Celebrating Sandra Edmonds Crewe, PhD’s Decade of Decanal Leadership

 

Dear Howard University Community,

I write this letter to announce that Sandra Edmonds Crewe, PhD, dean of the School of Social Work, will depart the position at the culmination of the 2023-2024 academic year. The University will launch a national decanal search for the School of Social Work imminently.

Dr. Crewe has served in various capacities across the University, including associate dean for Academic Affairs and Student Advancement. She has led the School of Social Work since 2013, keeping it at the vanguard of social work education. Under her leadership, the School of Social Work has been successfully reaccredited through the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Commission on Accreditation. She led the development of several dual degree programs, including the MSW/MDiv with the School of Divinity and the MSW/MPH with the Public Health Program. Additionally, she has championed the establishment of the new online MSW program, subsequently increasing the enrollment of social work students at Howard.

During Dr. Crewe’s tenure as dean, contributions to the School of Social Work increased significantly, including a substantial gift from the family of activist and philanthropist Fred Taylor to create the “Roll Away the Stone” Nonprofit and Human Services Leadership Certificate Program, as well as other gifts directed at supporting student scholarships and community engagement. These efforts have grown the national prestige of the School of Social Work, as the U.S. News & World Report ranked the graduate program 16th nationwide, among the top 5% of social work programs in the country, speaking to the quality of the educational programs, commitment of our faculty, and leadership of Dr. Crewe.

A nationally recognized scholar and social worker, Dr. Crewe has been named an NASW Pioneer by the National Association of Social Workers Foundation for her contributions to the evolution and enrichment of the profession. She serves as trustee or board member for a host of organizations, including the Maryland Affordable Housing Trust, the American Association of Service Coordinators, the Open My Heart Foundation, Home Care Partners, and the National Association of Deans and Directors of Schools of Social Work. She also is a founding member of the HBCU Schools of Social Work Network and co-lead of the network addressing eradicating social isolation, a grand challenge of the American Society of Social Work and Social Welfare. In 2020, Dr. Crewe received the Elizabeth Hurlock Beckman award for excellence in education and inspirational leadership and, in 2022, she was named one of Next Avenue’s 10 Influencers in Aging for bringing solutions, innovation, inspiration, and big thinking to the aging space.

Following a sabbatical year, Dr. Crewe will return to the University as a full professor in the School of Social Work.

Join me in thanking Dr. Crewe for her excellent stewardship and acclaimed leadership of the School of Social Work, and the many contributions she has made to the University, its students and graduates, and our global community.

Excellence in Truth and Service,

Wayne A. I. Frederick, M.D., MBA
Charles R. Drew Professor of Surgery
President