Originally posted by the UGA School of Social Work

One University of Georgia School of Social Work faculty member is utilizing a groundbreaking program to advance the traditional scope of social work.

Zoe Minor Johnson, Clinical Associate Professor in the online Master of Social Work (MSW) program, is one of seven inaugural members of the UGA Innovation District’s Faculty Innovation Fellows (FIF) program. The two-year program is helping faculty members from five different UGA schools and colleges fine-tune their research while fostering invention, entrepreneurship, and experiential learning.

Johnson’s presence in the program’s first class will foster new ways of thinking within the academic discipline and also provide a path for others to understand the depth and breadth of social work’s impact – and future avenues of impact – across campus and beyond.

“Many people have a limited understanding of the field of social work, often viewing it narrowly through a very one-dimensional lens,” Johnson said. “In reality, social work is a dynamic profession that extends into many critical domains of human service, including healthcare, behavioral health, nonprofit leadership, community development, child welfare, policy advocacy, education, social responsibility, and beyond.

“By leveraging innovation, we can better highlight the expansive reach of social work, position the UGA School of Social Work as a leader in interdisciplinary collaboration, and create new opportunities for faculty and students to make a positive impact in our community, state, and world.”

Impact as a Driver

A member of the UGA community since 2007, Johnson had been aware of the Innovation District through university news and faculty retreats. Recently, one SSW faculty meeting included an appearance by Chris Rhodes, executive director of the Innovation District, and his informative speech about the FIF program sparked Johnson’s interest immediately.

“It was a no-brainer,” Johnson said. “I love that we’ve got an institutional commitment to revolutionization in this very key and critical way where faculty and students can receive the expertise and resources of support to be able to nourish and nurture great ideas to carry forward into the world.”

Johnson entered a pool of around 50 applicants and completed a robust application and interview process where she showcased her background in leadership and program building before being accepted. Her day-to-day life is a blend of academia and practice; along with her duties at the School of Social Work, she also operates a private practice where she delivers counseling services to clients. This range of experience gave her a different way to engage with the program.

“Most startups and ventures of any kind aren’t based on patented inventions,” Rhodes said. “Social work, in particular, is full of people who hang out a shingle and start a business or a practice, or who build value through programming, curricula or knowledge. We wanted to be sure that we got that message across, that the Innovation District is about bringing all kinds of ideas to life, not just patented inventions.”

Johnson seeks to innovate in multiple ways. In her academic work, she strives to better prepare tomorrow’s social workers to face industry challenges, and similarly seeks to utilize new strategies to provide better care for her clients as a practitioner.

With academic and practice experience in everything from mental health work and youth development to disability justice and advocacy and racial justice, Johnson will draw upon her wide-ranging expertise as she looks for ways to innovate.

“I’ve had the opportunity to work with folks in such diverse settings and on such diverse tasks, I bring this perspective of pulling things that are seemingly divergent together,” Johnson said. “That helps me to be able to identify solutions where sometimes people only see the challenges.”

Rhodes noted that during the applicant interview process, Johnson’s ideas around the renaissance of the private sector in social work were particularly impactful.

“We’re no longer in a time where our public resources are always enough to meet the vast needs that exist,” Johnson said. “It’s going to take some people pushing and some people pulling in all ways to stand alongside and supplement. I think we are really embracing private sector work as a key and core part of how we can achieve the more holistic goals that we would hope for and that are tied to our values as a profession.”

Driving Discovery Across Campus

The 2025 FIF program class is still early in its two-year fellowship, but Johnson has already grown as a professional through the program, as she and her colleagues received training to understand the Innovation District as a whole.

The Innovation District’s innovation gateway provides support through intellectual property protections and licenses, while its startup support and entrepreneur program initiatives empower faculty and students to bring their ideas to the marketplace.

In addition, the district’s business engagement wing connects companies with University talent and resources, while its small business development center helps Georgia small businesses find tools, support, and education. The Innovation District’s experiential learning focus brings real-world experiences to students as they enter the workforce.

The FIF class will become ambassadors for the Innovation District as it matriculates, said Rhodes, helping connect individuals from their respective units to the array of resources available. Participants will also help bring together all of the existing resources at their schools and colleges through discovery and pilot projects to give the Innovation District a better idea of ways it can plug into these university units more effectively.

As Johnson continues along her journey with the program, she isn’t sure what exactly her final product or experience from the program will be. She spoke highly of the program’s vision casting and brainstorming components as she looks for new ways to innovate social work in her academic work and beyond.

“I’m really grateful that I can sit alongside colleagues and faculty members who are in very different domains and disciplines, yet we can come together in a collaborative way,” Johnson said, also sharing her appreciation for support from SSW Dean Philip Hong. “It’s really nice that this program has created a space where we can think outside of our normal, ponder how our ideas can exist in the industry, and figure out how to connect our learners to experience and opportunities in that way.”