Jessica Blanche Peixotto and the Founding of Berkeley Social Welfare

Abstract

Jessica Blanche Peixotto was the first woman to become a full professor at the University of California in 1918 and yet her role in establishing social welfare studies at Berkeley is mostly untold. A social economist and foremost a scientist, she led efforts to infuse evidence-informed practice in professional social work education in the early 1900s, laying a foundation at Berkeley that is still felt today. Of her many efforts, she established a certificate in social welfare at Berkeley in 1917, the first such training on the West Coast. This article describes her personal and professional life and seeks to establish the importance of her role in establishing social work education at Berkeley and in furthering an evidence-informed approach to our professional work.