The UW School of Social Work hosted its sixth annual scholarship breakfast on March 11 withSeattle Foundation President and CEO Tony Mestres as the event’s keynote speaker.
Brian Giddens (MSW ’84) served as emcee, providing an early morning welcome to the 220 attendees, who included School alumni, University leadership, local philanthropists, faculty, staff and past social work scholarship recipients.
The event raised a record $185,000 for current and endowed scholarship programs.
Mestres hit the right note when he vocalized the importance of supporting students who aspire to influence positive change in the community. “A choice to pursue a career in social work should not be a decision to live in debt,” said the former Microsoft executive, who now leads one of the regions most influential community foundations. The Seattle Foundation oversees the investment of more than $80 million in charitable grants each year.
Dean Eddie Uehara also underscored the importance or reducing student debt in her opening remarks. “Today, we need more and more social workers to commit to serving human needs, at the very moment when more and more can scarce afford to do so,” opined Uehara, citing the high debt-to-salary ratio that many social work graduates experience.
One of the highlights of the breakfast was an inspiring video that showcased three current social work students and scholarship recipients who are working towards making an impact, despite financial challenges.
Studies show that many social work professionals report a high level of job satisfaction, but that the field is one of the hardest hit by student debt. TheNational Association of Social Workers found that 69 percent of social work graduates surveyed incurred debt to finance their education, and 48 percent of those grads describe their debt load as unreasonable.
“The record level of scholarship support we received at this year’s breakfast will make it possible for our talented students to remain in the profession they love and to give for decades to come,” observed Dean Uehara.