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Courtney Polanski ?23, Savannah Bezotte ?23, Professor Debbie Minsky-Kelly, and Ashley Cedeno ?19... Courtney Polanski ’23, Savannah Bezotte ’23, Ashley Cedeno ’19, and Professor Debbie Minsky-Kelly gave a presentation titled “Library Social Work: An Emerging Model of Social Work Practice” at the National Association of Social Workers Wisconsin (NASW WI) Annual Conference on Oct. 20 in the Wisconsin Dells.

Did you know that there is a new model of social work practice emerging in public libraries? When most people think about public libraries, they think of quiet spaces where people check out books and conduct research. Increasingly, public libraries have begun to see situations emerge that require new types of expertise — from addressing the needs of unhoused individuals to supporting older patrons with technology and finding that they have many other complex needs beyond the scope of a traditional librarian’s expertise.

Courtney Polanski ?23, Savannah Bezotte ?23, Professor Debbie Minsky-Kelly, and Ashley Cedeno ?19... About three years ago, the Racine Public Library approached the Carthage social work faculty and asked to establish a field partnership in an effort to launch a social work line of service. This partnership evolved to include faculty in the development of the first-ever full-time social work position at the library. This position was filled one year ago by Ms. Cedeno, who continues to host Carthage social work students.

After seeing the success of this partnership, the Kenosha Public Library decided to host its first social work student from Carthage this year. Given the growing interest in this innovative model of social work practice, our partnership was selected to present a workshop at the 2022 NASW WI Conference. Ms. Cedeno and Prof. Minsky-Kelly presented on this model along with Courtney, the Racine Library’s social work intern, and Savannah, the Kenosha Library’s intern. 

This workshop was well-received by an audience of seasoned social workers who learned more about how to bring library social work to their communities. The Racine Public Library is only the second library in Wisconsin to hire a full-time social worker, but this is a growing trend around the country, with approximately 20 percent of libraries nationwide offering social work services.

In addition to the library social work presentation, Prof. Minsky-Kelly also presented at the conference on the topic of “Ethics and Trauma: Unique Challenges and Opportunities.”

Sponsoring Department, Office, or Organization:

Social Work Department

For more information, contact:

Debbie Kelly: dkelly1@carthage.edu