The Graduate School of Social Work offers the only graduate social work education programs in Oregon accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. The School was established at Portland State University in 1961 by a resolution of the Oregon Legislature.

The Graduate School of Social Work is committed to the enhancement of the individual and society. Further values and beliefs include a dedication to social change and to the attainment of social justice for all peoples, the eradication of poverty, the empowerment of oppressed peoples, the right of all individuals and groups to determine their own destinies, and the opportunity to live in harmony and cooperation.

While the School maintains a special commitment to these values, it recognizes the need for joining with others in society who are working toward this same purpose. The School has an educational program involving five structural components:

• The Master of Social Work Program, which prepares professionals with advanced, analytic skills necessary for self-directed and accountable social work through concentrations in Direct Human Services, Community-Based Practice, or Social Service Program Management.
• The Distance Graduate Education Option, which utilizes a combination of onsite instruction, community-based field instruction, and courses delivered through the internet to extend access to the M.S.W. program to students living in distant sites in the state of Oregon.
• The Ph.D. in Social Work and Social Research Program, which provides advanced education to prepare professionals for teaching, research, and leadership roles in the human and social services.
• The Regional Research Institute for Human Services, which helps improve human services through applied social research. This research assesses social problems and service needs and develops and evaluates practice and policy innovations.
• The Center for the Improvement of Child and Family Services includes our Child Welfare Partnership, established in 1994, which brings together Portland State University and the Oregon Department of Human Services in education and training programs to improve the delivery of child welfare services to children and families in Oregon.

Consistent with the goals of Portland State University and the Oregon State System of Higher Education, the three major functions of the School are teaching, research, and community service. Teaching is directed toward preparing effective and creative social workers who are ethical and culturally competent.

Social workers learn to serve individuals and families directly, evaluate practice, develop and administer programs, organize neighborhoods and communities, analyze social policies, conduct research, and initiate necessary reforms of existing practice, programs, and policies.

Research and scholarship focus on understanding, preventing, and ameliorating social problems. Community service involves collaborative efforts with individuals and organizations to develop innovations in social welfare services and policies.