Someone once said that social workers are like the Swiss-Army knives of the human services profession, and it couldn’t be truer. With their hands in nearly all pressing social issues facing New York City, they’re a key part of frontline teams delivering vital services focused on housing, food access, healthcare, safety, drug rehabilitation and prevention, and more. They’re also ardent voices in policy making and legislation, shaping the future of services and resources offered to the most vulnerable people. It all starts with a BSW or MSW degree. Or both.
Social Workers with Montefiore’s Health System Address Patient issues that Traditional Medicine Can’t Fix
Montefiore’s new program, called the Community Health Worker Institute, seeks to address one of today’s most pressing social problems — access to healthcare services even for those who can’t afford it. Launched in 2021, to date, the program has helped more than 7,000 patients.
You’ll also find community health workers here to bridge the gap between medicine and social services. Just ask Marilyn Perez, a Bronx resident whose mold-ridden apartment triggered a COPD episode. Struggling to navigate the complexities of the public housing system, Perez turned to one of Montefiore’s community health workers, who was able to connect her with the appropriate people to make a change.
Montefiore’s program is among a number of growing initiatives designed to help at-risk and vulnerable populations in the Bronx access the resources and services designed to improve their health and well-being.
With opportunities on the rise, now is the time to begin thinking about earning the degree in social work that will either kickstart your career or take it to the next level.
Earning the Bronx-based BSW and MSW That Will Propel Your Career in Social Work
It’s an exciting time to become part of Montefiore’s Community Health Worker Institute and the other exciting programs in the Bronx and elsewhere across the NYC metro area.
Entry into this field begins with a degree.
The Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) is the widely recognized entry-level degree in the field of social work, and you can land some pretty great jobs with it.
If you want to become a licensed social worker in New York State, you’ll need to first earn an MSW that’s accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) and then earn licensure through the New York State Education Department.
The credentialing of clinical social workers in New York is a two-step process that first includes earning licensure as a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) and then completing three-years of supervised experience in diagnosis and psychotherapy to be licensed and registered to practice as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW).
Of course, you don’t have to go on to earn the LCSW, and in fact, many social workers in the Bronx and throughout New York choose to stick with the LMSW. The main difference is that the LCSW allows you to provide clinical counseling services including diagnoses and talk therapy used to treat certain common mental health and behavioral problems.
In either case, you can earn an MSW by either (1) earning a bachelor’s degree in a human services field like community mental health, psychology, or sociology and then earning a traditional, two-year MSW, or (2) earning a Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) first, and then completing an advanced-standing MSW that takes just one year to complete.
Hip-Hop’s Legacy in Social Justice
‘‘Got to give us what we want/Gotta give us what we need/Our freedom of speech is freedom or death/We got to fight the powers that be!’’
– Public Enemy, ‘‘Fight the Power,’’ 1990.
Social and racial justice – it’s long been a recurring theme in hip-hop. For more than 50 years, it’s given artists a platform for railing against systemic injustice.
And the birthplace of this cultural expression? It’s the Bronx. It only makes sense; the Bronx was a tangle of post-war racial discrimination, segregation, and sheer animosity in the 1970s. It all culminated in what historians now refer to as the “Decade of Fire” — a time when landlords routinely set fire to run-down properties in hopes of claiming the insurance money. Those actions ultimately displaced an estimated quarter million black and Puerto Rican residents in the South Bronx.
In the decades since, hip-hop has circled the globe a thousand times, stirring the hearts and minds of billions of people over three generations and generating billions of dollars in the process.
But for many artists, hip-hop was and still is about free expression, providing those who otherwise would be voiceless with a strong and resonating platform to provide commentary on violence, corruption, injustice, and systemic racism.
There are two schools of social work in the Bronx offering CSWE-accredited programs:
Lehman College CUNY
School of Health Sciences Human Services and Nursing
Accreditation: MSCHE
Bronx, NY
MSW (on-campus)
Also Offers:
- BSW
CUNY’s Lehman College is home to a legendary social work school that includes both BSW and MSW degrees. The MSW program, designed to equip students with advanced clinical skills and leadership capabilities, features full-time, part-time, and advanced standing (for BSW holders) formats. Lehman’s commitment to experiential learning is reflected in its extensive fieldwork opportunities, which include placements in hospitals, schools, and community organizations throughout New York. Students benefit from small class sizes, personalized instruction, and a curriculum that emphasizes social justice, cultural competence, and evidence-based practice.
Mercy University
School of Social & Behavioral Sciences
Accreditation: MSCHE
Dobbs Ferry, NY (other location in Manhattan)
BSW (on-campus)
Though the main campus location for Mercy University is located in Dobbs Ferry, it also has a satellite campus right here in the Bronx.