WHEREAS, the Social Work Profession is dedicated to enhancing well-being and helping meet the basic needs of all people, especially those who are vulnerable, oppressed and living in poverty; 

WHEREAS, this year’s Social Work Month theme, “Elevate Social Work”embodies the need to recognize the extraordinary contributions of the profession to our society;

WHEREAS, the Social Work profession is expected to grow faster than average over the next seven years, with more than 682,000 people expected to be employed as social workers by 2026;

WHEREAS, Social Workers elevate and empower people, giving them the ability to solve problems, cope with personal roadblocks and get the resources they need to succeed.

WHEREAS, the Social Work profession is deeply weaved into our society with social workers active in government, schools, universities, social service agencies, communities, corporations, the military and in health care and mental health care settings;

WHEREAS, Social Workers are the largest group of providers of mental health services in the United States and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is one of the largest employers of social workers holding advanced degrees;

WHEREAS, Social Workers travel across the nation and world to help people in crisis, helping them overcome issues such as death and grief, epidemics, environmental pollution and natural disasters such as wildfires, hurricanes and floods; 

WHEREAS, Social Workers for decades have been in the forefront on social justice, pushing for equal rights for women, African Americans, Latinos, people who are disabled, people who are LGBTQ and various ethnic, cultural and religious groups;

WHEREAS, the Social Work Profession for more than a century has been on the cutting edge of helping create changes to make our society a better place to live, including voting rights, improved workplace safety, a minimum wage and social safety net programs that ameliorate poverty and hunger;

WHEREAS, Social Workers stand ready to help our society overcome current pressing issues, including equal rights for all, the need for improved availability of health care and mental health services; immigration reform; voting rights and the environmental impact of global warming;

NOW THEREFORE, in recognition of the numerous contributions made by America’s Social Workers, I, Becky S. Corbett, MSW, ACSW, proclaim the month of March 2019 as National Social Work Month and call upon all citizens to join the National Association of Social Workers and BSCorbett Consulting, LLC in celebration and support of the Social Work Profession.