Every year during fall Orientation Week at USC, the USC School of Social Work welcomes its new Master of Social Work students with a unique community outreach experience. Students spend two days in Community Immersion exploring the varied neighborhoods of Southern California and then take time to reflect on those experiences, readying themselves for what’s to come in their social work educational careers by examining the societal factors that shape a community.

Here MSW student Janet Bayramyan shares what she learned last fall while touring downtown Los Angeles.

My experience at Community Immersion was quite enriching and an amazing learning opportunity.

I experienced a part of Los Angeles in a way I had never experienced before. I witnessed Los Angeles' downtown Skid Row, a community of men and women struggling with homelessness, substance abuse, addiction, mental health challenges and an array of health issues. [After spending some time here,] no longer did I see this community as one I must feel sorry for. In fact, Skid Row is a thriving community.

I learned approximately 4,000 men and women live and inhabit Skid Row. Missions and different agencies provide resources for the betterment of individuals. Counseling, resume and career support, anger management, confidence building, residential housing, substance abuse programs, case management, and so much more are provided. I didn't look at the area, the people and the community from a tourist's perspective. I started asking myself questions like: How long has this community been here? How did they get here? Why do they stay? What resources are available to them? How do these individuals identify themselves? How long have they been here? Do they have any desire to leave? How do they take to students, caseworkers, therapists and police officers who frequently visit them and offer support, sometimes unsolicited? Question after question started to come up for me as I was walking through the area.

The area itself wasn't the most pleasant. You can imagine aromas of urine and feces are all around. In the summertime, the heat did not make it easy to get from one place to the next. Skid Row inhabitants often have to travel on a schedule depending on when shelters provide meals, or when they’re supposed to meet with probation officers or caseworkers. Some are in full-time assistance programs and have to adhere to the rules and regulations of the program. I thought to myself, how do they know what time it is? How do they keep a calendar and remember all of the appointments they have? How do they prove identity without a driver's license, social security card or birth certificate? Do they know the condition of their health? How do they navigate the Affordable Care Act and the need for health insurance and primary care physicians? Downtown Los Angeles is also in the process of gentrification. With more expensive properties being built in the downtown area, where will the Skid Row community go if their territory continues to be bought by developers?

I have great compassion for this community. Now they are no longer just people who sit on the street and beg for money. I see them now as a community with many obstacles and challenges that they can potentially overcome. I think the viewpoint of homelessness, especially in the Skid Row community, needs to change.

I greatly valued this experience because it opened up my eyes to a new population and provided me with a taste of what their lives are like. What I thought was so positive about Skid Row is that it seemed as though the community at large is truly there for one another. Not only do the inhabitants provide shoulders of support for one another, but the community workers and agencies serving that community are all there to provide help. I am excited to continue learning about communities and their many facets.