Section A·Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Monday, May 10, 1999
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A few hours a week can make a large impact in your community. Call the Center for Community Outreach and sign up today: 864-4073
Theta Chi Fraternity
Congratulations to our New Initiates for 1998-99.
Chris Kennedy Jonathan Mallory Travis Devlin Brandon Petty Rob Hays David White
Eric Lee Matt Arunski Justin Marz Patrick Gavin Jake Smith
Kris Smalley Chris Mandernach Brett Fossnight Russ Pine Mike Whitcom Barry Whitley
If you are interested in joining a growing fraternity, and being a part of its success, contact Chris Rabimian at 864-1297. Or check us out at www.ukans.edu/~tbetacbi
The Gender of Social Welfare
At the University of Kansas, more than four of five master's candidates in the School of Social Welfare are female. That mirrors the ratio of women social workers to men social workers nationwide.
KU statistics reflect national percentages
Enrollment figures for full and part-time master of social work candidates in the School of Social Welfare for the 1998-1999 school year showed that 373 students, or 83.1 percent, were female and 76 students, or 16.9 percent, were male.
By Allan Davis Special to the Kansan
Women dominate social work
Figures for last year, 1997-1998. showed 414 women, or 84.1 percent of the students and 78 men, or 15.9 percent of the students.
Melanie Hepburn, assistant dean of the School of Social Welfare, said these figures were comparable to the applicant pool for the school.
Enrollment statistics for bachelor of social work candidates for the 1998-1999 school year showed that 110 students, or 89.4 percent, were female and 13 students, or 10.6 percent, were male.
Figures for last year, showed 109 women, or 90.8 percent of the students and 11 men, or 9.2 percent of the students.
Jon Hiratsuka of the National Association of Social Workers said that April 1999 national membership figures showed that 122,053 members, or 80.2 percent, were female and 30,160, or 19.8 percent.
were male.
"The work of day-to-day care for the vulnerable and demand for social justice is not an overall valued contribution in our society." he said. "And thus, salaries are marginal and difficult to support a family."
School of Social Welfare student Melinda Carden, Lenexa senior, saw a similar cause for the gender imbalance.
"I think that the female dominance has a lot to do with the low status and pay of the profession," she said. "Many social workers don't make enough to support a family.
Sky Westerlund of Topeka, Licensed Master of Social Work and executive director of the Kansas chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, said the chapter's membership was 80 percent female and 20 percent male. He also said that ratio was typical across the profession.
Westerlund offered one reason why there are so few male social workers.
Westerlund said the social work profession had a history of being perceived as a female profession, as it grew out of the settlement house movement led by Jane Addams in Chicago.
Addams, a social reformer and cowinner of the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize, was one of the co-founders of Hull House, one of the first neighborhood social welfare agencies in North America.
"It also has to do with the nurturing aspects," Carden said. "Women
Jim Kreider, an instructor in the School of Social Welfare, said salaries were a factor in the gender imbalance. He also said that part of the reason for the imbalance was that social workers' values tended to be more 'feminine.' The values he mentioned were identifying with the underserved, human dignity, mutuality and the importance of relationships.
"Men are highly welcome in the profession," Westerlund said, "And they add a great deal to the depth and effectiveness of the practice of social work."
are traditionally seen as nurturers more than men."
Carden said the gender imbalance might be worrisome for some clients because they deserved to work with a professional they felt comfortable with, and some may want men.
Westerlund said there had been male leaders in social work, including Wilbur Cohen, who helped craft the original social security legislation, and Edward T. Devine, who founded what is now the premier social work school in nation, Columbia University School of Social Work in New York City.
There is, however, a role for men in social work.
Kreider suggested that eventually the gender imbalance may change.
"If those who predict that 'emotional quotient' will become more important than 'intelligence quotient' in the next few decades, we may see more men entering social work," he said.
- Edited by Jodi Smith
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