23rd Annual POWER Conference
February 26-27, 2026
Eugene M. Hughes Metropolitan Complex
Wichita, KS
Theme
Back to Our Roots: Reclaiming Community-Centered Social Work and Human Connections
This conference is designed so we can have an exploration of grassroots approaches that elevate lived experience, cultural wisdom, and collective care—beyond the limits of institutional systems. Our conference theme calls us to re-center authentic relationships, community knowledge, and local networks at the heart of social work practice, reconnecting with the foundational values of justice, solidarity, and healing.
Through a series of engaging presentations and speakers, we will delve into the innovative practices, new research, social work resources, and new ways of thinking that are shaping our field. There are many fields of practice which intersect with this topic – clinical, aging, education, forensic, health, child welfare, housing, leadership, aging, substance use, and veterans... just to name a few!
Call for Presenters
We are looking for compelling presentations, workshops, panels, and research that may explore areas such as these:
- Grassroots and community-led initiatives that reflect cultural knowledge and lived experience
- Relational and human-centered practice models across all fields of social work
- Decolonizing frameworks and culturally grounded approaches to care
- Community organizing and advocacy for systemic change
- Innovations in collective care, mutual aid, and healing justice
- Restorative and transformative practices in justice, education, and mental health
- Leadership and policy change that re-centers community voice
- Interdisciplinary collaborations that promote holistic, locally rooted solutions
- Research and evaluation methods that honor community engagement and wisdom
We welcome proposals from all intersecting areas of social work practice - including but not limited to:
- Clinical Practice
- Child Welfare
- Health and Mental Health
- Education and School Social Work
- Forensic and Justice Systems
- Housing and Homelessness
- Substance Use and Recovery
- Veterans Services
- Aging and Gerontology
- Social Work Leadership
Join us as we spotlight innovative practices, community-rooted research, and bold ideas that are shaping the next generation of social work.
Submission deadline is September 1, 2025.