Social workers and social work interns from both the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University (EMU) are providing support to a variety of programs in partnership with Ypsilanti-area organizations, even in unexpected places like a library and an arts center. But if Chelsea Muto, field coordinator for the EMU School of Social Work had her way, there would be even more social work interns collaborating with community organizations.

EMU's social work school is responsible for social worker placements in a number of places, including at the county sheriff's department, the Women's Huron Valley Correctional Facility, and Groundcover News, a media source covering Washtenaw County homelessness issues.

"We're trying to place students everywhere we can," Muto says. "In higher education, we can get a little removed from the community, so as field coordinator, I'm excited about library social work. And all my students are really excited about community social work and want to grow that."

"Light case management" at YDL

Dr. Margaret Paauw, assistant professor and field supervisor with the EMU School of Social Work, oversees intern placements at the Ypsilanti District Library (YDL). She is also excited about bringing social work to the library. She previously specialized in library social work in Chicago.

Muto says YDL reached out to the Engage@EMU office, which funneled the request to the school of social work. She says library staff wanted help with both teen and adult programming, and hoped social workers could provide additional resources or referrals. 

"We've been working with them for the last two or three years trying to get an internship off the ground, and it finally happened this semester," Paauw says. 
Doug CoombeDr. Margaret Paauw and Chelsea Muto at the YDL Superior Branch.
Paauw says the pilot program's roll-out has been slow. Bachelor's-level interns have been working on a lot of planning and grant applications, working out of YDL's Superior branch. Starting in January, EMU may be able to provide a master's-level intern or even a licensed clinical social worker to meet with patrons and provide "light case management," Paauw says. That could include connecting patrons to services or helping them apply for certain benefits, for instance.

"We're still teasing that stuff out because it's a new program. We're taking our time and being thoughtful about what this program could look like," Muto says.

Muto and Paauw note that social workers operate at three levels: macro, micro, and mezzo. Micro social work involves small units like families, while macro social work involves larger systemic concerns and policy work. In the middle is mezzo social work, addressing medium-sized systems like a community.
Doug CoombeMary Garboden, Anna Lyon, Cynthia Wilson, Margaret Paauw, and Chelsea Muto at the YDL Superior Branch.
Muto says that social work interns are doing a lot of micro and mezzo work but are also thinking broadly about how to help community members on a larger scale, like advocating for a bus stop at the Superior branch.

"We had a lot of grand ideals, and the Ypsi library had a lot of grand ideas, but not all of them can be done in two semesters, so we're narrowing down what the most important needs are in the community," Muto says.

Muto says that other community organizations interested in working with EMU social work interns may contact her at cmuto@emich.edu.

Social work and art intersect

At Riverside Arts Center (RAC) in downtown Ypsi, another program uses social work to promote mental health through art. Kayla Skinner-Roy, therapist and social worker, is the founder of the You Are Expansive (YAE) program at RAC. YAE is a community-focused, art-based education program that uses the Internal Family Systems therapy model to help participants learn about systems-level thinking and social justice issues. Skinner-Roy says her goal was to create "spaces and art programming that were neuro-inclusive, mentally and emotionally supportive, and accessible to folks with varying degrees of experience with the arts."

She says she likes the word "expansive" because humans are prone to limiting themselves, and the title of her programming reminds participants that they're global citizens who need a broad perspective.
Doug CoombeYou Are Expansive founder Kayla Skinner-Roy at RAC.
"We're taught we're one-dimensional and you have to double down on that one thing, and yet we exist in all these binaries," she says. "Once we break out and expand past those, the more we liberate ourselves to be free agents and free thinkers."

The first YAE offering this fall was a workshop called "To Be An Ecosystem." Skinner-Roy says the program's theme was growing a multi-generational garden, where "the fruit is humans" and the question was, "What are you planting?"

"We had folks engage in a collaborative art activity, and everyone ended up walking away with a piece of art that everybody had helped shape," Skinner-Roy explains. 
Doug CoombeYou Are Expansive founder Kayla Skinner-Roy. at RAC.
She says the pilot program has been "well received" so far. She's looking at how to shape it for the future, and is considering incorporating some of the programming into RAC's summer camp programming for children.

YAE's next offering, "Joy and Creation," is set for 5:30 p.m. Dec. 13. It features an art workshop, panel discussion, and drag performance, with proceeds benefiting EMU's Swoops Food Pantry. Click here for more details. 

Social worker on site in Ypsi Township's Civic Center

EMU's School of Social Work also placed a social worker at Ypsilanti Township's Civic Center: Laurie Lutomski, the township's community resource coordinator. Lutomski says township officials saw a need for an on-site social worker to "do a lot of ad hoc things." The effort started as a pilot, but Lutomski is now serving in a permanent full-time role. EMU has also placed a social work intern at the civic center.

"Basically, I am here to try to connect residents who call in with needs or concerns with resources that exist in the community already," Lutomski says. 

For instance, the township clerk or other staff may notice that someone who applies for a hardship exception on their tax bill may need other kinds of help. They'll refer that resident to Lutomski. 

Lutomski says she's also accompanied ordinance officers on rental inspections and reached out to people living in local homeless encampments. She can coordinate with township officials and the county sheriff to come up with a protocol for situations in which homeless people are camped on township land or private property.

"We try to work with the people who own the land to find a more humane way of helping those folks get off that property and, hopefully, into service or care," Lutomski says. 

Lutomski says she fields many calls from older adults, but other inquiries come from young families. Requests range from food and clothing needs to home repairs or accessibility adaptations for a disabled family member. Lutomski says being embedded in the township offices creates a more streamlined process to connect people to resources.

"I offer assistance, and they can choose to take it or not. Maybe two people have said, 'No, I don't want anybody in my business.' And that's fine too," Lutomski says. "But at least they know those resources are available."

Visit Ypsilanti Township's official website to see a list of resources available to township residents, from substance abuse recovery resources to utility assistance and more.

Sarah Rigg is a freelance writer and editor in Ypsilanti Township and the project manager of On the Ground Ypsilanti. She joined Concentrate as a news writer in early 2017 and is an occasional contributor to other Issue Media Group publications. You may reach her at sarahrigg1@gmail.com.

Photos by Doug Coombe.