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9 Moving Up MY PROMOTION TO UNIT SUPERVISOR AT AID TO Needy Children was an example of being in the right place at the right time and demonstrated my growing confidence in taking risks. Jack Corey was eager to bring more MSWs into his department, particularly in the difficult ANC program,which had no MSW staff at all. I was the only one on the promotion list. The opportunity was there, and I was ready to risk moving into a completely new situation. Because I was apprehensive about my lack of experience as a supervisor, I gave careful consideration to how I would approach my new job.I decided to use the problem-solving approach that had been drilled into me at graduate school. This disciplined approach had worked well for me in the Adoptions Unit, and there was no reason why it should not be applicable to my new position.I helped staff identify problems, consider alternatives, analyze the pros and cons of the alternatives, and, finally, guide their clients through an appropriate plan of action.Unit social workers were receptive.They already felt that the agency’s prevailing practices—ferreting out welfare cheats, closing as many cases as possible, and keeping welfare payments to the minimum—did little to resolve family problems . They were ready to consider a more positive approach in working with the families on their caseloads. I was pleased with the six social workers assigned to me. They were eager to learn, wanted to be of greater help to clients, and had a positive outlook. They were relatively young, just a few years younger than I was. They offered to help me learn the technicali- ties of ANC. Like Jack, they felt this aspect of the job should not be a problem for me, and they were right. The staff was looking to me for help with the people problems in their caseloads, not the technical aspects. I was very happy to help. Gary Mead, an affable, easygoing country boy from Oklahoma, was the most outgoing of the unit staff.He took the lead in explaining the technical details of the program, which consisted of determining budget needs for families. While Gary was not the most senior member in the unit,he was the unofficial leader of the group. He once sold shoes for a living and often expressed the happiness he felt now that his job did not require him to kneel down before his customers.If Gary was the most outgoing among the staff,Simon Dominguez was easily the quietest. Si came from a proud Hispanic family with a long history in California. He cared deeply about the mothers and children on his caseload and had a deep understanding of the problems they faced. I was not surprised to find that Si was ready to consider ways to be of greater help to his clients. He proved an apt student. Gary and Si were the first of a dozen staff members that I recommended to graduate schools of social work while I was at the Department of SocialWelfare.Gary received an MSW from the University of Utah, and Si got his master’s from the University of Southern California. At the same time, I also helped them obtain financial stipends from the state. The stipends required that they return to work for Sacramento County on a year-for-year basis— a win-win situation for all of us. Employees got master’s degrees, and the agency got back trained staff people who could deal more effectively with the department’s clients. My immediate supervisor was George Cunningham, ANC division chief. George had come up through the ranks and was thoroughly knowledgeable about ANC. He did not have graduate training in social work,and I wondered if he would resent my degree. Fortunately, such was not the case. A loyal company man, he could always be counted on to get behind department initiatives. The country’s civil rights unrest was starting to produce reforms 132 early career, 1957–1970 in social welfare programs. Congress passed the landmark 1962 amendments to the Social Security Act, which legitimized the provision of social services to the ANC program. Previously, ANC had taken a standardized approach based on eligibility and family-budget determinations. The Sacramento County Department of Social Welfare entered a phenomenal growth period, adding numerous programs and financial resources, and a second ANC division emerged to accommodate the growth. I decided to compete...

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