Our first week of classes has concluded amid two dramatically opposite national experiences: violence and bigotry in Charlottesville, Virginia, and universally shared excitement with the eclipse.

We can expect to be at odds in coming months between confrontation and opportunities for connection like these, all within the context of national and international instability.

As a school, we can use this tension as an opportunity to probe the meanings of democracy, diversity and social reform more deeply.

We must begin, of course, with absolute detestation – intellectual, professional and personal – for hatred, bigotry, and any force that destroys and denigrates other human beings. The promotion of violence on our streets is in opposition to an inclusive society.

But from this point of departure, the problems become more complicated. 

As social workers and nurses, we have the tough job of making life better, of resolving conflict in intractable situations. We can’t settle for slogans because we actually have to get the work of social change done.

This means that in classes, faculty meetings and our engagement with others here and elsewhere in the country, we have a special obligation. We will need to model civility, reasoned argument, use of evidence and attention to other viewpoints.

We are here to preserve respect for the individual and to promote reform through democratic means. This means disagreement and compromise. We are obligated to examine alternatives carefully, even when solutions are not simple. We can support each other through shared values while having very different opinions about problem definition and strategy.

In coming weeks, the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work will be examining options for shared dialogue.

We will be building opportunities for better online connectivity to allow for expanded and ongoing discussion of issues.

We will collaborate with other schools at USC in establishing forums for in-person meetings.

We will rethink how we can make our diversity and inclusion initiative more powerful, especially through All School Day.

We will try to develop better evidence to support policy options through our programs of research in our USC Roybal Institute on Aging, USC Center for Research and Innovation on Veterans & Military Families, and other programs.

We will work with NASW to strengthen our impact and voice in the community, here and nationally.

Now, in this special time when values and the very foundations of our society seem challenged, social workers and nurses must attend more than ever to implementing principles of respect for diversity and inclusion, social equity and democratic problem-solving. Science will be our guide, ethics our mainstay, and belief in human potential our inspiration.

I look forward to the coming year and joining with all of you in our common purpose.