Advocates' Forum 2017 Letter from the Editors

For more than twenty years, student voices at the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration have found an audience through Advocates’ Forum. In light of our country’s current political climate and uncertainty about the future of social welfare, we find the thoughtfulness, curiosity, and compassion demonstrated by the pieces in Advocates’ Forum to be especially important. We see social work as an increasingly necessary and broad-reaching profession, and are consistently awed and inspired by the incredible commitment to social justice we see every day at SSA. The articles included in this journal represent just some of the many ways SSA students think about the world and our place in improving it.

This year’s Advocates’ Forum is comprised of a breadth of perspectives and voices, encompassing both clinical and administrative social work topics. Jocelyn Broitman’s article describes one organization’s attempt to genuinely incorporate youth voice into its programming. Clariza Saint George, Lara Burt, and Brett Penner's article focuses on the associated risk factors of maternal depression, specifically work stress and income level. Kelli Chavez’s article looks at the impact of public-private economic partnerships, specifically the case of Gary, Indiana’s attempt at revitalization. Tadeo Weiner Davis' article explores the Mexican and Mexican American experience during the Great Depression, drawing important parallels to the current climate and social work today. Andrea Haidar’s article about immigrant and refugee rights specifies the necessary role of social work in action and advocacy based on our profession’s history and code of ethics.

We would like to thank everyone who helped make this year’s journal a success. We are grateful to our authors who submitted such insightful, timely pieces that contribute to current conversations at SSA and beyond. We also want to thank Daniel Listoe, PhD, for working with our authors to make these pieces even more excellent and streamlined. Thank you also to Assistant Professor Angela S. García for her thoughtful guidance this year as our Faculty Advisor. Thank you also to the Dean of Students Office, most especially former Dean Shawna Cooper-Gibson and Nerissa Osby, and Dean Neil Guterman for their unwavering support and commitment to Advocates’ Forum and the students of SSA; to Director of Marketing and Communications, Julie Jung; and to the SSA SGA. And, of course, to our dedicated Editorial Board, First-year Editors, and to you all, the students of SSA and our readers.