Congresswoman Roybal-Allard Christens New Military Social Work Program

The USC School of Social Work and the USC Institute of Creative Technologies held a reception to celebrate the school’s new military social work and veteran services program, the first of its kind at a research university, and recognize Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard for helping secure $3.2 million in federal funding for its development.
“We are very grateful for the opportunity to participate in this one-of-a-kind program. It’s going to be filling a void,” said Randall W. Hill, Jr., executive director of ICT.  “By securing this funding, you are not only bringing attention to the issues that are facing our service members, but you are also helping to train a generation of social workers and specialists who are going to be able to treat them as they return.”
The School of Social Work is collaborating with ICT to use some of its immersive technologies to train social workers and treat patients. ICT is working with the U.S. Army and has developed a virtual reality exposure therapy to treat soldiers and veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome.  ICT research scientist Skip Rizzo was on hand to demonstrate the therapy.
Read about the kick-off event.