School of Social Work

Brief History of the Doctoral Program

School of Social Work

University of Pittsburgh

The social work doctoral program at the University of Pittsburgh is one of the oldest in the nation.  It was created to contribute to the advancement of the profession of social work and social work education. In the sixty intervening years, the program has been a major player that contributed to developments in the field even as it was being influenced by the changes in society and the field.  The results of this healthy interaction can be seen in changes to the program across the decades.  A very brief review of those developments follows. Please also be sure to visit the interactive timeline following the history.

For a full listing of the alumni and their dissertation titles click here.

Decade of the 1940s

The decade of the 1940s showed evidence of a number of planning stages that culminated in the conferring of the first University of Pittsburgh doctoral degrees in social work in 1949. In 1943 the School of Applied Social Sciences created an “Advanced Program Committee” with Dr. Marion Hathway as its chair. The minutes of the faculty meeting of October 27, 1944 note “that the official recommendation for permission to grant the advanced degree has been submitted to the Trustees of the University.” In the minutes of the faculty meeting of October 5, 1945, Dr. Marion Hathway reports to the faculty and refers to “our Doctor’s degree.”

The 1945-1946 catalog of the School announces that “Candidacy for the professional degree of Doctor of Social Administration is open for the first time in 1945-1946 to graduates of accredited schools of social work with suitable experience in the field, and to others in a few exceptional instances who can satisfy the general requirements for admission to the program of advanced study.”  During the 1947-1948 academic year, the name of the degree was changed to Doctor of Social Work. Subsequently, a policy statement entitled “Procedure for the Students’ Work on the Doctorate Dissertation” was approved by the faculty on March 12, 1948 and revised by the faculty on November 4, 1949.  At least one student, Ruth E. Smalley, was admitted in the 1946-1947 academic year, and at least one additional student, Merrill B. Conover, was admitted in the 1947-1948 academic year.  In 1949, both Smalley and Conover were awarded the first  Doctor of Social Work degrees.  As would be true for a number of years to come, these graduates had come to doctoral education after many years of social work practice experience, motivated by a desire to contribute to the education of future generations of social work students.

Decade of the 1950s

Dr. Merrill Conover succeeded Dr. Marion Hathway as chair of the doctoral program in 1952.  Unfortunately, this transition was part of a period of stress for the School and especially for Dr. Hathway.  Hathway taught social welfare policy.  At the height of the era during which Senator Joseph McCarthy achieved prominence exposing and investigating alleged subversive citizens, Dr. Hathway was attacked as a communist.  While this was most certainly not true, an enormous controversy was created for Dr. Hathway, the School and the University of Pittsburgh.  Among the charges brought to the attention of the congressional investigators was that “In her classes, she teaches that there are poor people in America.”  Dr. Hathway actively supported organized labor, civil rights and a safety net for families.  She also supported the presidential candidacy of Henry Wallace for president on the Progressive Party ticket.  The furor that erupted engulfed the whole field of social work.  Many people prominent in social work history eventually were involved in Dr. Hathway’s defense.  Sadly, in the spring of 1951, Dr. Hathway resigned.  This was as important an event in the history of the School and the profession as McCarthyism was for the nation.   An excellent summary of the events and documentation of Dr. Hathway’s case may be found in Reisch and Andrews’ 2001 Book entitled The Road Not Taken (Philadelphia: Brunner-Routledge).

Late in the decade, the doctoral program began an historic partnership with the Graduate School of Public Health to create the joint social work doctorate and public health master’s degree program.  The Graduate School of Public Health is nationally recognized for having the longest continuously federally funded Maternal and Child Health Program in public health and social work.  For over fifty years the two schools have collaborated on this venture, which has attracted a strong subset of students. This program flourished first under the leadership of Drs. Gerald St. Denis and William T. Hall, and more recently by Dr. Kenneth Jaros, one of the graduates of the joint program.  

The first mention of an “Advisory Committee on the Advanced Research Program” is found in 1957-1958. In 1959, Dr. Conover reported to the faculty that seven persons had graduated from the School’s doctoral program since its inception, with five having graduated during the 1950s. It is likely the development, enrollment, and growth of the program in these early years were hampered by the controversy swirling around Dr. Hathway and the School during this decade.

