Omar Schmidt earned his M.A. in Social Work Administration in 1943 from Case Western University (Cleveland, OH). He enlisted in the army and was assigned to Fort Lewis, Washington as chief psychiatric social worker (1944-1946). After his discharge from the army in 1946, Schmidt became chief of psychiatric social work for the U.S. Veterans Administration hospital in Des Moines, IA and at Fort Snelling, St. Paul, Minnesota. In 1949, he joined the Central Planning and Research Department, later to be known as the Community Health and Welfare Council of Hennepin County. He was promoted to director in 1960 and held that position until he retired in 1977.
From the guide to the Omar Schmidt papers, 1943-1977, (University of Minnesota Libraries. Social Welfare History Archives [swha])
