We are located near the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains in Southwestern Virginia and nestled in the New River Valley, the University provides a serene setting for study and learning and for family-community gatherings. While numerous distinct cultures and a wide variety of communities fall within the boundaries of the University's interests, all believe in the importance and resilience of the family. The mutual influence between the University and the families and communities that surround it demands that University, family, and community collaborate toward their mutual goals.

The School of Social Work, grounded in the rural, small city context of Appalachia and Southwestern Virginia, builds on the strengths of its unique locale as a point of departure for understanding differences. The School and the University are committed to enhancing diversity of all kinds and are particularly interested in reinforcing a global perspective through the education of its students who will live, work, and contribute in a multicultural society.

Mission Statement

The mission builds from the University's purpose and mission to provide high quality educational programs at both the undergraduate and graduate levels of study. Consistent with the University's central focus, the School of Social Work seeks to provide the highest quality professional social work education in a context of developing the student's moral and intellectual capacities. The School recognizes that these capacities are realized in light of two certainties: the importance of family and community and the recognition that the enhancement of human potential depends upon a critical understanding of the multitude of human perspectives.

The mission and work of the School of Social Work at Radford University is guided by values and beliefs that filter through our teaching and learning, our scholarship, and our service. The School is committed to the enhancement of the quality of life for families and communities in the region and beyond. We believe that the highest quality social work education builds on the values and ethics of the profession, integrating the principles of social and economic justice - locally, nationally, and globally. We also believe that a strengths-based perspective provides an understanding of individual development and behavior across the life span and of interactions among and between individuals, families, groups, and communities. Furthermore, we believe in the need to enhance human potential through a critical understanding of human diversity.

Given these values and beliefs, the mission of the School is to extend the social work knowledge base through collaboration with our surrounding communities, to provide leadership in the social services, and to train culturally adept, competent practitioners at the BSW and MSW levels. The School collaborates with regional communities by participating in the life of those communities, stimulating scholarship, and contributing to the existing knowledge base. We seek to serve as a catalyst for change in the region, by enhancing and developing regional systems of communication through the advancement of emerging technology.

Goals and Objectives