Matthew McCall, ’07 M.S.W. / Certificate of Urban Leadership

Training/Organizational Effectiveness Manager, The Home for Little Wanderers, N.E.’s largest child & family service agency

A tremendous opportunity for leadership advancement

"When I learned that I had been selected by The Home to receive social work training with the Simmons School of Social Work, I couldn't have been happier. The school has an exceptional reputation," says Matthew McCall, training and organizational effectiveness manager at The Home for Little Wanderers, New England's largest child and family service agency. "Knowing that The Home and Simmons would subsidize two-thirds of the cost made it even better. Coming up with my portion of the tuition is still a challenge but this program helps."

The program McCall is referring to is his employer's educational partnership with Simmons. In 2004, The Home embarked on an "educational cost-sharing model" with the SSW. The model creates an equal partnership among The Home, Simmons, and staff members at The Home who are selected to attend the school. Each partner contributes one-third of the cost to educate the staff member.

"Going back to school while continuing my work at The Home is difficult and time consuming, but I love what I'm doing. I know that I am benefiting from advancing my understanding in social work theory and practice. I'm already applying what I've learned. It helps greatly that the program allows for flexibility, too."

McCall explains that while working at The Home, he attends Simmons part time, even participating in the school's required clinical practice. "The Home released me from half my placement hours in my current position to pursue clinical experience elsewhere within The Home's organization. I gain a tremendous opportunity to learn from other areas of service at The Home, and I still receive my full-time salary, which makes it possible for me to continue to support my family while pursuing my MSW and Urban Leadership Certification."

Obtaining a higher-level leadership position at The Home is McCall's goal. "I know that in order to be a good leader within my selected field, I need to have a better understanding of social work principles. Simmons is helping me advance my skill set and recognize how I can be an effective leader."