Olivia Darr, University of South Carolina College of Social Work master’s student, spent 10 hours a week managing social work cases with the West Columbia Police Department in 2021, and it didn’t take long for her to understand the clear connection between social work and law enforcement.
It’s a connection the police department and the College of Social Work have been strengthening with a training program that introduces social work students to the world of law enforcement. The West Columbia Outreach Program allows graduate students to complete field work with the police department as part of their course requirements.
“Law enforcement and social work are a fantastic marriage,” West Columbia police chief Marion Boyce says. “They go together so beautifully.”
Nearly half of the 37,000 calls for help the police department gets every year are related to mental health or substance use. The program — birthed due to jail overcrowding in Lexington County — allows for officers to deescalate a situation, return people to safety, and then lets social work students assess the cases and discover people’s needs. The students then connect those people to the appropriate services within the community and the records are kept confidential.
For seven years, the partnership between USC and the police department has not only supported officers by reducing 911 calls when residents with mental health or substance use issues need assistance; it’s also given social work students experience with...
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