The Centre for Studies on Poverty and Social Citizenship (CSPSC) is excited to invite you to our upcoming symposium, themed From Housing Crisis to Affordable Housing: Organizations rallying together, strengthening capacities and addressing the housing crisis in Ottawa. The event will take place on Tuesday, March 24, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in Richcraft Hall,2nd Floor, Room 2220.

This event brings together community organizations, advocates, researchers, and policymakers to explore real solutions to Ottawa鈥檚 housing crisis. It is an excellent opportunity for students interested in social policy, community work, poverty reduction, housing, or advocacy to learn, network, and engage with leaders in the field.

Present Your Work

Social Work students are invited to contribute to the symposium by participating as a:

• Poster presenter
• Volunteer

If you would like to present or volunteer, please sign up here:

All students are welcome to attend the symposium. Please register using the link here:  or by visiting the CSPSC website. A QR code and direct link are available on the event page for quick access.

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As of October 1, 2025, the registration requirements for all new College applicants will include submitting a vulnerable sector check. Including a vulnerable sector check as a registration requirement is an additional tool to safeguard the public from potential harm.

Please note: As this is a new registration requirement, current registrants will not be required to submit a vulnerable sector check. This will apply to all new applications beginning October 1, 2025.

Check out the below for more information about this new registration requirement.

Questions?

Contact the College鈥檚 Registration and Renewals Department:

• registration@ocswssw.org
• 416-972-9882 or 1-877-828-9380 (toll free)

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Dive into the world of social work with the from 杏吧原创 University’s Bachelor of Social Work Student Society (BSWSS), hosted by first-year BSW students Geraldine Ernest and Kayla Escoffery. Join them as they talk to a number of community advocates and social work professionals about working with marginalized communities, different career paths in social work, and social issues existing in the profession.

The post Introducing the New BSWSS Podcast: Stories of Service (SOS) appeared first on School of Social Work.

Brenda Morris, Associate Professor at the School of Social Work, is one of five recipients of the 2024-25 Future Learning Innovation Fellowship. The fellowship provides funding and support for instructors to explore innovative technologies that address defined teaching and learning challenges. Brenda is exploring how generative AI can enhance social work education by preparing students for evolving digital practice environments. Learn more about the recipients’ projects.

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Please join the School of Social Work and the Centre for Studies on Poverty and Social Citizenship as we celebrate our 75th and 50th anniversaries with a series of events taking place on Thursday, January 16, 2025.

9:00 am – 10:00 am EST
Webinar: Sharing the Gifts of Social Work Education in Africa
Join us for a panel discussion of the partnership between faculty at the University of Hargeisa and 杏吧原创 University as they developed the Hargeisa School of Social Work.  Panelists Nimo Bokore, Mukhtaar Caabi, Keltun Ebyan, and Alan Moscovitch will discuss the history of the School of Social Work at 杏吧原创 University, the story of the development of the Hargeisa School of Social Work, and the contributions of both schools to their communities.

Please follow this link to register.

12:00 pm – 2:30 pm EST
Centre for Studies on Poverty and Social Citizenship 50th Anniversary Lunch
The CSPSC will celebrate their 50th anniversary with a lunch and keynote address from Natalie Appleyard of Citizens for Public Justice.  The keynote will be followed by a Q&A session and networking.

Please register for the CSPSC 50th Anniversary Lunch here.

2:30 pm – 3:30 pm EST
Emerging Scholars Panel: Moving into the Future of Social Work Research and Practice
PhD candidates in the School of Social Work will share their dissertation research findings and answer questions relating to their studies and research. Light refreshments will be provided.

Please register for the Emerging Scholars panel here.

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After moving their family from T眉rkiye to Canada and completing undergraduate studies that built on their previous degrees, married couple Fatma and Ozgur Turker embarked on the next step of their academic journeys. Fatma, driven by a passion for mental health, and Ozgur, drawn to social policy, found their shared path in 杏吧原创鈥檚 .

Both note that their program peers were a significant influence on their education.

鈥淭he diversity of experiences and perspectives that our peers brought to the classroom was invaluable,鈥� says Ozgur. 鈥淭heir insights challenged and expanded my own understanding of the world and structural social work 鈥� making my education a truly transformative experience.鈥�

Fatma echoes this sentiment: 鈥淥ur friends all had different experiences and brought their perspectives to the classroom.

Read the

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Congratulations to MSW student Kofo Iziomon on the release of her CBC Ottawa Creator Network documentary titled . Kofo created and directed the documentary which features her children Joel and Precious (a student in the BSW program).

CBC News article:

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Kendal David, a PhD candidate in 杏吧原创 University’s School of Social Work, was recently published in The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives’ Monitor Magazine. The piece is about MP Leah Gazan’s efforts to make basic income a reality in Canada via .

Kendal was also featured in The Hill Times on September 27, 2024 in an opinion article titled “” (also available at this ). This piece was a cross-departmental collaboration between Kendal and Sociology PhD Candidate Megan Linton, who met during their early graduate studies at 杏吧原创 and continue to work and write together.

The post Kendal David: Basic Income Bill, Poverty Reduction, and Canada Disability Benefit Regulations appeared first on School of Social Work.

Showing of the Documentary Film  鈥淧assage to Freedom鈥�

May 20^th at 2:30 pm (doors open at 2:00pm)
Mayfair Theatre
1074 Bank Street, Ottawa

We are pleased to present Passage to Freedom, a 2022 Canadian documentary film, directed by Sheila Petzold. Passage to Freedom describes firsthand the dire conditions faced by Southeast Asian refugees who embarked on perilous voyages from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam to Canada.

The film is produced by Hearts of Freedom, a major oral history research project based at 杏吧原创 University that includes 174 video-taped interviews of former refugees from these three countries, government officials, and Canadian sponsors who welcomed them. All the interviews are available at the project website at

Through a skillful interweaving of archival footage, news reports, and interviews with former refugees and Canadian immigration officials, the film vividly portrays the escape journeys and resettlement of some of the over 100,000 Southeast Asian refugees in Canada between 1975 and 1985.

It remains the largest and most successful refugee immigration project in Canada鈥檚 history. The Canadian response to the refugee crisis was internationally recognized with the UNHRC Nansen Medal in 1986.

There is no charge for this screening. A donation box will be available if you wish to support the work of Hearts of Freedom and the cost of the screening.   The director and the researchers will be there to answer any questions.

Don鈥檛 miss the opportunity to watch this powerful film.

鈥溾��..very emotional, touching, and powerful documentary  It was a true, epic, historical, real-life tragedy, captured on film for posterity, Your film narrates this human episode of the Vietnam War in a poignant, true-to-life way, not found in any of the  previous Vietnam War related films thus far鈥�.

Dr. Hieu C. Truong O.C.

Contact :
Allan Moscovitch  Allan.Moscovitch@杏吧原创.ca  Phone: 613-853-8508 (cell)

Colleen Lundy  Colleen.Lundy@杏吧原创.ca Phone: 613-612-6390 (cell)

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