Future Leaders
Jan Duker
As an international visiting student from Bielefeld, Germany, Jan Duker comes to the School of Social Policy & Practice with a different perspective. In Germany, his course of study has a focus on educational sciences, but also includes a social work component. He attributes his decision to spend a semester studying at the School of Social Policy & Practice to the recommendation of one of his German professors who encouraged him to develop a comparative perspective. Specifically, his attention is concentrated on a comparison of the welfare systems in the United States and Germany.
As Jan explained in a recent interview, there are many differences in the welfare systems of these two countries. When asked which differences he finds most striking, he immediately referenced the high levels of segregation, poverty, and homelessness he sees in Philadelphia. Also of note to him was the fact that in Germany, “welfare is not just for women.” Although the distinction between the deserving and undeserving poor is stronger in the U.S., Jan explained that these classifications are becoming more prevalent in Germany.
According to Jan, his country is beginning to implement welfare to work policies that are similar to those currently found in the U.S. To gain an in-depth understanding of social work here, Jan has observed the Philadelphia non-profit agency AchieveAbility. His visiting student status means he doesn’t complete a traditional field placement, but at AchieveAbility, he sits in on intake interviews, talks to the Executive Director, and observes the workings of the agency. He has also had the opportunity to visit other local non-profit agencies, including Valley Youth House and Philadelphia Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY).
These field experiences, combined with the three seminar courses he is taking, keep him busy, but he manages to make time to explore Philadelphia and other places like New York City, Washington, D.C., and Niagara Falls His “dream job” is to do research, and the time he is spending at SP² is broadening his understanding of different welfare systems.