SPANISH SPEAKERS CRITICAL IN SUCCESS OF
AREA SOCIAL SERVICES
UH Graduate School of Social Works Puts Money Where the Students
Are
HOUSTON, Nov. 23, 2004—A survey of social service organizations
in Houston finds that many are discontinuing programs because of
a lack of Spanish-speaking social workers. Those programs that do
remain must then compete for personnel from a small pool of available
bilingual social workers.
A three-year project at the University of Houston Graduate School
of Social Work takes aim at the issue by raising scholarship money
to keep Spanish-speaking graduate students in school.
“We have a responsibility to respond to community needs,”
said Barbara Henley, clinical instructor at the UH Graduate School
of Social Work and co-chair of the Committee for Scholarships for
Spanish Speaking Social Work Students. “We are striving to
remedy this crisis by finding ways to attract and support bilingual
students through graduate school.”
The survey of social service organizations found that 37 percent
of 120 active field instructors for the Graduate School of Social
Work found programs cancelled because of a lack of Spanish-speaking
employees. Sixty-eight percent reported “some” or “much”
difficulty in hiring Spanish-speaking social workers. The Graduate
School of Social Work conducted the survey.
“This is indicative of the need in the community and the
importance of our efforts,” said Henley. “In addition,
agencies that responded indicate they are further challenged by
private practices that can offer higher salaries to social workers.”
The Scholarship Committee aims to raise full tuition funding for
15 bilingual graduate students during the next three years. Candidates
must first be admitted to the School and pass an oral Spanish-fluency
test. The project will be evaluated in three years to determine
its effectiveness. Recipients must commit to working in Houston
social service agencies for two years following graduation.
For more information about the UH Graduate School of Social Work,
visit www.sw.uh.edu/
About the University of Houston
The University of Houston, Texas’ premier metropolitan research
and teaching institution, is home to more than 40 research centers
and institutes and sponsors more than 300 partnerships with corporate,
civic and governmental entities. UH, the most diverse research university
in the country stands at the forefront of education, research and
service with more than 35,000 students.
For more information about UH visit the universitys Newsroom at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom.
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