Integrating Christian Faith and Social Work Practice:
A Working Conference

Cheryl Brandsen
Calvin College

Beryl Hugen
Calvin College

Call for Papers

The Calvin College Social Work program, with additional support from the North American Association of Christians in Social Work (NACSW), will host a working conference from Tuesday, July 18, 2006 through Friday noon, July 21, 2006. This seminar is dedicated to exploring foundational and enduring questions in the social work profession through the lens of the Christian faith.

Participants in the seminar will be expected to present a theoretical paper or a paper focused on the application of a conceptual model that works toward integrating some aspect of social work with Christian faith. The 2004 seminar, for instance, explored the relationship of faith to foundational concepts of personhood, epistemology, research, justice, diversity, and to such questions as who should be responsible for the poor. These ideas, and others, are welcome as paper proposals. By the conclusion of the working conference, it is expected that participants' papers will be close to completion for submission to NACSW publications or professional journals of their choosing.

Participants will be expected to submit a draft of their paper to Calvin College by June 15, 2006, so that these can be shared with other participants. Failure to submit a paper by this date jeopardizes the applicant's participation in the seminar.

Participants will also be expected to read, in advance, the papers of other participants and be prepared to respond in critically helpful ways. Dr. Stephen Evans (Baylor University) and Dr. Nicholas Wolterstorff (Yale University) will serve as consultants to the group and respond to papers.

Lodging will be provided at no cost at the college's Prince Conference Center from Monday, July 17 with departure later on Friday, July 21. Breakfast, lunch, and breaks will be provided on seminar days at no cost. In addition, participants will be reimbursed for travel costs, up to $300.

To apply, please send the following as email attachments to brac@calvin.edu:

1. A current curriculum vitae or resume (maximum three pages). Please be certain that this includes the address, telephone number, and email which you prefer to use.

2. A brief abstract (maximum 500 words) of your proposed paper.

Applications are due January 31, 2006. Applicants will be notified of their acceptance into the seminar by February 15, 2006.

For further information contact:
Cheryl Brandsen or Beryl Hugen
Calvin College - Social Work Department
3201 Burton St SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4388

Cheryl Brandsen: brac@calvin.edu
Beryl Hugen: bhugen@calvin.edu

Seminars and Workshops 2006