Founded in 1995 by the late former UConn School of Social Work dean, Nancy A. Humphreys, her namesake institute works to increase the political participation and power of social workers and the communities they serve.<\/p>\n
Since 1996, the Campaign School has trained thousands of social workers, students, and faculty from both the U.S. and abroad on what it\u2019s like to get involved in politics as volunteers, staff, advocates, and candidates; to navigate systemic barriers; and to uphold the social work profession\u2019s values and code of ethics while participating in the political process.<\/p>\n Despite the typical public perception of what social workers do, notes the Humphreys Institute\u2019s outgoing director Tanya Rhodes Smith, social work was founded as a political profession and has always been committed to not only working with individuals, but also to working on solutions to the complex issues impacting the communities that they serve.<\/p>\n And a big part of that is, and always has been, the profession\u2019s active and visible role in the political process.<\/p>\n \u201cDemocracy reflects the priorities of those who show up,\u201d Rhodes Smith told the participants on the first day of this year\u2019s Campaign School, \u201cand hint: it\u2019s a small group of people. So, it matters who votes, who holds office, who works on campaigns, and who donates money.\u201d<\/p>\n The skills that make someone a great social worker, Rhodes Smith explained, also make someone a great candidate, and learning how to take part in politics and campaigning is as much about developing leadership skills as it is figuring out financing rules and putting out yard signs.<\/p>\n She also warned that Day One of campaign school would be \u201clike drinking out of a firehose.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut we\u2019re going to teach you to live your life as a candidate, so that you will be ready when you decide or are asked to run or serve by others,\u201d Rhodes Smith said.<\/p>\n Have a Plan. Write it Down.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cClose your eyes,\u201d ordered Kate Coyne-McCoy<\/a>, the person who\u2019s been holding that proverbial firehose at nearly every Campaign School.<\/p>\n \u201cImagine you\u2019re back in grade school, and you take the bus to your friend Susie\u2019s house, and you go in, and you call your mother, and you say, \u2018Mom, I\u2019m at Susie\u2019s and I just invited myself to dinner.\u2019 If you\u2019re like my mother, there\u2019s an audible gasp. You don\u2019t invite yourself to dinner,\u201d Coyne-McCoy continued.<\/p>\n \u201cNow, open your eyes. It\u2019s 2025. You\u2019re not just going to invite yourself to dinner. When you get there, you\u2019re going to ask for money.\u201d<\/p>\n Coyne-McCoy is a social worker who has trained more than 9,000 individuals to run for elected office, is a former Congressional candidate herself, and served as the chief trainer for the Harvard Square to the Oval Office program at Harvard University\u2019s Kennedy School.<\/p>\n And fundraising, she told the participants, is the barrier to most candidacies \u2013 the thing you don\u2019t want to do more than anything.<\/p>\n \u201cYou cannot get elected to anything if you don\u2019t have the money to communicate with the people you need to,\u201d Coyne-McCoy said. \u201cI know that 90 percent of you are sitting here saying, \u2018Nope.\u2019 You can \u2013 you all can. But are you willing to do it?\u201d<\/p>\n Though this year marked Coyne-McCoy\u2019s final Campaign School training, she didn\u2019t try to ease the water pressure from her firehose of information. Day One was a nonstop onslaught starting with becoming a candidate, ending with volunteer recruitment, and covering everything in between.<\/p>\n The depth and breadth of the material was surprising to some of the attendees.<\/p>\n \u201cI was afraid it would be more local, and not enough of the others,\u201d said Edmonson, who is interested in running for federal office. \u201cBut I feel like I got what I needed.\u201d<\/p>\n You cannot get elected to anything if you don\u2019t have the money to communicate with the people you need to. I know that 90 percent of you are sitting here saying, \u2018Nope.\u2019 You can \u2013 you all can. But are you willing to do it? — Kate Coyne-McCoy<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/blockquote><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI didn’t think it was to be this amount of information at this level of expertise,\u201d Meehan said. \u201cI didn’t think it was going to be complete experts in the field, from so many different organizations, and so, that was really what impressed me.\u201d<\/p>\n Early on in the day, Coyne-McCoy \u2013 who spent all of Day One on her feet, roaming around the room while barreling through her training materials and engaging the participants as they peppered her with questions and hypothetical scenarios \u2013 explained that it doesn’t matter what office someone is running for: They need to a have a campaign plan and write it down.<\/p>\n That plan needs to include details on their campaign team, their fundraising and budget, messaging, research, and their timeline.<\/p>\n Over the rest of the day, she\u2019d periodically quiz the participants on these essentials.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s the most important part about campaign planning?\u201d she\u2019d call out.<\/p>\n As the day went on, the chorus of voices that responded grew stronger and louder as they\u2019d answer back.<\/p>\n \u201cHave a plan. Write it down.\u201d<\/p>\n The day also included a messaging component where the participants worked to craft their own personal story, a 90-second pitch that explained why they were running and why someone should vote for them \u2013 something not just valuable on a campaign, but also in their lives and as social workers.<\/p>\n \u201cTelling your story is about you,\u201d Coyne-McCoy explained. \u201cIt\u2019s the thing you should do when you walk into a job interview. It\u2019s what you would do when you walk into a legislator\u2019s office.\u201d<\/p>\n A few participants shared their stories, including a young woman who beat addiction and wants to see those who lack access to health care find the services they need.<\/p>\n And a teacher who saw the lack of resources her students experienced and saw how it made them feel \u2013 as though they didn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n And a social worker and teenage mother who wants her peers to join her in consistently upholding the values and ethics of the social work profession.<\/p>\n That code of ethics \u2013 a set of standards set forth by the National Association of Social Workers<\/a> \u2013 was a consistent theme of this year\u2019s Campaign School, Rhodes Smith said, because whether seeking to serve in local, state, or federal office, the code can be applied to help social workers navigate all types of challenges, including conflicts with values that might occur in politics.<\/p>\n \u201cPolitics and campaigns exist in a partisan context, but the code rises above party,\u201d she said, \u201cand it\u2019s our superpower and guide through every sticky situation or ethical dilemma.\u201d<\/p>\n ‘Any one of you could do it’<\/strong><\/p>\n The firehose of Day One gave way to a quieter, more thoughtful approach on Day Two, where discussions started a day dedicated to processing everything learned the day before and figuring out how participants might apply it in their own lives.<\/p>\n In-depth discussions with social workers serving in various elected offices were encouraging but realistic about what it means to both run for and hold office.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to demystify how to run for office,\u201d said Justin Roias<\/a>, a city councilor in Providence. \u201cIt feels complicated, and that feels intentional. There\u2019s a lot of things hidden that you need to learn yourself. But once you do, you\u2019ll get there.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Four](\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/2025_03_07_Champaign_School_DSC_1248-300x197.jpg\")
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![\"Man](\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/2025_03_07_Champaign_School_DSC_1114-300x183.jpg\")