Decade of the 1960s

As American society recovered from its communist witch hunt and bout with McCarthyism, civil rights, one of Dr. Hathway’s major emphases, moved to the front burner of everyone’s attention.  The “Great Society” dawned, and both change and hope were in the air.  The doctoral program at the School also began to shift gears.  Dr. Samuel Mencher succeeded Merrill Conover in 1959 and chaired the program until 1962.  During the 1960-1961 academic year, the name of the program was changed to “the Advanced Program.”  This was done to make it possible to incorporate a “sequence leading to the Dean’s certificate,” a third-year, post MSW certificate which could either be terminal or lead to admission to doctoral study.  Mencher brought a vigorous and brilliant focus to social welfare as a central feature of the profession of social work, and social welfare history and policy were emphasized as central components of doctoral study in social work.  However, doctoral enrollment remained flat.  In 1962, Dr. Joseph Eaton assumed the chair of the program.  Eaton was well known for his published research and his emphasis on research methodology and theory.  A new generation of social work scholars, including a good number of later well-known academic contributors to the field, took up the challenge to put social work on an empirical basis.  During Eaton’s tenure, the name and requirements of the degree were changed to “Doctor of Philosophy in Social Work.”  This first appeared in the School’s catalog in 1964-1965.  Eaton was followed by Dr. William McCullough.  McCullough was first Acting Dean and then Dean of the School, and was viewed as a “caretaker” chair until a permanent chair could be recruited.  McCullough served in that capacity from 1966 until 1968 when Dr. Rosalie Cohen held the chair briefly. 

Finally, later in 1968, Dr. Alvan Block became chair and served until his retirement in 1972.  During Block’s stewardship of the program, the emphasis on social welfare history and policy stressed by Mencher, and the emphases on theory and empirical research brought by Eaton, became the core curriculum components of the program. Also during this period, the field experienced the beginning of a great expansion in the demand for social work educators.  Preparation for careers in social work education was expanded significantly and became a major interest of applicants, a huge market for graduates and a major thrust of the program.  This framework has continued to the present. Eighteen doctorates were awarded during the decade of the 1960s.

Decade of the 1970s

          Three faculty were doctoral program directors from Dr. Block’s retirement in 1972 until the end of the decade.  Dr. Martin Adler served from 1972 until 1975, Dr. Barbara Shore from 1975 until 1978 and Dr. Martha Baum from 1978 until 1984.  This was a period of great growth for the program. Community-based research,  especially in the areas of mental health, aging, psychosocial impact of rape victimization and drug and alcohol addictions became central emphases for class work and student research involvement.  External funding for research rose sharply, with the receipt of several federal and state research grants allowing doctoral students to gain research experience and receive stipends while in the program.  These research opportunities also allowed more doctoral students to maintain full time status while in the program, thereby enhancing the likelihood of program completion. International student enrollment also began growing during this period. Applicant pools expanded during this period, and class sizes rose to between 8-12 students, either full or part-time, by the end of the decade.  Correspondingly, the number of faculty involved in teaching doctoral courses and overseeing student competency papers and dissertations expanded significantly.  During this era, the stated goal of the doctoral program was to prepare leaders in social research, policy, planning, administration and teaching. A highly productive doctoral enterprise flourished during which 67 persons completed their doctorates.

Decade of the 1980s

In 1982, the doctoral program was evaluated by two review groups, one composed of faculty from other departments within the University, and the second composed of social work faculty from other universities.  Both groups praised the strong interdisciplinary emphasis of faculty and courses, the competence, accessibility and dedication of its faculty, and the strong positive relationships among faculty and students.

They noted the relatively large number of students and their high completion rate of 85%, the significant contributions made by program graduates to scholarship, education and service arenas, and the program’s excellent reputation in the profession.  Overall, they viewed the program as quite strong, while suggesting that additional resources would further enhance its ability to accomplish its educational and training goals.

