SPECIAL REPORT: Social Work in Times of Crisis

Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in New York City in March 2020, research teams at Columbia’s School of Social Work have confronted many new challenges, ranging from the need to operate remotely to the necessity of responding to social issues heightened by the pandemic. As we are all aware by now, these difficult times have fueled anti-Asian racism while also taking a disproportionate toll on the nation’s Black, Latinx, and Indigenous communities and exposing holes in the social safety net for those who were thrown out of work. Nor could social work researchers look on dispassionately when the murder of George Floyd precipitated a worldwide debate on racial injustice. As protests broke out across the land, it soon became clear that the nation was facing two pandemics: COVID-19 and anti-Black racism.

In this Special Report, leading faculty members and research scientists share some of the lessons they have learned during these tumultuous times, along with their ideas about new directions and priorities that may continue to shape their research agendas post-COVID.

CLICK HERE for the landing page to the Special Report. Alternatively, you can click out to the pages for particular articles by perusing the list below:

• The Power of Collective Action, by Dean Melissa Begg
• Lessons from Decades on the Frontlines of the HIV/AIDS Pandemic, by Nabila El-Bassel
• Enact Fundamental Change to Address Poverty, by Christopher Wimer
• Who Produces Science During Crisis?, by Courtney Cogburn
• The Impact of COVID-19 on Our Work with Vulnerable Youth | Workplace Center
• New Projects, New Tools, and a New Focus on COVID’s Most Vulnerable Populations | Columbia Population Research Center
• Reimagining the Future After a Crisis: Falling Short, Winning Big, Challenging Norms, and Enacting Change | Center on Poverty and Social Policy
• Calling for Columbia University to Reimagine Its Potential to Contribute to Society, Post-COVID | Cogburn Research Center
• Using Technology to Uncover Adolescents’ Patterns of Social Connectedness During COVID | SIG – Adolescent Responses to COVID-19 (ARC)
• COVID Poses New Challenges for the Field of Addiction Treatment, But Lowers Barriers for Treatment Options | SIG – HEALing Communities & CHOSEN
• SIG’s Global Research Projects Respond to COVID-driven Challenges | SIG – SMART Couples II, UNI, WINGS & UNICEF

NOTE: We plan to update this list as more contributions come in.