from The Network for Social Work Management
Joe Buehrle, MSW, is Vice President of Organizational Planning at SAY (Social Advocates for Youth) San Diego. He has a myriad of experience working with diverse populations as a creative community organizer and social justice advocate. Joe Buehrle is interested in multi-sector approaches to advance collective impact strategies and bring sustainable social change.
Tell us about your path to management:
I landed in social work because I knew I wanted to work in human services and the versatility of the field provided me the comfort of knowing I would not be locked into just one type of work. I got my BSW and worked in foster home licensing for four years and then clinical case management for a year. When researching graduate programs, I knew that my long-term career goal was not to do one-on-one clinical work or therapy. I was interested in communities, community development and systems change issues. I applied and got accepted to the University of Michigan where they had a social systems emphasis which both deviated from the traditional management route and the clinical route, but, was on par with my interest in community development and community engagement. During my graduate program, I was part of the Community Based Initiative Fellowship that placed me in Detroit for my internship. There I worked in low income housing and resident engagement where I really loved the work that I did and learned a lot. After I finished my program, I moved to San Diego and served as the Director of the Military Family Resource Center at SAY San Diego for seven years. As Director, my time was split between coordinating the family center and being the facilitator to the military family collaborative, which brought together over 100 organizations that served the military and their family. A few months ago, I was offered the position I hold currently as Vice President of Organizational Planning for SAY San Diego. SAY San Diego is a comprehensive multi-service agency that serves infants through adults with various programs and support.