The Mission of the Indiana University School of Social Work

Statement of Mission
The mission of the Indiana University School of Social Work is to educate students to be effective and knowledgeable professional social workers prepared for practice in the 21st century. Such practitioners are committed to the alleviation of poverty, oppression, and discrimination. The School is dedicated to the enhancement of the quality of life for all people, particularly the citizens of Indiana, and to the advancement of just social, political, and economic conditions through excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service. Within the context of a diverse, multicultural, urbanized, global, and technologically oriented society, the school prepares social workers who will shape solutions to a wide range of interpersonal and social problems by developing and using knowledge critically while upholding the traditions, values, and ethics of the social work profession.

Teaching
The teaching mission is to educate students to become professional social workers equipped for a lifetime of learning, scholarship, and service. Graduates embrace person-in-environment and strengths perspectives that are linked to the welfare of individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. They learn to keep abreast of advances in knowledge and technology, be self-reflective, and apply best practice and accountability models of intervention. The school prepares social work practitioners and scholars to be ready to assume leadership roles at the BSW, MSW, and Ph.D. levels.

Scholarship
The scholarship mission includes the discovery, integration, application, dissemination, and evaluation of client-centered and solution-focused knowledge for and with social work professionals and other consumers. Innovative forms of scholarship are encouraged in developing knowledge for use in practice, education, and service concerning social needs and social problems.

Service
The service mission is dedicated to the promotion of the general welfare of all segments of society. Service includes work in the School, University, profession, and community, and reflects the School's expertise in teaching, scholarship, and social work practice. Service in the interest of persons at greatest risk is consistent with the social work profession's attention to social justice.