PHILADELPHIA — Students from the School of Social Policy & Practice at the University of Pennsylvania, will don bright blue t-shirts and converge on 30th Street Station to talk with travelers and passersby about social work and how social workers can help them. Also participating in the 8 a.m. event on March 31 will be social work students from West Chester University, Temple University, La Salle University and Bryn Mawr College.

Designed to wrap up National Social Work Month, this “Shout Out for Social Work” is happening along the mid-Atlantic region from Trenton, N.J., to Baltimore to Washington and in municipalities across Pennsylvania.

“For too long, social workers have been perceived as ‘invisible,” Richard J. Gelles, dean of the School of Social Policy & Practice, said.  “It is a profession that traditionally has been undervalued and misunderstood – even though social workers are the largest group of mental-health providers in America. This event gives us the opportunity to share information about social work and how social workers help to strengthen the fabric of society.  We’re strong in numbers, we’re social-change agents, we’re making a difference in the lives of others and we’re not going to be ‘invisible’ anymore.”

Other institutions participating are Widener University, Temple University-Harrisburg, the University of Pittsburgh, Shippensburg University, Philadelphia Biblical University, Delaware State University and the University of Maryland.  In addition, members of the National Association of Social Workers and area students will be at 11 stops along the Metro line in Washington.