Project History
Pioneering social worker John E. (Jack) Hansan, Ph.D. (1930 – 2019) launched the Social Welfare History Project in 2010. Recognizing the power of the Web as an information-sharing platform, Hansan created the site to help the public understand and appreciate the history of social reform and social welfare services that have strengthened the fabric of American society. The Social Welfare History Project reflected not only on glory and greatness, but also explored the acts of omission and commissions of hurt and discrimination.
Working with a Scholars Advisory Committee, Hansan outlined the project’s scope, then researched and recruited articles for several years before the site’s launch. In spring 2016, seeking to safeguard the project’s future, he invited VCU Libraries to assume responsibility for the website. For the next two years, Jack Hansan continued to have an active presence as the guiding light for this locus of collaborative study and knowledge creation.
In its new role as host of the project, VCU Libraries began to expand the range of resources available. In October 2017, a consortial collection of primary sources named The Social Welfare History Project Image Portal was launched. Eventually 13 partner institutions would sign on to the effort to stimulate student curiosity, encourage the use of primary sources and archival materials, and direct students and scholars to the partner institutions that hold these materials. In May 2018, the Image Portal received the Center for Research Libraries 2018 Primary Source Award for Access.
As the availability of online education grew, and especially during the period of remote learning resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, the SWHP became a trusted resource for teaching and learning. While still serving the general reader, the project’s usage and focus shifted.
In July 2021, The Hansan Family Foundation issued a $100,000 challenge. VCU Libraries was able to meet that challenge thanks to the generosity of individual donors and a Mellon Foundation grant that was awarded in July 2023 and completed over the following year.
The Mellon Foundation grant made it possible for the Social Welfare History Project to expand its coverage of disability history while testing new approaches to the broader dissemination of scholarly materials to researchers. A Mellon Graduate Fellow researched VCU Libraries’ archival collections and published two new articles in the course of grant work: “Jean E. Lokerson (1937-2016): Special education leader and advocate for children with learning disabilities” and Lucian Louis Watts (1888 – 1974): Statesman, organizer, and advocate for blind and visually impaired Virginians. The Mellon Foundation grant also supported a site review leading to a redesign of the project’s homepage.
Today, the Social Welfare History Project continues its mission to inform the public, support education and research, and stimulate further inquiry into social welfare’s rich and fascinating history. Numerous scholars have received recognition and publication on the site through the project’s VCU Publishing Research Awards.
The Social Welfare History Project encompasses contemporary scholarship and historic documents. Articles on this site come from a broad range of sources, including materials that are offensive or contain negative stereotypes. VCU Libraries provides access to these items to support research and inquiry.