Social Work Students Help Get Out the Vote

Last fall, the Department of Social Work offered a political social work course (SOCW 676), an elective focused on educating and mobilizing voters in underserved communities. Twelve Master of Social Work (MSW) students took the course taught by Professor Sunny Harris Rome. Students developed projects to engage voters in area nursing homes, African American churches, Asian American neighborhoods, and local Latinx gathering places.

Together, they educated more than 12,000 potential voters online, registered more than 150 voters, canvassed 700 households, and assisted more than 1,000 voters on Election Day. “This course was so important to offer to our students to bring the idea of social justice to life. Now they see the real impact they can have in making sure every eligible voter has a say in our democracy,” says Harris Rome.