Dirk de Jong

I was born in The Netherlands where I studied journalism before I came to the United States. In this country I worked as a pre-school teacher, a special education teacher, and as a social worker. On a part-time basis, I taught courses at the School of Social Welfare, University at Albany, and at Fulton-Montgomery Community College. My professional interests are in the areas of school social work, social work with youth and families, gender identity, and qualitative research.

My Siena Experience

My Teaching Philosophy

My teaching philosophy rests on the belief that all of us are life-long learners and that we learn from one another, in and out of the classroom. I believe that teaching and learning should be fun and exciting and be grounded in "real world" experiences.

What I Love About Siena

I love teaching at Siena because it gives me the opportunity to pursue my interests and to support students in pursuing theirs. I appreciate the open exchange of ideas on campus, the commitment of my colleagues to quality teaching, and the emphasis on community service and on a values-based education.

My Favorite Courses to Teach

I like to teach the Introduction to Social Welfare and Social Work class (SWRK 100), because it provides a broad overview of the field and the profession and contains good information to help students decide on a career. I also like this course because it gives me an opportunity to interact with students who are pusuing majors other than social work. I enjoy teaching the the Social Work Practice Skills course (SWRK 200), because it deepens the students' understanding of their own communication style and provides a safe environment to experience "hands-on" interviewing skills. SWRK 430 (Social Work Research) is another favorite. Students are typically apprehensive when it comes to this course, so it is gratifying when they express an appreciation of research as systematic inquiry and as a way to continuously expand our intellectual horizons.Finally, I am really excited about co-teaching the introductory course in International Studies (ILST 100, starting in the fall of 2015), because it will be based on an inter-disciplinary approach and will allow an examination of social welfare issues cross-culturally and on a global scale.

My Professional Experience

Current Research

My research interests are in the area of gender identity and gender variance, particularly in educational settings. In addition, I am interested in the study of social policy in a global contact.

Articles & Book Reviews

• Second Chances
  Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping, vol. 23
  2018
• Christian Social Work Education and Transgender Issues: A Faculty Survey
  Social work & Christianity, vol. 44
  2017
• Living in the Tension In-Between -- Faculty Members Talk About Faith and Transgender Issues in Christian Social Work Programs
  Social work & Christianity, vol. 44
  2017
• The Truth Behind Gender Ideology (Letter to the Editor)
  Social work & Christianity, vol. 44
  2017
• A new paradigm in social work research: It's here, it's queer, get used to it!
  Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping, vol. 20
  2015
• Transgender issues and BSW programs: Exploring faculty perceptions, practices, and attitudes
  Journal of Baccalaureate Social Work, vol. 20
  2015
• He wears pink leggings almost every day, and a pink sweatshirt....How school social workers understand and respond to gender variance
  Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, vol. 32
  2014
• I think it would be a very sensitive topic... School social work, gender variance, and the silencing of differences
  Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, vol. 24
  2014
• Christian social work students' views on gender variance: An exploratory study
  Social work & Christianity, vol. 45
  Winter, 2018

Awards & Distinctions

• Faculty Information Literacy Grant: Identifying Credible News Sources for a Social Policy Assignment
  Category: Teaching
  Siena College Library, 2022
• COTFD Summer Research Fellowship
  Category: Research
  Siena College, 2018
• DAC Summer Research Fellowship
  Category: Research
  Siena College, 2017
• DAC Summer Research Fellowship
  Category: Research
  Siena College, 2016
• Distinguished Dissertation Award
  Category: Research
  University at Albany, 2014

Books & Book Chapters

• Conservative Christianity, Gender Identity, and Religious Liberty
  Palgrave Macmillan
  2020
• An Approach to Mid-Management in Social Welfare, by Steven I. Pflanczer
  Rockefeller College Press
  1991

Presentations

• Religious Freedom, Transgender Rights, and Moral Pluralism
  2020
  North American Association of Christians in Social Work, Washington, District of Columbia
• The Case For Teaching Social Policy Without Borders
  2020
  Global Well-Being and Social Change Conference, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
• Christian Social Work Education and Transgender Issues: Values Conflict or Reconciliation?
  2018
  NYS Social Work Education Association Conference, Saratoga Springs, New York
• An Interdisciplinary Team Approach to Teaching about Globalization, Sustainability, and Social Justice
  2016
  Millersville University Global Poverty Conference (2016), Lancaster, Pennsylvania
• Linking the Global to the Local: Challenges and Opportunities in Teaching about Sustainability and Social Justice
  2016
  New York State Social Work Education Association Annual Conference, Saratoga Springs, New York
• Reconciling Faith and Transgender Issues in Social Work Education
  2016
  66th Annual Convention of the North American Association of Christians in Social Work, Cincinnati, Ohio
• "Talking about gender is like talking about sex". The school social work response to gender-variant students in the classroom.
  2015
  Philadelphia Trans Health Conference, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Heteronormativity, homonormativity, and gender variance in the classroom: Perceptions and reflections from school social workers
  2014
  Second Annual Capital District Feminist Studies Conference, Loudonville, New York
• A survey of pediatric practices for the treatment of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (poster)
  1999
  Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Boston, Massachusetts