Social Work Department

Kelly Bass, Chairperson
Center for Health Education, Room 208
Main Campus
Vermillion, South Dakota
(605) 358-5940

Megan Grode-Wolters, MA, LCSW-PIP, MSW Program Director
University of South Dakota-Sioux Falls
Room 145B
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
(605) 357-1450

Tallie Cassanova, MSW, LCSW-PIP; B.S. Social Work Program Director
Center for Health Education, Room 207
Main Campus
Vermillion, South Dakota
(605) 658-5937
Tallie.Cassanova@usd.edu

FACULTY

Professor:

Soonhee Roh, PhD, Gerontology, Clinical Practice

Associate Professors:

Kelly Bass, DSW, Clinical, Clinical Supervision, Youth and Families, Crisis Response

Assistant Professors:

Erna Dinata, PhD, Child Welfare, Community and Organizational Practice
Natalie Lecy, PhD, LCSW-PIP, Clinical, First-Generation and Marginalized Students; Trauma and Student-Centered Practice

Lecturers:

Tallie Cassanova, LCSW, QMHP BSSW Program Director
Chabli Hodge, MSW, LCSW-PIP, BSSW Field Education Director
Alexa Gauer, MSW, LCSW-PIP, Clinical, Play Therapy
Megan Grode-Wolters, MA, LCSW-PIP, Policy, international and cross-cultural social work, Clinical
Kathy LaPlante, MSW, Child Welfare and Family Services, Micro Practice

Emeritus Faculty:

Debra S. Norris, Ed.D., MSW, Macro, Rural, Intergenerational Family and Administrative Practice

MAJOR:

Social Work, B.S.

SPECIALIZATION

Child Welfare (Optional)

The undergraduate program in social work is the only accredited undergraduate Social Work program in South Dakota’s state system of higher education and has been continuously accredited by the Council on Social Work Education since 1974. Employment opportunities for graduates include professional entry-level positions in a variety of social and human services agencies and organizations. Graduates are eligible for social work professional licensing and “advanced standing” in graduate schools offering the advanced standing option in their Master of Social Work (MSW) programs.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

The Social Work Program requires formal admission. Preparation for Admission requires the achievement of at least a 2.7 cumulative GPA, completion of a volunteer or work experience, and the successful completion of 50 hours of coursework that includes the non-departmental requirements. As a professional program in the School of Health Sciences, the B.S. Social Work Program requirements include successful clearance from a criminal background check and participation in immunization requirements. Admitted students are required to show proof of comprehensive personal health insurance and comply with all immunization policies as required by USD Health Affairs.

Application

Each applicant must apply to the B.S.S.W. program through the centralized application service for social work SocialWorkCAS. Application deadline is December 1 for the following August. You can begin applying as early as September 8th in the year of application.

SCHOLARSHIPS AND SUPPORT

Please contact the department for additional information about available scholarships and awards. Also see School of Health Sciences for school level scholarships.

Elizabeth King Booth Scholarship
Faithe Family Scholarship - Social Work Graduate
Helen Anderson Quirk Scholarship
Marilyn Stark Ondell Scholarship
Social Work Scholarship Fund

Student Learning Outcomes for Social Work (B.S.)

Students will be able to systematically explore issues, objects or works through the collection and analysis of evidence that results in informed conclusions or judgments.
Students will be able to assess their own ethical values and the social context of problems, recognize ethical issues in a variety of settings, think about how different ethical perspectives might be applied to ethical dilemmas and consider the ramifications of alternative actions.
Students will design, evaluate, and implement a strategy to answer an open-ended question or achieve a desired goal.
Students will interact with other students and evaluate the effort put into team tasks, interactions with others, and the quantity and quality made to team discussions.
Competency 1-Students will demonstrate ethical and professional behavior.
Competency 2 Students will engage diversity and difference in practice. 
Competency 3 Students will advance human rights and social, economic and environmental justice. 
Competency 4 Students will engage in research-informed practice and practice-informed research. 
Competency 5 Students will engage in policy practice.
Competencies 6-9 Students will engage, assess, intervene, and evaluate with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. 
Students will connect ideas and experiences in order to synthesize and transfer learning to new, complex situations within and beyond the campus. 
Students will intentionally engage with diversity in ways that increase awareness, content knowledge, cognitive sophistication, and empathic understanding of the complex ways individuals interact within systems and institutions leading to opportunities for equal access to participation in educational and community programs for all members of society.

Programs

Social Work (B.S.)