The fight for fair and affordable housing has new momentum in one of the nation’s most segregated metropolitan areas.
Developments in the Fight for Fair, Affordable Housing in the St. Louis Region
Author: Jill
CSD Event: Film Explores the Fleecing of Voters’ Rights
More than 100 guests turned out Wednesday afternoon for a screening of the documentary “Rigged: The Voter Suppression Playbook.” “Voter suppression is wrong, and it’s real,” Mac Heller, the documentary’s executive producer, said before the show. The event at the Brown School was a joint effort between the Voter Access and Engagement (VAE) initiative and […]
Doctoral Candidate Receives Grants to Study Racism-Based Trauma
Robert Motley Jr., manager of the Center for Social Development’s Race and Opportunity Lab, has received a two-year $60,936 grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and a $5,000 grant from the Fahs-Beck Fund for Research and Experimentation.
Housing expert Metzger discusses fallacies of neighborhood segregation
Assistant Professsor Molly Metzger, faculty director of Thriving Communities at the Center for Social Development, discusses three myths about the causes of segregation during the keynote speech at the 2019 Fair Housing Conference.
Scholars gather for ‘Race at the Forefront,’ CRISMA’s inaugural conference
More than 225 people from various parts of the country gathered at the Brown School for the Collaboration on Race, Inequality, and Social Mobility in America’s inaugural conference March 28-29. The event, entitled “Race at the Forefront: Sharpening a Focus on Race in Applied Research,” brought together scholars who are working toward the elimination of […]
Azerbaijan ministry recognizes student for development of social work
Brown School doctoral student Aytakin Huseynli has received a national award in recognition of her contribution to the development of social work in Azerbaijan, her home country. The Ministry of Women, Family and Children Affairs in Azerbaijan gave her the award on March 7. Or, rather, the ministry presented it to her mother in Aytakin’s […]
Special issue highlights Child Development Accounts globally
Child Development Accounts take center stage in a newly released special issue of the Asia Pacific Journal of Social Work and Development. The sweeping, seven-article issue shows the global context of the emerging asset-building policy. “Many countries are exploring new policy innovations that encourage asset building,” said Michael Sherraden, who co-edited the issue and co-authored […]
Sherraden to speak in D.C. about potential for U.S. kids to build assets
Michael Sherraden will discuss potential federal policy for inclusive and progressive Child Development Accounts (CDAs), so that all U.S. children can accumulate assets, on March 20 at the National Press Club, in Washington, D.C. Several states have already enacted statewide CDA policies, and a nationwide policy is possible. Sherraden is the George Warren Brown Distinguished […]
CSD begins third phase of research on Child Development Accounts
With financial support from philanthropists, the Center for Social Development is conducting a third wave of research on Child Development Accounts (CDAs) in the Oklahoma 529 College Savings Plan. Wave 3 of the SEED for Oklahoma Kids (SEED OK) experiment expands the original CDA with an automatic, progressive deposit and extends the research to examine […]
‘People and Climate Change’ opens for orders
The new book “People and Climate Change: Vulnerability, Adaptation, and Social Justice” now may be ordered in advance of its April 1 release. Edited by Lisa Reyes Mason and Jonathan Rigg, the 256-page book explores how climate change threatens the well-being, livelihood and survival of people in communities worldwide.
CSD takes home the Silver for green operations
The Center for Social Development has received the Silver certification as a “Green Office” for the second year in a row.
As Election Day approaches, CSD hosts Election Protection training
About 50 people participated in Election Protection training on October 23 at the Brown School. Denise Lieberman, senior attorney and co-program director for the Voter Protection Program at the Advancement Project, led the nonpartisan training to prepare volunteers for the November 6 election. She also updated them on a new change in Missouri election law. […]
Prime minister speaks at launch of book on asset building policies
Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke at the August 24 launch of the book “Critical Issues in Asset Building in Singapore’s Development.” Professors S. Vasoo and Bilveer Singh at the National University of Singapore (NUS) edited the book. The lead chapter is by Michael Sherraden, director of the Center for Social Development at Washington University in St. Louis.
