Financial Capability and Asset Building in Social Work Education

Historically, social workers regularly attended to financial problems and concerns of individuals, families, and communities as part of their normal social work duties, often working in partnership with home economists (Stuart, 2013, 2015; Zelizer, 1994). This work focused to a great degree on the economic well-being of immigrants and rural migrants. Education for social casework and community organizing included attention to financial and economic issues as a foundation for understanding and improving social conditions. Over time, however, social work’s focus in education and in practice shifted to clinical interventions in direct practice, with less attention to macrolevel concerns such as economic trends, despite the impact of financial insecurity on clinical outcomes and overall well-being (Specht & Courtney, 1995). Recently, social work has seen a resurgence in interest in improving financial stability and security among individuals, families, and communities. Partially in response to the latest U.S. economic recession and slow economic recovery, national attention is now focused on individual and family financial instability and economic inequality, with particular attention to the increasing racial wealth divide (Edin & Shaefer, 2015; Kochhar & Fry, 2014; Oliver & Shapiro, 1995; Saez & Zucman, 2014). Social work educators are participating in the national discussion about race and wealth inequality and encouraging economic justice efforts (Lein, Romich, & Sherraden, 2016). Educators are also developing curricula and training to prepare social workers to lead initiatives designed to improve the financial well-being of individuals, families, and communities we serve.

Social work educators are responding to this challenge (Birkenmaier et al., 2013; Jacobson, Sander, Svoboda, & Elkinson, 2011; Sherraden, Frey, & Birkenmaier, 2016). The term economic justice is now a part of the Council on Social Work Education’s (CSWE, 2015) Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS). This change was facilitated by the efforts of a consortium of more than 65 social work educators and researchers coordinated by the Financial Social Work Initiative (FSWI) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, School of Social Work. In 2013 the FSWI organized the consortium to develop a letter to send to the CSWE, encouraging it to consider expanding the definition of social justice, which was in the draft of the 2015 EPAS, to also include economic justice. This change marks an important turning point in recent social work education history because accredited social work programs now are required to include curricula on economic justice.

To continue the momentum started by individual schools in the FCAB arena, the CSWE in partnership with the Center for Social Development (CSD) at Washington University in St. Louis has assumed a leadership role in promoting FCAB education throughout social work by developing the Economic Well-Being in Social Work Education project. The project seeks to transform social work education by providing resources to social work programs to facilitate their efforts to integrate a holistic economic and financial perspective into curricula. This integration, in turn, will enable students across all fields of social work practice to acquire the knowledge and skills to respond to complex financial issues presented at the individual, group, organizational, community, and policy levels. The project’s purpose is to improve social work preparation and practice in economic well-being with the ultimate goal of improving the economic outcomes of social work clients. The project has the following elements: (a) the Curricular Guide for Generalist Practice in Economic Well-Being that provides ideas and suggestions for infusion of economic well-being into the curricula and into courses, including linking this content to the linking EPAS; (b) the online Clearinghouse for Economic Well-Being in Social Work Education on the CSWE website, which provides an expansive repository of materials educators can adopt to introduce economic well-being content into their teaching; and (c) a webinar for social work faculty that introduces the concept of economic well-being, provides the EPAS curricular guide and other resources, demonstrates effective teaching skills, and offers integration strategies for economics-informed content. This webinar is scheduled to take place in February 2017. The project is also invested in a long-term action plan to achieve collaboration and secure ongoing commitment to economic well-being curricular integration.

In addition to the CSWE, the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare (2016), whose mission is to tackle the country’s “toughest social problems,” (www.aaswsw.org/grand-challenges-initiative) has adopted “financial capability and asset building for all” (Sherraden et al., 2016) and “reversing extreme inequality” (Lein et al., 2016) as 2 of 12 initial grand challenges for social work over the next decade (p. xx, 2016; Lein, Romich & Sherraden, 2016; Sherraden et al., 2015). Moving these issues to the forefront of social work has to be met with the development of curricula at all levels of education—BSW, MSW, PhD, and continuing education—to prepare social workers to respond effectively to the many and complex financial challenges of U.S. households.

