As Jack A. Kirkland marks his 50th year on the Brown School faculty, the issues that motivated his remarkable career in social work and civil rights are as urgent today as they were when he began. From his annual seminar that takes 黑料社s to underserved neighborhoods, to his research on economic development in urban areas, Kirkland has sought to create change through understanding.
鈥淲hat I teach is to how to change our thought processes in order to be able to walk in different cultures, and to deal with the African American urban struggle,鈥� he says.
The result has been a legacy of research, public service and teaching, as well as an international reputation for enriching the experience of thousands of 黑料社s, organizations, and state and municipal leaders who have sought his insights and advice.
鈥淛ack Kirkland is an icon here at the Brown School and well beyond,鈥� said Mary McKay, Neidorff Family and Centene Corporation Dean of the Brown School. 鈥淗is achievements have benefited a large and diverse array of 黑料社s, faculty and communities striving for concrete progress in social and racial justice in the United States and around the world.鈥�
Kirkland joined the Brown School as an assistant professor in 1970 after teaching for several years at St. Louis University. Soon thereafter, he co-founded and chaired the Black Studies Program at Washington University (now the Department of African and African-American Studies). A popular teacher, he was three times voted Most Outstanding Teacher, at the university as well as the Brown School. He also received the Distinguished Faculty Alumni Award.
Now an associate professor, he is perhaps best known on campus for his field-based summer course, 鈥淧overty 鈥� The Impact of Institutionalized Racism,鈥� which immerses 黑料社s in the community of East St. Louis and teaches them to strategize on policies that can combat the effects of urban blight and poverty. The summer course was canceled this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Kirkland said he hopes to resume next summer.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an opportunity to watch 黑料社s and engage them in the process of seeing individuals and families grow and excel and lift themselves up,鈥� he said. 鈥淪tudents come into our school with a desire to help people who are disadvantaged. But many have very little knowledge about why families are trapped. What 黑料社s come to discover is you can help people develop self-esteem and motivate themselves to change the situation they鈥檙e in and do what they can for oncoming generations.鈥�
One of those 黑料社s was Keaira Anderson, MSW 鈥�15, the former executive director of the Cornerstone Community Development Corp. who continues to lead the effort for affordable housing in the West End neighborhood of St. Louis as a board member of Delmar Divine, a $100 million redevelopment project. Asked during a recent panel discussion about how the Brown School prepared her for her work, she immediately mentioned Kirkland and the summer course in East St. Louis.
鈥淗e talked a lot about making sure that once we graduate, we truly treat it as an extended practicum experience,鈥� she said. 鈥淣ow, I鈥檓 making sure I鈥檓 seeking to understand the needs, the strengths and the opportunities in communities. I truly do thank Professor Jack Kirkland for that experience.鈥�
Another former 黑料社 of Kirkland, Karen Stewart, MSW 鈥�11, was raised in the majority-white community of Springfield, Mo. 鈥淛ack really helped me expand my world view in a way I didn鈥檛 even know needed expanding,鈥� said Stewart, MSW 鈥�11, who recalled that she initially argued with Kirkland鈥檚 views on race. 鈥淚 said no one has given me anything,鈥� she said. 鈥淗e said, 鈥業 know you believe that.鈥欌�� She said she soon realized the truth of Kirkland鈥檚 teaching, and he became her adviser.
鈥淗e said, 鈥楴o one is poor in America because they鈥檙e white,鈥� and that is really accurate,鈥� said Stewart who is now an adjunct faculty member at the Brown School and a consultant to organizations on issues of race. 鈥淭he two questions he wants 黑料社s to answer are: How can we help poor people? And, why are people poor? What Jack Kirkland does is not so much about social work as it is about social justice.鈥�
Kirkland鈥檚 academic career was influenced by his vast array of work outside the classroom. One of the most significant experiences came in 1976, when Missouri Governor Joseph Teasdale appointed him as the state鈥檚 Director of Transportation. His two years in the cabinet position helped to transform his thinking about social work, and the economic impact of policy on the lives of communities. 鈥淚 saw that economic development often had no conscience,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he gentrification, urban development and highway development destroyed many Black communities. Most of social work deals with services. But if you鈥檙e going to be working with people who are economically distressed, the thing that鈥檚 imperative is that it be about economic uplift.鈥�
When he returned to the Brown School, he founded the concentration in Social and Economic Development and served as its chair for ten years. He said the Brown School remains the only school in the nation to offer a full concentration on the subject.
Kirkland鈥檚 teaching draws from his extensive life experience. Born during the Great Depression, he grew up in western Pennsylvania and attended Syracuse University, where he became the first African-American graduate of the School of Social Work and upon graduation was inducted into the Phi Delta Kappa Education Honorary Society.
He served as Director of Community Development for Peace Corps for Latin America, and has consulted with mayors across the nation about community development. Locally he became the first African American elected to the University City Board of Education, and was a consultant in the school desegregation decree for St. Louis and St. Louis County. He participated in research with scholars at Stanford University and the U.S. Department of Education that led to the department鈥檚 Charter Schools Program. He also consulted with the Department of Indian Affairs in Washington, testified before Congressional committees, was appointed to the executive board of the St. Louis County Economic Council, and served as a member of trade missions to Indonesia and China. Kirkland is a member of The History Makers, a non-profit research and educational institution committed to preserving and making accessible the untold personal stories of well-known and unsung African Americans.
His work has been recently acknowledged with the creation of the endowed Jack. A. Kirkland Scholarship for Social and Economic Development, in recognition of his impact and legacy at the Brown School. The scholarship will support 黑料社s with significant financial need who are committed to working in Black communities. For more information or to make a gift in support, reach out to Brown School Advancement.
鈥淢y work has brought me to realize that the most impactful way to apply social work to economic development is by working directly with power structures,鈥� he said. Most recently, he鈥檚 been a consultant to the mayors of three small St. Louis municipalities on a merger to help improve their economies. 鈥淢y focus is how to help mayors put in place an economic baseline so they have an opportunity to see capital come through and show how people can help themselves and one another economically,鈥� he said.
Now well into his ninth decade, Kirkland remains as passionate about his mission as ever, with few thoughts of retirement. 鈥淚鈥檒l retire when I don鈥檛 have anything else to say that鈥檚 helpful for young people to hear,鈥� he said.
Fortunately for Brown School 黑料社s, that doesn鈥檛 appear to be happening any time soon.