Leader speaks about family policies in former Soviet republic
The head of the Republic of Azerbaijan’s Office of the State Committee on Family, Women and Children Affairs was the Center for Social Development’s guest recently.
Forum focuses on expanding access to 529 college savings plans
More than 65 invited guests from 18 states and the District of Columbia attended a lively Child Development Account Forum in late July at the Brown School of Social Work. CSD and Missouri State Treasurer Eric Schmitt, who oversees Missouri’s 529 college savings plan, hosted the event.
Global report focuses on volunteerism and community resilience
Volunteers tie communities together because they are active in every major shock and stress communities experience, from earthquakes and flooding to climate change and local conflicts, finds the new 2018 State of the World’s Volunteerism Report.
Pennsylvania adopts universal Child Development Account policy
With bipartisan support, Pennsylvania is launching a statewide policy to provide college savings accounts for all newborns with a $100 scholarship grant. The universal, automatic-enrollment Child Development Account policy will affect many families: Pennsylvania averages 140,000 births a year.
Taiwan adopts a Child Development Account policy
A national Child Development Account policy is emerging in Taiwan. President Tsai Ing-wen in June signed into law the Act on Savings Accounts for the Education and Development of Children and Teenagers.
Free event to explore the power of the black vote
Please join us for the event Black Wealth, Black Health: The Power of the Black Vote, from 2-4 p.m. June 30 at Schlafly Library, 225 N. Euclid Ave.
New: A guide to tax-time financial capability efforts
“A Toolkit for Expanding Financial Capability at Tax Time” is now available and free to download. The 70-page book presents the current evidence underpinning various tax-time efforts to expand financial capability among low- and moderate-income households.
Tax Time Savings Initiative Partner Convening
June 7, 2018, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Clark-Fox Forum, Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis
Prison reform ‘unites people from across the political spectrum’
The White House hosted a high-profile summit meeting on federal prison reform on May 18, and Carrie Pettus-Davis, who helped to organize it, sat among cabinet members. The summit “was a message to the world that the United States is ready to change how it does incarceration,” she says.
New textbook focuses on financially vulnerable families
The first textbook to focus on financially vulnerable households is now available from Oxford University Press. “Financial Capability and Asset Building in Vulnerable Households: Theory and Practice” teaches about financial capability and asset building through the stories of four families whose lives unfold over 23 chapters.
Webinars showcase Grand Challenges leadership
Our faculty and staff are committed to advancing racial equity, and one of the most important vehicles is the national Grand Challenges for Social Work. We’ve created four webinars to highlight this initiative.
On the agenda: How to advance Child Development Accounts
About 50 researchers, practitioners, policymakers and funders met this month in Washington, D.C., to discuss how to advance the field of Child Development Account programs by making them sustainable and scaleable to reach millions.
Forum focuses on financial capability for vulnerable families
To celebrate Financial Capability Month, the Center for Social Development and the Center for Household Financial Stability at the St. Louis Federal Reserve convened a forum, “Coin a Better Future: Reaching Out to Financially Vulnerable Families.”
Castro-Gonzalves is Brown School commencement speaker
Brown School alumna Charita L. Castro-Gonzalves, MSW ’99, will return to St. Louis as the featured speaker for the Brown School Recognition and Hooding Ceremony on Thursday, May 17.
Center for Social Development initiative takes on barriers to voting
Voter Access and Engagement is a nonpartisan partnership that connects public, nonprofit and private-sector organizations in the St. Louis metropolitan area.
Ten essentials for taking Child Development Accounts to scale
A new CSD brief aims to advance Child Development Account policy by identifying 10 elements for universal and progressive CDAs at scale.
Register soon for March 21 annual Social Work Day on the Hill
The Congressional Research Institute for Social Work and Policy will hold the fourth annual Social Work Day on the Hill on March 21, in Washington, D.C.
HomeGrown STL rallying cry: ‘Build the village that raises the child’
More than 120 people working to improve the lives of black boys and young men in St. Louis participated in the second annual HomeGrown STL Summit on February 8.
Incentive reform key to racial equity in America’s cities
A new paper by Molly Metzger, assistant professor at the Brown School, and Nay’Chelle Harris, masters research fellow in housing policy, analyzes “Team TIF St. Louis.”
