The Forward Sioux Falls Campaign is generously supporting Augustana University’s Harriet Emily Scott Social Work Program — awarding the program $50,000 annually over the next five years.
“We’re always trying to increase and improve the pipeline of talent that we have in Sioux Falls. One of the big things that we always have had a hard time bringing into the fold is social services. They are a vital part of our overall community,” said Bob Mundt, president and CEO of the Sioux Falls Development Foundation. “Augustana’s social work program was a really good option for us to take a look at — how do we get more of those young people who are being educated in these fields here in Sioux Falls?”
The Forward Sioux Falls Campaign, which is a joint economic and workforce development program run by the Sioux Falls Development Foundation and Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce, is providing compensation for qualifying Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) and Master of Social Work (MSW) students who are completing internships in health care-related fields.
At Augustana, both BSW and MSW students are required to complete two semesters of field placement work; 400 to 500 hours over the course of nine months.
“We really believe that field practicum is the capstone experience that’s helping students cement their academic learning with what it looks like to do that in real life,” said Sarah Vining, assistant professor of social work and field director of the Augustana BSW Program, who previously worked with at-risk youth as a social worker in Sioux Falls. “We have a wide variety of organizations where students can be placed, which is the beauty, but also the challenge of social work — it’s where students really figure out and narrow down what type of social work they’re interested in.”
Many of Augustana’s social work students are getting experience at organizations such as Avera and Sanford Health, the Boys & Girls Club, McCrossan Boys Ranch, Lutheran Social Services, Solace, Southeastern Behavioral Health and Tallgrass Recovery.
“I was so thrilled at how embraced we were by the social work community,” said Associate Professor of Social Work and Field Director of the Augustana MSW Program Dr. Heather El-Khoury, who came to the university from Michigan in 2023. “Being new and having support like this is just amazing.”
However, many field placements are at nonprofit organizations that are often unable to provide students with paid internships.
“A lot of students coming back for their master’s degrees are established — they have family responsibilities, and then they’re trying to put 14-18 hours a week of field placement on top of that,” noted El-Khoury. “With classes and time to study, there’s very little time to have a part-time job, so students really struggle trying to make ends meet.”
Ariet Bawar ‘27, in Augustana’s MSW program, is one of several Augustana students who recently benefited from Forward Sioux Falls’ scholarship.
Bawar came to the Midwest from Ethiopia in 1997. Her first interaction with a social worker came at a really hard time in her life. Her family was homeless, and she was about to begin her freshman year of high school.
“I don’t remember her (the social worker’s) name, but if I close my eyes, I can see her face. She was just the nicest person I’ve ever met, and she did everything in her power to help my family. She didn’t judge us. She was just really there for us and made a difference in our lives. And I said, ‘I want to do that for somebody one day.’ She really inspired me to be a social worker,” recalled Bawar.
On top of MSW courses and a part-time job, Bawar spent two days a week this past spring shadowing a therapist at Child’s Voice with Sanford Health — a nationally-accredited children’s advocacy center (CAC). The single mom, who wants to “dig into therapy one day,” said she “heard some very heavy stuff” during her field practicum, which only validated her decision to go into social work as a career.
“I don’t think social workers get into the field to make a lot of money — they’re there to really make a difference in people's lives,” said Bawar.
Which is why this scholarship makes all the difference in Bawar’s.
“Hearing that there was a scholarship that could help and lift a little bit of the burden. I’m just very grateful, very thankful for Forward Sioux Falls, the social work faculty and Augustana,” Bawar said when she learned that she would be receiving the grant. “I feel like there’s never enough hours in the day, so it’s going to do wonders for me.”
“It’s hard enough. The curriculum is difficult, challenging. We ask a lot of our students and then to be the best they can for their clients,” added El-Khoury. “Having scholarships is so important. This gives students a little bit of a safety net to help them be successful.”
Since launching Augustana’s Harriet Emily Scott Social Work Program in Fall 2023, more than a dozen students have graduated with a BSW. As part of its inaugural cohort this past spring, eight students graduated with an MSW. Augustana provides MSW students with the opportunity to specialize in three different cognates or specializations, which include addiction, integrated behavioral health and play therapy. These cognates are also offered as stand-alone certificates — available for social workers who are beyond the master’s degree level.
“They’re tremendous assets to the community. I mean, all you need to do is look around and see the impact that they have,” said Mundt. “We need to make sure that we’re doing everything we can to feed that because it has a ripple effect on everybody else.”
For more information about the BSW at Augustana, visit augie.edu/BSW. For more information about the Augustana MSW, visit augie.edu/MSW.