Schools and departments of social work across the nation, including those with faculty members who were contributing authors to this special section, are paving the way to create and empirically test the effectiveness of FCAB curricula on practitioner skills and client outcomes. In 2012 two schools initiated projects that led to a productive partnership, sponsorship of two national convening events, and the articles published in this special issue. The CSD at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis initiated the FCAB curriculum project, whose staff created and tested the FCAB curriculum in social work programs in U.S. minority-serving institutions over 4 years. In 2008 the University of Maryland, Baltimore, School of Social Work created the FSWI to serve as a platform for the university to prepare social workers to advance the economic stability and financial wellness of individuals, families, and communities, with particular attention to vulnerable populations, and to conduct FCAB research in social work programs and settings.

The first national FCAB convening event, Financial Capability and Asset Building: Advancing Education, Research, and Practice in Social Work, was organized by the CSD and cosponsored by the FSWI. Held in St. Louis in April 2015 and attended by more than 60 scholars, the 2-day event brought together social work and consumer and family financial experts to share FCAB research and best practices for teaching. Four of the five articles in this special issue are outcomes of that event (Loke, Birkenmaier & Hageman; Frey et al.; Horwitz & Briar-Lawson; Sherraden, Birkenmaier, McClendon, & Rochelle).

In January 2016, the second event, FCAB: Moving Forward, organized by the FSWI and cosponsored by the CSD, coincided with the Society for Social Work Research’s 20th Annual Conference Anniversary Celebration, whose theme that year was “Grand Challenges for Social Work: Setting a Research Agenda for the Future.” The event featured officials from three federal agencies—the Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Defense, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau—who, along with academics, spoke about policy, research, and funding in FCAB-related areas to an audience of more than 60 from across academia, nonprofit and social service agencies, and the private sector.

As highlighted in the meetings, convenings, and publications previously noted, the FCAB in social work spans micro and macro practice; therefore, educators must attend to the wide array of topics relevant to FCAB practice, research, and policy. For example, these areas include, but are not limited to, social work with older adults facing financial issues and vulnerabilities; youth aging out of the foster care system; individuals and families dealing with financial realities and stressors related to mental health, behavioral health, and physical health issues; communities facing housing instability, homelessness, stagnant wages, and poverty; and practice that advocates for just economic policy for low- and moderate-income working families at the community, state, and federal levels. The five articles included in this special issue provide a foundation for understanding the current state of FCAB education and provide ideas for advancing the field.

The special topics section, “FCAB in Social Work Education,” begins with an environmental scan of social work programs to assess current educational activities and future readiness to prepare social workers to work in various settings to support economic self-sufficiency. Based on a survey of social work programs and focus groups, Gates, Koza, and Akabas (this issue) found that almost half of the program administrators who responded to the survey do not yet have educational programs in place to teach FCAB knowledge and skills. However, most of the programs’ administrators are interested in developing and offering instruction in this area but have barriers to overcome to be successful, including resources and faculty and student engagement.

Perhaps as important as a program’s readiness to prepare social workers in FCAB work is the second article’s focus on students’ perceptions in which students responded to questions regarding their interest in and sense of self-efficacy in addressing clients’ economic issues. Using a nonprobability sample with students from 16 schools of social work (BSW and MSW mixed), Loke, Birkenmaier, and Hageman (this issue) found that overall, students felt they needed more instruction regarding FCAB knowledge and skills in their social work programs and were interested in receiving such instruction should it be developed and offered in the future. This finding parallels findings from Sherraden, Laux, and Kaufman (2007) and Gates et al. (this issue), which indicate that program administrators, in addition to individual students, appear to be eager to learn more about FCAB content in social work education.

As a starting place for preparing the field, perhaps training social workers and other human service professionals already in the field is another area of education research that is sorely needed. Frey et al. (this issue) evaluated a full-day training course for social workers and human service professionals to assess knowledge, attitudes, and skills to effectively assess and respond to clients’ financial problems. Using a pre-, post-, and follow-up one-group study, researchers found that formal training, coupled with ongoing support through booster sessions and peer support, can positively affect social workers’ and other human service professionals’ self-efficacy to use FCAB practice skills learned in training. Results suggest that the training benefits participants’ practice and that they are able to augment their social work skills with financial skills. Participants reported using FCAB skills with a focus on social work ethics and values, such as supporting a client’s right to self-determination in making choices regarding financial issues, in addition to working with clients from a strengths perspective to assess beliefs and values about finances and to support clients in feeling empowered to make their own decisions.

