NEW UA SOCIAL WORK RESEARCH DIRECTOR TARGETS POVERTY, POLICY

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - A new director at the University of Arkansas School of Social Work Research Center plans to bring researchers, caseworkers, policy makers and the public together to combat poverty in the state of Arkansas.

Fulbright College and the School of Social Work recently appointed Zettie D. Page III to direct the University’s new Social Work Research Center. Through research, education and collaboration, Page intends to make the UA center a hub of resources and empirical data upon which communities and public officials can make sound decisions to improve quality of life throughout the state.

"We're very pleased to have a scholar as accomplished as Dr. Page direct the Fulbright College Social Work Research Center," said Dean Randall Woods. "I feel confident that Dr. Page's experience and expertise in the field of social work will do much to benefit the quality of research at our University and the quality of life in our state."

Over the past 15 years, Page has proven himself a proficient scholar and practitioner in the field of social work, establishing a career that crosses the boundaries of the profession from academia to the health services industry and the U.S. armed forces.

Page’s education has been as varied as his career. He holds a B.S. in psychology, a masters in community health education, a masters of social work specializing in medical social work, a Ph.D. in social work, a doctorate of medicine and is currently completing a masters of business administration.

At the UA School of Social Work, Page joins researchers who have already taken the first steps toward building a comprehensive, statewide research initiative. Founded in April 2001 with a congressional appropriation and a grant of $921,000 from the Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education, the Social Work Research Center will rely on the work of nine full-time faculty members and the participation of numerous social work students.

In addition, the center will collaborate with other colleges and universities through a statewide consortium of researchers, whose efforts in poverty assessment and alleviation will be amplified through the sharing, comparing and dissemination of results. This Academic Partnership in Social Welfare includes the University of Arkansas campuses in Little Rock, Monticello and Pine Bluff as well as Arkansas Tech, Arkansas State, Southern Arkansas University, Harding University and Philander Smith College.

Such cooperative scholarship fits seamlessly into Page’s vision of a collaborative, responsive research center. The consortium also extends the reach of social work researchers to cover the entire state, from the delta plain to the Ozark Mountains. Researchers who live within a community and know it are better able to take the hands-on approach that Page advocates.

"It’s my personal philosophy that those of us who have knowledge have to be accountable. It’s not for us to point and direct but to roll up our sleeves and do," Page said. "That’s the directive of social work - you get in, get involved and help. That’s my motive in coming to Arkansas."

The collaboration won’t end with other universities, Page asserts. As the Social Work Research Center gains momentum, he intends to develop a social work presence in the state - at city council meetings and on child welfare boards, at housing conferences and community planning sessions. By getting involved with agencies and organizations throughout Arkansas, social workers can identify potential problems and propose solutions proactively - solutions that will have both statewide and national significance.

A crucial step in developing that presence will occur this summer, when the UA School of Social Work will convene a special summit in Little Rock - gathering legislators, social workers, policy makers and scholars to share information about specific needs in areas and agencies across the state. Page hopes the event will set a precedent of cooperation between researchers, practitioners and policy makers. It also will generate information and ideas that the Social Work Research Center can use to design a relevant research agenda.

In the meantime, the center has initiated one project already - a project the researchers considered so important, they began building the infrastructure for it even before Page arrived. They call it the Poverty Reduction Technical Transfer Computer Center, more commonly known as the Poverty Portal.

Housed at the University’s West Avenue Annex, this computer center will drive a virtual network of social work knowledge and activity, linking scholars at the U of A and across the nation, as well as caseworkers and the public to information about current research and on-line databases related to poverty. The portal will serve as an educational tool for students, as a resource for researchers and practitioners and as a source of information for the public.

"We want social workers statewide to be involved in this - entering research results, accruing information about families and wellness in our communities," Page said. "Once the public has access to that information, we can start to see what’s really going on and begin making decisions to benefit people."

In addition to collaborating with policy makers and the public and developing a greater social work presence in the state, Page intends the Social Work Research Center to serve an educational function. As the School of Social Work prepares students to enter the field as scholars and practitioners, the research center will present them with real-world experience.

Through internships and research projects, students will have opportunities to connect with communities while gathering information or working within agencies. Such opportunities benefit both sides - generating data for the research center while furnishing support and personnel for social work projects across Arkansas. This exchange also fits into Page’s agenda. In his opinion, social work research becomes most useful when it becomes accessible.

"The research center wants to take the data and the knowledge collected by this University and put it into the hands and minds of communities and of those who make policy," he said. "We don’t only want to publish it in academic journals. We want to give it to the people who will actually benefit from the results."

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