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NASW Pioneers Biography Index


The National Association of Social Workers Foundation is pleased to present the NASW Social Work Pioneers®. NASW Pioneers are social workers who have explored new territories and built outposts for human services on many frontiers. Some are well known, while others are less famous outside their immediate colleagues, and the region where they live and work. But each one has made an important contribution to the social work profession, and to social policies through service, teaching, writing, research, program development, administration, or legislation.

The NASW Pioneers have paved the way for thousands of other social workers to contribute to the betterment of the human condition; and they are are role models for future generations of social workers. The NASW Foundation has made every effort to provide accurate Pioneer biographies.  Please contact us at naswfoundation@socialworkers.org to provide missing information, or to correct inaccurate information. It is very important to us to correctly tell these important stories and preserve our history.  

Please note, an asterisk attached to a name reflects Pioneers who have passed away. All NASW Social Work Pioneers® Bios are Copyright © 2021 National Association of Social Workers Foundation. All Rights Reserved.

    
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Charles King* (1920-1994)

Pioneering Contributions

Charles King was a major figure in practice and policy development for hard-to-reach adolescents. He translated his perspectives into locally and nationally effective mental health activism through his various administrative and organizational roles over the years. He served the community of troubled adolescent boys for 30 years.

Career Highlights

King was Director of the West Side School Day Treatment Program, a school for troubled adolescents sponsored by the Jewish Board of Guardians from 1974 until his retirement in 1989. Prior to that, he was the Executive Director of the Wiltwyck School for Boys in Yorktown Heights, New York. He held this position from 1959 to 1967. King was the Executive Director of Haryou-Act, an agency carrying out anti-poverty activities in Harlem, from 1967 to 1968. He also was a major contributor to the formation of the Harlem Neighborhood Association. From 1968 to 1974, King worked for Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx, Metropolitan Hospital in Manhattan, the New York State Drug Addiction Control Commission, and the New York State Division for Youth.

Biographic Data

King was a graduate of Columbia University New School of Social Work in 1951. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from Hampton Institute in Virginia in1941. He also served as an infantryman in Italy during World War II.

Significant Achievements and Awards

  • 1972-1973: President of the American Orthopsychiatric Association
  • 1970-1972: President of the New York City chapter of NASW
  • 1960-1961: President of Columbia’s Alumni Association

Significant Publications

  • King, C.H. (1975). The EGO and the integration of violence in homicidal youth. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 45(1), 134-145. 
  • Minuchin, S., Auerswald, E., King, C.H., & Rabinowitz, C. (1964). The study and treatment of families that produce multiple acting-out boys. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 34(1), 125-133.

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