Social Work

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Major Brochure | Courses | Sample Plans of Study

Dare to care.

Social work is not just a degree, it is also a passionate calling of courage, service, leadership, and discovery.  Mahatma Gandhi once said, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”  Come find yourself in Defiance College’s social work program where the knowledge, values, and skills of professional social work are cultivated in service opportunities both within and outside of the classroom, and in local, national, and global settings.

Social work is a helping profession, dedicated to improving the lives of individuals, families, and communities. Social workers are problem solvers, advocates, mediators, counselors, and brokers, using and mobilizing resources to meet the basic needs of all people. In hospitals, schools, jails, mental health centers, adoption and foster care agencies, homeless shelters, domestic violence shelters, substance abuse treatment centers, and elsewhere, social workers work in the service of others to make a difference in the world.

Students in the Defiance College social work program also benefit from an extracurricular organization, an honorary society, an annual urban trip, and on campus workshops presented by leaders in the field.

Social work faculty, serving students as teachers and mentors, have a high level of expertise in the field and are actively involved in social work practice.

Follow your calling at Defiance College.  Discover what can happen when you dare to care. 

The Program

Social workers are required to adhere to high standards of professional and ethical conduct in their work with clients. This work requires compassion, integrity, determination, and a high regard for social justice.

Accredited
The social work program at Defiance College is nationally accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. This is important for two reasons. First, to receive a license to practice the profession, the candidate must graduate from an accredited program. Second, some students may qualify for advanced standing in the graduate schools of Social Work.

Program Goals
1. To prepare students for immediate entry into employment through the development of the Council of Social Work Education defined competencies for Baccalaureate practice.

2. To prepare the student for licensure as a baccalaureate social worker (LSW) in the State of Ohio.

3. To prepare the student for graduate school education in social work by giving them a solid foundation in the five component parts of generalist social work practice: social research, social welfare policy and delivery, human behavior and social environment, social work practice skills, and field practicum in addition to curriculum content in values, ethics, diversity, social and economic justice and populations-at-risk.

4. To promote life-long learning and professional growth for students and area social work practitioners.

Major Brochure | Courses | Sample Plan of Study

Field Experience

Students are formally admitted to the social work program after the sophomore year. During the fall semester of the junior year, students will be engaged in a hands-on field experience consisting of 10 hours per week in a social service agency with limited duties. A second field placement will be conducted during the Spring semester of the senior year which involves working 30 hours per week as a fully functioning professional. In addition, students have many opportunities to participate in social agencies as volunteers or while completing class assignments or projects.

Program Opportunities & Campus Involvement

Empty Bowls
The annual Empty Bowls event is sponsored by the Social Work Organization in order to raise funds to help feed the hungry, with all proceeds going to the local PATH Center. - View Photos

Night Without a Home
Defiance College social work students partner with local agencies to conduct Night Without a Home on the DC campus to draw attention to the problem of rural homelessness.

Social Work Urban Chicago Trip
Social work trip to Urban Chicago. - View Photos

After College -- What's Next?

Students may select to begin graduate studies or to become a working professional immediately after completing their degree. B.S. Social Work graduates are employed in many different work settings under public or private auspices that may include nursing homes, hospitals, hospices, home health care, substance abuse programs, mental health services, developmental disabilities services, family service agencies, youth services, aging services, domestic violence programs, schools, and homeless shelters. Defiance College students choosing to continue their social work studies have been accepted at more than 25 graduate schools across the country including the University of Chicago, Case Western Reserve University, The Ohio State University, Boston University, Virginia Commonwealth University, and many others.

The Faculty

Jeffrey S. Weaner, MSW, Professor of Social Work and Sociology, Program Director
419-783-2559 | jweaner@defiance.edu | Faculty Profile

Alesia Yakos-Brown, LISW, Assistant Professor of Social Work, Field Coordinator
419-783-2425 | aybrown@defiance.edu | Faculty Profile