Published on : November 2, 2020
Regardless of the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, CSWE and other social work education groups prepared guidance for either the Biden or Trump administration to advance social, racial, and economic justice.CSWE authored the guidance for federal authorities with the Association of Baccalaureate Social Work Program Directors, the Group for the Advancement of Doctoral Education in Social Work, the National Association of Deans and Directors of Schools of Social Work, the Society for Social Work and Research, and the St. Louis Group for Excellence in Social Work Research and Education. Together, the groups represent more than 900 baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral social work programs, as well as thousands of individual social workers, educators, researchers, and agencies. The principles outlined in the guidance document seek to propose policy principles that will be integral in ensuring individual, family, and community well-being, a wellbeing that is being threatened and under assault from a myriad of injustices and inequities.
Some of the major priorities in the guidance for federal officials include the following:
- Ensuring quality and accessibility in higher education
- Protecting underserved and marginalized populations in health care policy
- Positioning social work as champions to address behavioral and mental health and substance use disorders
- Supporting aging and older adult populations
- Ensuring social workers have a voice in policy based on their research and that they continue to be a part of the discussions and eligibility regarding research, services, and programs.