Wesley Church, a professor and director of the School of Social Work at Louisiana State University gives a talk on Monday, April 17, 2017 at the Kansas Union. Church is a candidate for the position of dean of the University of Kansas School of Social Welfare.

The second finalist to become dean of the University of Kansas School of Social Welfare said, if chosen, he would prioritize “servant leadership” and social justice in the school, among other points.

Wesley Church, professor and director of the School of Social Work at Louisiana State University, gave a public presentation Monday at the Kansas Union. A theme was that as a professional school, the unit must continue striving for real-world engagement and impact.

Social welfare is a service-oriented profession, and it’s important to make sure that what’s done at the School of Social Welfare is society-based, Church said.

The theme of service applies to his leadership style — “the idea of being a servant first,” he said — as well as his priorities for faculty research and student engagement, Church said.

“We need to get back to the service value of our profession,” he said. “It should address social problems; that’s what social welfare research should do.”

Research should be less driven by faculty’s personal interests and more driven by societal problems that need addressing, he said. He said social welfare research should work with and in the community, not in “ivory towers.”

In times of shrinking funding, growing the donor base — as endowed chairs and professorships help support faculty — and seeking research funding from sources outside NIH are important, Church said.

However, social welfare research shouldn’t be judged solely on funding dollars brought in or productivity, but also its effect on the community, Church said.

“If they can produce change in a community, that’s just profound,” he said.

For students, to ensure competency and competitiveness, the KU School of Social Welfare must compete with other programs to get the best and brightest students — and be ready to dismiss those that aren’t performing to the standards expected of them in the professional school, Church said.

“Not every student will be a social worker,” he said. “We are not a profession to choose just because you can’t get into another major.”

He said recruiting and advancing minority students in the program is a priority, and that one key to that also is recruiting minority faculty — a challenge for schools nationwide.

He said there are multiple reasons why he wants to lead KU’s School of Social Welfare: It is ranked No. 12 nationally and committed to “cutting edge” research, promoting social justice, community engagement and diversity. For his family, he said, the Lawrence community is “a place that we can finally call home.”

Church, a New Hampshire native, is married with five children. In his spare time, he said, he likes playing the guitar — classic rock and blues rock — and riding motorcycles.

At Louisiana State, where he has held the endowed professor and director position since 2014, Church has overseen the expansion of degree options — including online and dual programs with other disciplines — and supervised increased faculty publications and funded research, according to KU. Previously he was at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, from 2003 to 2014. He also has worked as a correctional officer and caseworker with the Utah Department of Corrections.

Church received doctoral and master’s degrees in social work and a bachelor’s degree in art history, all from the University of Utah.

KU’s School of Social Welfare dean position has been in flux since former dean Paul Smokowski announced his resignation in March 2016, following student diversity protests targeting him personally. Smokowski remains a professor at KU, and professor of social welfare Steve Kapp is the school’s interim dean.

Other presentations

Four School of Social Welfare dean candidates are being asked to present on the topic “The Social Work Profession in 2027 and the Role of Schools of Social Work in Preparing For It.”

Michelle Mohr Carney, a professor and director of the School of Social Work at Arizona State University, gave a presentation Thursday, April 14. Wesley Church, professor and director of the School of Social Work at Louisiana State University, gave his presentation Monday, April 17.

Remaining candidates will be named about two days before their respective visits, according to KU. Presentations are planned for:

• Candidate 3, at 2:30 p.m. April 24 in the Jayhawk Room at the Kansas Union.

• Candidate 4, at 2:30 p.m. April 26 in the Centennial Room at the Union.