Ssewamala named William E. Gordon Distinguished Professor
On February 8, Fred Melch Ssewamala, PhD, a renowned social and economic development scholar, was installed as the William E. Gordon Distinguished Professor at the Brown School of Social Work.
Lough recognized with International Achievement award
Benjamin J. Lough, faculty director of International Service, received the Sheth Distinguished Faculty Award for International Achievement from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Illinois International Programs.
New FCAB book coming in February
A new book about financial capability and asset building will be released next month. The 144-page book — “Financial Capability and Asset Building with Diverse Populations: Improving Financial Well-being in Families and Communities” — is aimed at policymakers, researchers and practitioners who assist financially vulnerable people.
Michael Sherraden: We already have ‘baby bonds’
As economists float the proposal to give every newborn in the United States a “baby bond” account with between $500 to $50,000 in cash, Michael Sherraden, director of the Center for Social Development, says a solution already exists — Child Development Accounts.
Sherraden receives career award for social policy research
Michael Sherraden, PhD, received the Society for Social Work and Research’s 2018 Social Policy Researcher Award, which is “in recognition of Dr. Sherraden’s record of accomplishment that demonstrates distinguished achievement across an extended career of research in social policy.”
‘Asset-Building Policies and Innovations in Asia’ now in paperback
The book “Asset-Building Policies and Innovation in Asia” – a valuable resource for students and scholars of Asian social policy – is now available in paperback.
NYU social science theorist James Jaccard speaks at Brown School
James Jaccard, PhD, a well-known theorist in applied social science, spoke about theory, program design and evaluation in a lecture November 9 at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work.
‘Social Justice and the Environment’ event honors Barry Commoner
The event “Social Justice and the Environment” commemorated what would have been Barry Commoner’s 100th year on November 2, 2017.
‘Financial Diaries’ authors detail Americans’ shaky income streams
In a joint appearance, the authors of “The Financial Diaries: How American Families Cope in a World of Uncertainty” headlined an October 24 event co-sponsored by the Center for Social Development and the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Fair Housing and Inclusive Communities
Metzger, M. W., & Khare, A. T. (2017). Fair housing and inclusive communities (Grand Challenges for Social Work initiative Working Paper No. 24). Cleveland, OH: American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare.
Pettus-Davis and panelists launch Smart Decarceration book
About 65 people participated in the October 17 event to celebrate the new book “Smart Decarceration: Achieving Criminal Justice Transformation in the 21st Century,” led by co-editor Carrie Pettus-Davis, PhD.
HomeGrown STL nearing action ‘on the ground’ for black males
HomeGrown STL is close to putting its strategy for collective impact to work in St. Louis. The project, part of the Center for Social Development’s Race and Opportunity Lab, aims to support the social mobility of black boys and men between the ages of 12 and 29 in St. Louis City and County.
CSD colleague launches global research center at UNC
The Global Social Development Innovations research center will focus on developing community-driven initiatives that address economic security, workforce development, financial inclusion, social protection, health and education.
‘Toxic Inequality’ author Shapiro shares insights from 187 families
Shapiro and his team have spent 12 years following the lives of 187 families in St. Louis, Boston and Los Angeles.
Smart Decarceration Initiative to host national conference in Chicago
The Smart Decarceration Initiative will hold its second national conference, “Tools and Tactics: Promising Solutions to Advance the Era of Smart Decarceration,” November 2-4 at the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration.
Event explores employers’ options to improve workers’ financial wellness
JPMorgan Chase, Prudential and Staples were among the companies that sent representatives to a conference about financial wellness programs for employees, hosted by the Center for Social Development at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work.
‘Celebrating the Strengths of Black Girls’ finishes fifth session
Seventeen middle-school girls recently completed “Celebrating the Strengths of Black Girls,” a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math program for racial and ethnic minority girls in the St. Louis region.
Buder scholars join faculty at universities in Alaska, Illinois
The Center for Social Development congratulates Shanondora Billiot, PhD, and Jessica Black, PhD, on their new faculty positions at the University of Illinois School of Social Work and the University of Alaska Fairbanks, respectively.