Two students from the UALR School of Social Work Organization (SSWO) will attend a national conference next July if the UALR Office of Alumni and Development first crowdfunding project is a success.

Clayton Andrews, annual giving and alumni membership associate at UALR, said the Office of Alumni and Development recently approached the school about becoming its pilot crowdfunding project. The $5,000-goal, if reached, will help cover travel expenses and conference fees for the two students.

“The members are hitting social media very hard and soliciting their family, friends, faculty, former School of Social Work alumni and any others who may help them reach their goal,” he said.

Two students will attend the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) conference in Washington, D.C., next summer through a random drawing from 30 current members of the organization.

“Students attending a national conference serve as ambassadors, demonstrating to the rest of the nation’s social workers that Arkansas and its workers are highly valued members of the national social work community,” said Jonathan Howland, a graduate of UALR’s Master of Social Work program.

“As a former student member of NASW and a current professional member, I can say that the opportunity to attend the national NASW conference would have been valuable to me as in individual and for Arkansas social workers.”

The NASW is the largest membership organization of professional social workers in the world with 132,000 members. Attendees have access to cutting-edge research, practice-specific resources, national networking opportunities, career services, and an opportunity to become a member of both the local chapter and national organization.

Andrews said he hopes this will be the first of many crowdfunding projects overseen by the Office of Development on UALR’s Marketplace.

For more information on the project or the SSWO, contact Amber Brossett at ambrossett@ualr.edu. Donations may be made here and will be accepted through June 1, 2015.