NYU Silver Faculty Gather to Kick Off 2024-25 Academic Year

New York, NY – To prepare for a new academic year, NYU Silver brought faculty together for an evening gathering during orientation week, in person and virtually, to foster community and share resources to strengthen the ways in which they teach and support students as they navigate the challenges of the current national climate.

“We need to ensure that our students’ education as social workers reflects preparation for the world we're living in right now,” said Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Linda Lausell Bryant, who organized the gathering with Assistant Dean of Practicum Education & Community Partnerships Anne Dempsey and Adjunct Assistant Professor Gabriella McBride. 

Faculty learned about various ways the School provides instructional support, including a five-module, self-study course in social work teaching methods that centers anti-racism, diversity, equity and inclusion principles. The BS and MSW Programs and Offices of Student Affairs, MSW Academic Advising and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion all provided updates that will help faculty support students in the year ahead. 

Dean Michael A. Lindsey echoed Dr. Lausell Bryant and stressed that whether full-time or adjunct, our instructors are one faculty. “What binds us together,” he said, “is our intellectual curiosity, our empathy, our passion for sharing the knowledge that we've uncovered and a commitment to social work and its values . . . we must rely on our social work values and skills to help our students engage in civil discourse and effective advocacy.”

Dean Lindsey also updated faculty about the School’s latest initiatives for making a Silver education more accessible and affordable, including our entry into the online degree program arena: the launch of the part-time Hybrid MSW pathway in September. Designed for professionals with direct service experience in social work and social services, the new pathway combines virtual and in-person classes with an in-person practicum education. The pathway is coordinated by Director of Flex Residency & Online Programming Jessie-Guy Ryan. “We must open up paths to advancement that can lead to upward mobility and create more social workers at a time when we are needed more than ever,” Dean Lindsey said.

The event was both a celebration of our faculty’s contributions and preparation for success in another academic year.