Dr. Barbara Shore resumed the directorship of the Doctoral Program in 1984 and continued in that capacity until 1992.  During her tenure, the high level of program performance based on interdisciplinary training with a strong research emphasis continued. Dr. Shore strengthened the program’s community research involvement and international recruitment, and placed strong emphasis on recruitment of minority students from across the US. Required courses in policy analysis and research methodology were further enhanced. Annual student-faculty retreats facilitated communication and program self-study and renewal. Under Shore’s leadership, the emphasis on preparation for careers in social work education expanded.  This included her leadership in the creation of GADE (Group for the Advancement of Doctoral Education), a national organization of doctoral programs to address common interests, including standard setting and assistance for the rapidly growing number of doctoral programs in social work during the decades of the 1980s and 1990s. Today there are 81 doctoral programs that are members of GADE, with two more under development.

The previous high number of graduates was surpassed, with 88 persons completing their degrees between 1980 and 1989.

Decade of the 1990s

Associate Dean Michael Patchner assumed leadership for the Doctoral Program from 1992 until 1994.  He was followed by Dr. Wynne Korr who served from 1994 until 1999.  This was another decade of emphasis on community needs and services, particularly in the area of mental health.  Our school was one of a handful of National Institutes of Mental Health social work research centers to be funded.  Initiating a closer collaborative relationship with Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic (WPIC), the Center expanded both the research opportunities and financial resources of the doctoral program and attracted a growing number of applicants. The option of obtaining a graduate certificate from Women’s Studies emerged during this decade, as did a doctoral course on social work education. In addition, students were offered an opportunity to enroll in a course for a Directed Study in Teaching.

Corresponding to recommendations in the influential 1991 report from the Task Force on Social Work Research, the doctoral program began recruiting and accepting qualified applicants at earlier stages of their careers, and began emphasizing the skills needed for greater scholarly productivity.  Doctoral applicants were screened more closely regarding their capacity for doctoral study, fewer part-time students were accepted, and class sizes were somewhat reduced.  Research course requirements were further expanded, and strategies for involving students in faculty research were initiated.  Graduate student assistantships were increased in order to provide more students with funding.  In a major shift, the comprehensive examination was instituted in 1992 to replace the prior requirement of a competency paper. This examination focused on the integration of the core program areas of social welfare history, policy, research and theory after required course work was completed. Provost funding was obtained for student dissertations, and greater oversight of student progress toward dissertation completion was initiated.

A University review of our program, undertaken in 1996/7, again noted the relatively large size, diversity and high student completion rates of doctoral students in the program.  Overall, the doctoral program was viewed as maintaining its strength as well as its emphasis on self-renewal.  Reviewers again noted the interdisciplinary faculty and its accessibility to students, as well as the positive career outcomes of its graduates.

Eighty-one candidates successfully completed their degrees during the 1990s, sustaining the very high level of productivity of the program.

First Decade of the 21st Century

Three persons have served as directors of the Doctoral Program since 2000, under the support of Dean Larry Davis who, from his arrival, recognized the importance of doctoral education to the School’s mission, and has been committed to enhancing the resources needed for a high quality program.  Emphasis on research skills and participation were further enhanced, and a larger, more comfortable and technologically advanced student work and lounge area was completed.  Dr. Esther Sales  assumed the directorship from Dr. Korr at the end of 1999 and served until 2004. During her tenure a doctoral student seminar was added to assist in the professional socialization of entering students. Graduate student assistantships (GSAs) were exclusively awarded for research involvement.  The course in social work education became required for students wishing to gain teaching experience while in the program. In addition, in 2003 the Graduate Record Examination became a required part of the admissions packet, hoping to provide further information on the scholarly skills of applicants. To encourage the admission of young scholars, a small number of exceptional applicants without MSWs or social work experience was accepted into the MSW/Ph.D program.

Dr. Gary Koeske was director of the program from 2004 until 2007. During his tenure, Dean Davis appointed a group of faculty to an Excellence Committee, which reevaluated the doctoral program in order to further enhance its functioning.  Research course requirements were expanded, with greater emphases on multivariate analyses and the addition of courses on qualitative research and secondary data analysis.  A new capstone research course replaced the previous second level research course.  Admission of smaller cohorts of students, all full time and funded for four years, had the goal of allowing students greater research and scholarly immersion.

Dr. Valire Carr Copeland, the current doctoral program director, assumed the directorship in 2007.  She continues to implement the recommendations of the Excellence Committee. Starting in Fall, 2007, with financial resources from the Provost’s office, the program accepts up to six full-time students per year, and provides four years of tuition and stipend funding for these students.

Timeline