It means you’ll be part of a national community of learning and practice that will meet regularly to learn, play, explore, and “make” in the form of recommendations to the field. It is the hope of the funders and the founders, that new types of scholarship and practice may also emerge from the learning and dialogue that will be part of the experience. By the end of the 18 months, you’ll also be a trained social work futurist.

The budget doesn’t permit individual financial compensation to fellows - but the materials, access to experts, and a carefully curated experience will be completely developed for you. If COVID-19 permits, we may be able to have in-person meetings in year two of the lab and those travel costs will be covered. We do ask that part of the fellowship application include a letter from a supervisor releasing each applicant from some aspect of his/her/their duties to accommodate the time required (approximately 4 hours per month) to participate fully in this endeavor.

Please read through the entirety of the call for proposals. Applications will be prioritized according to originality, commitment, and experience but not necessarily experience in futures work. An attempt will be made to balance the subjects brought by different members - so that we have a mix of those interested in climate, in technology, in immigration/migration and other areas. If you believe you have a compelling interest and commitment - go for it!

This past year, 3-part webinar series on the future of social work was sponsored by the National Network for Social Work Management, Fordham University Graduate School of Social Work, and Portland State University School of Social Work. You might want to access the webinars and slide decks here and then consider if this opportunity is right for you.

Link here: https://socialworkmanager.org/2020-futures-series/

Our national advisory committee comprised of national experts in social work research, practice, and education - all of whom have a strong commitment to this initiative - will be making the decision along with the national program director, Dr. Laura Nissen. You can learn about our national advisory committee here (link to that part of the site…). An explicit effort will be made to create a final group of fellows that represent diverse racial, ethnic, gender, and other identities.

At this time, we have received funding for one group of fellows. Additional groups may be possible at a later date but no commitment can be made to that at this time.