Social unrest leads to new directions A three-year evening master’s degree program was added, and the School moved into a new building.
In the early 1970s, student unrest rocked the university following the U.S. bombings in Cambodia. Activist social work students and faculty offered an alternative curriculum as well as courses in black studies. Faculty member Tony Ishisaka took a leadership role in multi-ethnic practice, and the School’s female professors led the nation in developing feminist social work practice.
J. Scott Briar
In 1971, J. Scott Briar was named dean. He moved the School in a new academic direction, recruiting new faculty to strengthen research and bringing the School into national prominence for research, writing, and teaching. In 1974, the bachelor’s program in social welfare was fully accredited.
The doctoral program was added in 1975, and the School’s research capacity continued to grow. Federal training grants supported curriculum innovations in social work administration, women’s mental health, ethnic minority mental health, child welfare, and aging. By the late 1970s, the School had 50 faculty members, some 300 master’s degree students, more than 175 undergraduates, and 24 doctoral students. By the early 1980s, the School’s national standing was firmly established. In the ensuing period of expansion, pioneering programs such as the Northwest Regional Child Welfare Training Center, which works with state social agencies to improve child welfare services, were established.
Nancy Hooyman
By 1984, the School had trained more than 3,000 social work students. Nancy Hooyman became dean in 1987—the first woman to hold that post at the School.
Between 1987 and 1992, the School’s grant funding increased by 250 percent. The School’s commitment to diversifying the faculty, student body, and curriculum—including hiring LGBT faculty—also grew. Groundbreaking work included HIV/AIDS-related research, and the School added a new computer lab to support research and teaching. In 1996, the School established the Intergroup Dialogue, Education and Action (IDEA) Center to engage students on issues of race and justice. A one-year master’s program was added in 1997, and in 1998 distance learning opportunities were expanded to the Olympic Peninsula and Tacoma, where a master’s program directed by Marcie Lazzari opened. School of Social Work building (1980) Black Student Union sit-in (1968)