Article written by John S. Gambs, Survey Graphic, 1934. “In this fashion, carrying on their banners the device used by men in the Continental Navy—-the coiled rattlesnake and the militant words, Don’t Tread on Me—thousands of men and women are protesting the inadequacies of unemployment relief.”
Continue Reading »Besides those in uniform, over 2,300,000 of our women have gone into war industries; 1,900,000 of them are doing regular factory work. Many of these workers feel they are not being allowed to produce as much as they could. I think their dissatisfaction would be remedied if we had labor-management committees in all war industries throughout the country, so that their ideas and grievances could obtain a hearing.
Some of the married women workers are not doing their best because we haven’t taken into consideration their personal problems. Their homes must still go on. Their children must be cared for. Day nurseries are now being established, but they are not always properly organized. Sometimes they are not located conveniently for the mothers—I was told of one nursery which was five blocks from a bus stop, which meant that a woman had to walk 20 blocks every day. To a tired woman carrying a child, those blocks seem very long.
Continue Reading »Milton Wittman (1915 – 1994): Psychiatric Social Worker and Long Time Chief of the Social Work Training Program at the National Institute of Mental Health Milton Wittman was a social work administrator, an author, and an advocate for prevention. He was nationally recognized for his outstanding contributions to the field of mental health and…
Continue Reading »Service Report. “The purpose for which the corporation is formed is to provide a center for educational and philanthropic work and social services; to engage in and pursue such activities at such places and in such manner as may be necessary and desirable, not including the care of neglected and dependent children.”
Continue Reading »“The settlements and Neighborhood Centers are multifunctional agencies, which exist to serve the social needs of persons in given geographical neighborhoods—the neighborhood is their “client.” It provides: (1) Informal Educational and Recreational Services, (2) Neighborhood Services, and (3) Personal Services.”
Continue Reading »Speech given by Milton Wittman, D.S.W. at the Annual Meeting of Conference of Chief Social Workers in State and Territorial Mental Health Programs, Cleveland, Ohio, May 17, 1963. “It seems inappropriate to consider the “manpower crisis” only in terms of numbers of social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, and nurses. Rather, it seems more important to discuss the use which is made of these professions in the structure of mental health programs as they function today and as they may function in the future.”
Continue Reading »The problem of professional education for community mental health practice is one that poses a number of intricate questions for both educators and practitioners. The complexity and size of the mental health problem and the growing support for mental health programs throughout the country together indicate that the field of social work must make a major effort to relate soundly to the educational needs in this field. The work of the Joint Commission on Mental Illness and Mental Health clearly indicates the need for useful data on which to assess and evaluate the current and future directions of mental health programs. There is a strong feeling among those who have some awareness of where we now stand that current efforts in mental health fall far short of meeting the vast needs. There is continued questioning of the nature and content of service available and there is a high degree of curiosity about the effectiveness of current services. We now face the disconcerting fact that we may not really be meeting these needs just by increasing the number of known and existing services; rather the implication of present-day thinking is that we need to bring about some radical changes in our working philosophy and in our practice if we are to make any realistic impression on mental health problems.
Continue Reading »Grace Elizabeth White (1899 – 1986) – Social Worker, Consultant and Professor Editor’s Note: Dr. White died in her home in Lexington, KY in June 1986. She had no survivors. Introduction: Grace White was born on October 5, 1899 in Marion, Indiana. She earned her Ph.B. from the University of Chicago in June of 1931. For…
Continue Reading »Social work is making a contribution to the field of mental retardation but social workers are not giving the substantial services which are needed and which they have the competence to give. Along with other professions and the general public, social work failed for many years to give focused attention to the mentally retarded as a group in the population which needed their services. Lacking knowledge of ways to help the severely and moderately retarded, the social workers helped parents place their children if that seemed the best solution at that time. Other social services were given, but often they were fragmentary and somewhat isolated. What amounted to neglect rose more from frustration and lack of knowledge than from indifference.
Continue Reading »Verne was a social worker whose commitment to human service became the essence of her being, and both the source and focus of her energy. Her life and work were illuminated by a holistic view of social relationships, which links all persons as members in the human family. She considered that solutions to social problems could be achieved through united, collective activity, and that prevention is the most effective approach to social problem solving. Verne Weed understood that the social functioning of individuals and families is related to the level of nurturance and social responsibility in the society in which they live. She undertook professional advocacy and political activity which transformed those concepts into social action. For Verne, daily participation in the struggle to produce a socially responsible society was as essential to her life as the air she breathed.
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