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Suggestions for Leveraging Social Work Month
Social Work Month is an excellent opportunity to showcase social workers to
key audiences – consumers, media and even other social workers. These
efforts bring attention to your chapter or organization, while focusing on
the extraordinary efforts of social workers. From small gatherings to
large events, the media likes to hear about these opportunities. Look
for information in the Social Work Month section of the NASW Web site and on
the National Social Work Public Education Campaign site. [link to campaign
page]
Here are some suggestions of ways to leverage Social Work Month:
- Town Hall Meeting – Hold a Town Hall Meeting to
engage lawmakers, state, city or county officials in a dialogue about the
efforts to address the issue of aging in your area. Discuss social
work’s vital role in working with older people to connect them to the
resources they need.
- Press Conference – Conduct a Press Conference at
which the mayor and/or governor issues a proclamation designating March as
National Professional Social Work Month. Highlight local social workers
in your area who are making a difference, as well as initiatives taken on
by your organization or chapter this year to promote social work and the
issue of aging.
- Speaking Opportunities – Arrange for speaking opportunities
for the executive director or president of your organization or chapter to
highlight the important role of social work in the aging community.
- Panel Discussion – Hold a conference or panel discussion
about aging and the role of social work with the aging population.
- Editorial Board – Set up a meeting with your local
paper editorial board to discuss their coverage of the topic of aging. You
can provide the social work slant to the conversation to ensure that they
know all the efforts that social workers are making.
- Information Dissemination – At every meeting, panel,
or conference you hold, make sure that you have information available about
Social Work Month and the National Public Education Campaign for those in
attendance.
- E-newsletter – Create an e-newsletter that captures
all that your chapter or organization is doing surrounding social work. Rotate
different areas of practice each time you send it out so that it appeals
to a wide range of audiences. Start with the aging practice area in
March to highlight the theme of Social Work Month 2006.
- CE Workshop – Offer a workshop for CE credits on
the topic of aging to social workers in your area.
- Exhibit – Set up an exhibition booth at a local
hospital, school or community center to disseminate information about social
work.
- Banners – Display banners in highly visible areas
promoting March as National Professional Social Work Month.
- Web site – Makes sure that your chapter or organizations
Web site has the most up-to-date information about the celebration of Social
Work Month 2006 and specific information on the topic of aging.
- Consumer Site – Link from your Web site to the Social
Work Consumer Site – www.HelpStartsHere.org.
- Advertise – Advertise in local newspapers and magazines
using the National Social Work Public Education Campaign materials [link
to campaign page]. From small and large ads to billboards
and banners for Web sites, NASW has advertising that will fit your need. Additionally,
NASW has an engaging advertisement that focuses on the issue of aging. Please
follow this link to see this ad. [link to St. Barnabas ad] Contact media@naswdc.org for
more information on running this or any other ad.
- Hold a celebration – To honor social workers in your organization,
celebrate their month with a party – anything from snacks to a reception. Encourage
other organizations in your area to honor their social workers. Perhaps
there can be a joint party among several organizations where social workers
work.
These are just a selection of suggestions that chapters and organizations
can use to promote the profession during Social Work Month 2006 and throughout
the year.
For more information about Social Work Month 2006, please contact NASW Communications
at media@naswdc.org.
To learn more about social work, visit 
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