As the birthplace of hip-hop, it’s not a stretch to say that The Bronx has had more global influence on youth culture than any other single place on the planet. That’s a lot to be proud of. But what’s most profound is why it moved so many people around the globe. It seems the music and culture strikes a note that resonates a common thread running through the human experience for many of us. And it continues to be felt today, more than half a century after the rooftop parties of the ‘70s where it all started. That might be partly because, in some ways, not that much has changed since then… Right now, nearly 30 percent of Bronx residents live below the poverty line, and housing insecurity is among the top concerns of the people who call this place home.
As of 2023, the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development reported that eight out of ten community districts in The Bronx were flagged on their Housing Risk Chart as presenting a high-threat to affordable housing. Hazardous building conditions, high numbers of evictions, and rent-poor households are just a few of the issues plaguing residents of The Bronx.
Thankfully, social workers throughout the borough are always hard at work, helping people of all backgrounds and advocating for funding and regulations to combat persistent issues like housing insecurity. Today’s social workers support the social good and help at-risk and underserved populations through counseling, advocacy, and activism.
Whether they’re helping unhoused residents find emergency housing… providing at-risk youth with a voice in the criminal justice system… connecting veterans with resources and services for coping with PTSD and other mental health issues… or helping school children navigate behavioral, learning, family, or social issues… social workers promote community strength and dignity throughout The Bronx.
Social Worker Jobs: What Does a Social Worker Do in The Bronx?
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
Focused on many pressing issues like social justice and racial discrimination, housing insecurity, drug addiction, sexual assault, mental illness, and child welfare, social worker jobs in The Bronx are as diverse as the borough itself. While jobs in social work in The Bronx are found in settings ranging from hospitals to health clinics to schools to community agencies to national and local nonprofits to state- and city-run departments, the goal of these professionals is always clear: to help individuals, families, and communities restore or reclaim their capacity for social functioning.
School Social Worker Jobs in The Bronx
The Bronx Borough Office of the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) serves 365 public schools that encompass six geographic districts, along with 94 charter schools. Social workers in the public school system here provide support services to staff, students, and their families that include referrals, counseling, assessment, and diagnostics.
They also work for community health clinics like Urban Health Plan. As part of the agency’s school health division, school social workers provide public school students with behavioral health screenings, crisis interventions, and individual psychotherapy.
Healthcare Social Worker Jobs in The Bronx
From hospitals to community health clinics to hospice agencies, healthcare social worker jobs are plentiful in The Bronx.
For example, hospice social workers for Metropolitan Jewish Home Care provide psychosocial support to hospice patients and their families in inpatient and home care/nursing home settings, as well as during the bereavement phase. These professionals serve as a liaison between hospice staff and inpatient and nursing home staff, and they develop plans of care based on patient and family needs.
Healthcare social workers also lend their talents to agencies like the Workmen’s Circle Rehabilitation & Nursing Center, a rehab center in The Bronx that provides long-term, short-term, and sub-acute (rehabilitation) care. In addition to counseling services, social worker jobs here are focused on making referrals to mental health providers, facilitating psychiatric hospitalizations, identifying residents who may benefit from palliative and hospice care, and coordinating discharge planning efforts that include making referrals to community service providers.
Child Welfare Social Worker Jobs in The Bronx
Child welfare social work jobs are focused on the well-being of children, often in the court system. For example, family defense practice social workers for The Bronx Defense, an indigent defense office in the South Bronx, work with parents who are fighting allegations of child and abuse and neglect in The Bronx County Family Court.
They also work for private nonprofits like Graham Windham, where they work to ensure family permanency planning. Here they work with families to address safety, behavioral, educational, psychological, and permanency needs. They monitor the safety and well-being of the children and document each family’s progress. They also participate in family court hearings, family team conferences, and other meetings to advocate permanency for children and families.
Mental Health Social Worker Jobs in The Bronx
Mental health social work jobs are an important part of the health system in The Bronx. For example, at the Bureau of Public Health Clinics, clinical social workers provide on-site consulting on mental health-related topics for clinical staff while also providing counseling, crisis counseling, and extended interventions to patients at assigned public health clinic sites.
They also work for agencies like Children’s Aid, which provides comprehensive family support services for the South Bronx community. Mental health social worker jobs here are focused on providing mental health services for children/adolescents and their families who are part of the Children’s Aid foster care program.
Substance Abuse Social Worker Jobs in The Bronx
The rise of the deadly drug fentanyl has created a drug abuse crisis of epic proportions in NYC in recent years. According to NYC Health, between 2020 and 2021, The Bronx experienced the highest number of drug overdose fatalities in NYC, rising 40 percent during this time period.
Substance abuse social work jobs are more important than ever, with these professionals providing life-saving counseling and referral services to those suffering from substance use disorder.
For example, social workers provide care for people within the shelter system of the Acacia Network, where they perform assessments, evaluations, interventions, referrals, and alcoholism/substance abuse counseling services for the transitional housing program. They also educate clients on options for substance use treatment, including outpatient, inpatient, detox, rehab, prevention, and harm reduction care.
They also serve as addiction counselors for hospitals like the St. Barnabas Hospital Health System and Montefiore Medical Center, and for nonprofits like the Doe Fund, which provides support services, housing, and career training to homeless and formerly incarcerated men.
Homeless Outreach Social Worker Jobs in The Bronx
Homeless outreach specialists remain a vital segment of the social work team here in The Bronx. Though The Bronx has nearly one million fewer residents than Queens, it has 41 percent more shelters – 129 compared to 75, according to the DHS. It comes as no surprise that homeless outreach social workers are always in demand here.
Social work jobs in homeless outreach are found at DHS and CAMBA shelters, of course, but they’re also working for nonprofits like the Neighborhood Association for Inter-Cultural Affairs, Inc., which has been providing housing intervention and assistance services to residents of The Bronx since 1974.
They’re also important members of initiatives like BronxWorks, whose Homeless Outreach Teams include a mobile unit that contacts homeless individuals on the streets to help put people in touch with opportunities that could end up turning their lives around through permanent or long-term transitional housing.
Military Veteran Social Worker Jobs in The Bronx
Social workers in The Bronx ensure that the significant military and veteran community here has access to all the resources and services they deserve. Social workers at the James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center and throughout the VA Bronx Healthcare System provide intake assessments and screenings, develop counseling services plans, and perform risk assessments and crisis interventions. They also help veterans connect with other community organizations offering services aimed at their health and well-being.