The 29th annual conference of the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR) featured the work of 41 affiliates of the Center for Social Development (CSD) across 72 events. Faculty, staff, and associated researchers contributed to 11 symposia, three roundtables, 16 oral presentations, five flash talks, and 30 poster presentations. They convened five Special Interest […]
Social work students in mainland China have a new tool for learning how to help families navigate financial challenges and build financial security. A landmark textbook from the Financial Capability and Asset Building initiative at the Center for Social Development has been translated into Chinese.
A special issue of the Journal of Family and Economic Issues charts an agenda for new practice and research on financial capability, assets, and family financial well-being.
In Singapore, an innovative project is training frontline staff and volunteers to give financial guidance to low-income families.
How can vulnerable families overcome barriers to financial security, and what has made it difficult for them to do so? New research in a special issue of Families in Society seeks answers to those questions. Guest edited by Jin Huang, Margaret Sherraden, Jenny L. Jones, and Christine Callahan, the collection developed from papers presented during […]
How does a nation train over a million social workers to help build the financial capability and assets of their clients? What should social workers in China know about finance, and what is the best way to teach them? Weighing these matters, researchers and several of China’s top social workers proposed changes at the First […]
On August 26, 2021, the China Journal of Social Work announced the 2020 Best Article Award, honoring a study by an international team of scholars that includes Center for Social Development (CSD) affiliates Michael Sherraden, Li Zou, Suo Deng, Jin Huang, Margaret Sherraden, and Nancy Morrow-Howell, as well as Shanti Khinduka, former dean of the […]
From across a nation struggling through the COVID-19 pandemic and a generally difficult year, over 150 scholars and practitioners gathered virtually on September 21 for “FCAB Policies: Race and Inequality in the COVID-19 Era,” Part 1 of the two-part convening “Financial Capability and Asset Building: Achievements, Challenges, and Next Steps.” They gathered to set an […]
Sherraden was among 19 fellows inducted into the academy on Jan. 17, 2020.
Singapore initiated training in Financial Capability and Asset Building in 2017. It is kicking off its third phase: expanding to a nationwide scale.
Experts from the Center for Social Development traveled to Asia in mid-April to advise Taiwanese leaders about social policy and social work education.
Clark Atlanta University has launched an internship program for MSW students built on the Center for Social Development’s pioneering work in Financial Capability and Asset Building.
Millions of families in the United States are financially unstable, and they have few places to turn for guidance and support. Margaret Sherraden hopes to change that by marshalling a largely overlooked resource: The professionals at thousands of community-based organizations who deliver services to low-income people.
The Center for Social Development at Washington University’s Brown School is once again engaged in partnership for development of social work in mainland China. The focus is on financial capability.
Michael Sherraden delivered the keynote address at the Grand Challenges for Social Work event “Economic Equality and Financial Capability” in October at the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Social Work.
The article is the first in Chinese to describe U.S. social workers’ growing view about the importance of policy changes and institutional arrangements for financial inclusion and capability, and to emphasize the unique role of social workers in achieving this goal.
Michael Sherraden will deliver the keynote address at the Grand Challenges for Social Work event Economic Equality and Financial Capability on October 25 at the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Social Work.
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.
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.”
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.
More than 100 people from various parts of the country attended the Influencing Social Policy Policy Conference 2.0, Successes and Solutions: Policies that Work, in June at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work.
Influencing Social Policy’s Policy Conference 2.0 is in full swing at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work from June 1-3.
The webinar, on April 25, was hosted by the Center for Social Development and the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in collaboration with the Council on Social Work Education.
Financial Capability and Asset Building for All is one of the 12 Grand Challenges for Social Work and a growing practice in the social work profession. The Center for Social Development is committed to working with its partners to increase the financial capability of individuals, families, and communities across the globe!
Springing from work at the Center for Social Development, a Financial Capability and Asset Building initiative is underway in Singapore. Soon social workers there will develop knowledge and skills for working with low-income families on their household finances.
Recent proposals to change the scope of federal consumer protections bring to the fore a broader discussion about financial inclusion. Now three leading journals are heightening awareness of a national effort to reintroduce to social work a curriculum focused on building financial capability for all Americans.
