Youngdahl, Benjamin E.

Youngdahl was a public welfare administrator and prominent social work educator at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University. His papers include extensive material on his work as director of social service in the Minnesota State Emergency Relief Administration during the depression, and document his activities as member and president of the American Association of Schools of Social Work, American Association of Social Workers, and National Conference on Social Welfare.

From the description of Benjamin E. Youngdahl papers, 1920-1966. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 63279859

From the description of Benjamin E. Youngdahl papers, supplement 1, 1916-1968. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 63285884

Benjamin E. Youngdahl was born in 1897 and became a distinguished public welfare administrator and social work educator. A native of Minnesota, Youngdahl was a member of a prominent Swedish Lutheran family. The collection includes personal correspondence from his brothers, Reverend Reuben Youngdahl, former Minnesota governor and federal judge Luther Youngdahl, and sister, Ruth Youngdahl Nelson . He was educated at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota and at Columbia University in New York.

From 1923 to 1933, Youngdahl was a professor of sociology and economics at Gustavus Adolphus College . He became director of social service for the Minnesota State Emergency Relief Administration in 1933 and was appointed director of public assistance under the Minnesota State Board of Control in 1937. A period of controversy surrounding the new public welfare programs culminated in Youngdahl's resignation in 1939. The records documenting this controversy form one of the richest parts of the Youngdahl papers.

Following his resignation, Youngdahl took a post as an associate professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis, where he spent the remainder of his career in social work education. In 1943, he was appointed as a professor of social work. Following a year spent with the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA), he was appointed dean of the George Warren Brown School of Social Work in 1945. Youngdahl retired as dean in 1962, but continued to teach and remained active in social work. He died in 1970.

Throughout his career, Youngdahl was an active leader in many social work organizations, thus exercising a decisive influence on the profession of social work and social work education. From 1947 to 1948, he was president of the American Association of Schools of Social Work . Three years later, from 1951 to 1953, he became president of the American Association of Social Workers . In 1955, he was elected president of the National Conference of Social Work, later named the National Conference on Social Welfare.

Youngdahl published many speeches and articles on social work, a portion of which are in his papers. His honors include an LL.D. from Gustavus Adolphus College in 1954 and citations from Gustavus Adolphus College and Washington University in 1960 and 1961, respectively. He was the recipient of the 1963 Florina Lasker Award for his concern for civil liberties.

From the guide to the Benjamin E. Youngdahl Papers, 1916-1968, (bulk 1940s-1962), (University of Minnesota Libraries. Social Welfare History Archives [swha])