talk about the problem but 
thought up solutions to the problems and then implemented their ideas 
into reality. Social workers are inspirational not only in their 
actions but also in their courage.
  As Columbia University School of Social Work, and indeed the social 
work profession, move into their second centuries, they will be 
challenged to respond to social change, new social problems, family 
change, and evolving societal commitments. Now more than ever, we will 
need well-trained and dedicated social workers to conduct cutting-edge 
research, administer social programs, and alleviate society's most 
intractable problems.
  It is with appreciation and admiration that I extend my best wishes 
to Columbia University School of Social Work on its Centennial and look 
forward to its future activity and achievement.

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