The Journal of Social Work Education has posted its January issue with a special section on Financial Capability and Asset Building. The papers originated as part of the Center for Social Development’s 2015 FCAB conference Financial Capability and Asset Building: Advancing Education, Research, and Practice in Social Work.
A program specialist from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and a senior consultant from ICF helped to lead a recent professional development workshop at the Brown School, “Behind on Bills: Tools to Help Your Clients Secure Greater Financial Well-Being.”
“Financial capability and asset building” is the theme of the 60th anniversary issue of Social Work. Articles by several researchers at the Center for Social Development were published in the October 2016 issue of the flagship journal of the National Association of Social Workers.
The Center for Social Development hosted a seminar this month for social workers and others from South Korea, part of a larger training program focused on developing financial capability for Korean youth.
We are pleased to share news from and highlight ongoing collaborations with our global partners the Centre for Social Development Asia, at the National University of Singapore, and the Centre for Social Development in Africa, at the University of Johannesburg.
An ambitious call to action on pressing social problems in America was issued January 14 at the Society for Social Work and Research annual conference in Washington, D.C.
Nearly 50 scholars, educators, researchers and macro social work practitioners met in January in Washington, D.C., for the convening on Financial Capability & Asset Building: Moving Forward.
“What It’s Worth: Strengthening the Financial Future of Families, Communities and the Nation” includes 40 essays by the nation’s leading experts on economics, financial services, public policy and philanthropy from across a broad range of sectors.
In 2010, researchers in the vast YouthSave Initiative started investigating whether low-income youth can build savings in the developing countries of Colombia, Ghana, Kenya and Nepal. Now their findings are summarized in a newly released report.
People in the field of social work are crucial to broadening how to think about the poor and their financial decision making, Camille Busette, PhD, said in the keynote speech at the 2015 Convening on Financial Capability & Asset Building: Advancing Education, Research, and Practice in Social Work.
The Great Recession exposed the financial fragility of millions of American families. Now researchers and policymakers are striving to improve the next generation’s grasp of personal finance and its access to safe financial products.
The Financial Capability & Asset Building initiative was highlighted Tuesday during a celebration showcasing four Washington University in St. Louis initiatives funded by a $5.3 million gift from Wells Fargo Advisors.
The Singapore launch of the Next Age Institute is on Monday, February 23, at the National University of Singapore. The event will feature Singapore’s Senior Minister of State Amy Khor as the guest of honor.
Many of the 40 million older adults in the United States are struggling financially. They lack the assets to see them through their later years, when they require more health care and other services than they expected.
One of the world’s leading social entrepreneurs believes a college education has a “multiplier” effect. Students learn material through coursework, and then go out into the world and apply that knowledge, in turn helping and teaching others.
The Great Recession and its aftermath — slow recovery, unemployment, underemployment and economic malaise — have produced an era unseen since the Great Depression. In an effort to study causes and find solutions, Washington University in St. Louis faculty from across disciplines are examining economic insecurity through the university’s Livable Lives Initiative.
Low-income youth in developing countries will save their money in a formal account when given the right opportunity.
A special issue of the “Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement” features a collection of studies breaking new ground in international service.
Financial capability is central to the success of individuals, families and communities, yet social workers and other human service professionals are often ill-equipped when addressing such issues with financially vulnerable clients.
Financial issues impacting families are receiving renewed attention and interest by scholars, practitioners and students. Unfortunately, social workers and other human service workers often lack preparation, knowledge and skills to tackle increasingly complex financial problems facing their clients.
When every dollar is spent on necessities like diapers, gasoline and utilities, saving for college may be the furthest thing from a new parent’s mind. Mothers participating in a research study, however, suggest that a college savings account with $1,000 makes them feel optimistic about their children’s postsecondary education.
The Center for Social Development was a key sponsor of the Africa Conference on Volunteer Action for Peace and Development that was hosted at the United Nations Complex in Nairobi, Kenya on July 2-4, 2012.
Available evidence suggests that youth savings has the potential to improve the well-being of low-income and vulnerable youth, but globally, the number of youth savings programs is relatively small.
Striving to Save: Creating Policies for Financial Security of Low-Income Families was published in February, 2010 to acclaim from economist Stuart Rutherford, Assistant Secretary at the US Department of Treasury Michael Barr, and Director of Brandeis’s Institute on Assets Thomas Shapiro.