As the field develops curricula and infuses FCAB content into social work education, measures of outcomes and effectiveness are needed. In a pilot study of a multiuniversity collaboration, Horwitz and Briar-Lawson (this issue) describe the development of and initial outcomes from a curriculum on economic capability practice. In seven schools of social work in New York City, the researchers examined outcomes from an online FCAB curriculum, Advancing Economic Literacy in Human Services. The curriculum is based on social work ethics and values with a strong emphasis on teaching social workers to educate and empower clients regarding FCAB opportunities and decisions. Data from student and field supervisor and social work practitioner focus groups, workshops, and surveys distributed at presentations found that although the majority of students and social work field instructors and practitioners reported lacking knowledge about FCAB concepts and programs, field instructors and practitioners were more comfortable asking assessment questions related to personal financial information. Social work administrators reported even greater levels of knowledge about FCAB macro issues such as budgeting and policies. Results from this pilot study suggest that students and practitioners are interested in improving their knowledge and skills to work with clients on issues related to their personal finances and macro FCAB issues and that the content would be relevant to clients in diverse social work populations (e.g., youths aging out of foster care, people who are homeless or experiencing issues with housing instability, and clients supported by social workers at a domestic violence shelter or program).

“FCAB in Social Work Education” concludes with a study of a comprehensive 32-module FCAB curriculum for social workers developed and tested in 11 minority-serving baccalaureate social work programs from 2013 to 2015. In-depth interviews with 24 social work faculty and administrators found that the curriculum helped instructors infuse content and gain confidence in teaching financial content in their regular social work courses. Pre- and posttest surveys with 261 students who took courses with FCAB content showed improved attitudes toward and confidence in helping clients with their household finances. At the same time, faculty, administrators, and students pointed to profound financial difficulties facing families and communities that challenge educators, practitioners, and researchers. The FCAB curriculum created and tested for this initiative provided the groundwork for a future article for social work and human service practitioners (Sherraden, Birkenmaier, & Collins, forthcoming).

This special section, “FCAB in Social Work Education,” offers readers insight into the current state of FCAB education in BSW, MSW, and social work continuing education programs. The articles in this section represent only some of the many efforts under way to educate social workers to address financial well-being in vulnerable households and communities. We look forward to reading about their work in future issues of this journal.

Funding

The 2015 and 2016 FCAB convening events were made possible by support from Wells Fargo Advisors, the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the Center for Social Development at Washington University in St. Louis, the Woodside Foundation, and the Financial Social Work Initiative at the University of Maryland, Baltimore.

Additional information

Funding

The 2015 and 2016 FCAB convening events were made possible by support from Wells Fargo Advisors, the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the Center for Social Development at Washington University in St. Louis, the Woodside Foundation, and the Financial Social Work Initiative at the University of Maryland, Baltimore.

Notes on contributors

Jodi Jacobson Frey

Jodi Jacobson Frey is Associate Professor and Christine Callahan is a Research Assistant at the University of Maryland. Margaret Sherraden is a Research Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Julie Birkenmaier is a Professor at Saint Louis University of Social Work.

Margaret Sherraden

Jodi Jacobson Frey is Associate Professor and Christine Callahan is a Research Assistant at the University of Maryland. Margaret Sherraden is a Research Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Julie Birkenmaier is a Professor at Saint Louis University of Social Work.

Julie Birkenmaier

Jodi Jacobson Frey is Associate Professor and Christine Callahan is a Research Assistant at the University of Maryland. Margaret Sherraden is a Research Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Julie Birkenmaier is a Professor at Saint Louis University of Social Work.

Christine Callahan

Jodi Jacobson Frey is Associate Professor and Christine Callahan is a Research Assistant at the University of Maryland. Margaret Sherraden is a Research Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Julie Birkenmaier is a Professor at Saint Louis University of Social Work.