Center for Diversity and Social & Economic Justice

Some of us chose the profession of social work, for others, the profession chose you. Regardless of your journey into the profession, there is a deep sense of pride with which one identifies as a social worker. Since the formal development of our profession in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, we have been at the forefront of serving our clients, constituents, and communities, even if our actual role, function, and even title, were not fully understood nor acknowledged. This competency brings us face to face with who we are as social workers, with how we conduct ourselves, guided by both the core values of the profession and our professional code of ethics. Social workers are often first responders, meeting clients, constituents and communities where they are, and applying our knowledge, skills and values to address their needs. As society has evolved, so too has the profession, ready to address complex challenges at the individual, group, family, and community levels.

Literature Resource

CSWE asked its members to contribute literature, blogs, or other resources related to EPAS competencies. This month we highlight a resource submitted by Dr. Luis Alvarez-Hernandez, Boston University: Reconceptualizing Culture in Social Work Practice and Education: A Dialectic and Uniqueness Awareness Approach (Alvarez-Hernandez & Choi, 2017) examines the definitions and implementations of the concepts of culture and cultural competence in social work education and practice. 

The Civil Rights Movement reminds us simultaneously how devastating and seemingly permanent systemic racism can appear to be and how creative non-violence and sustained and principled advocacy can dismantle those seemingly permanent racist and oppressive forces and laws. We pause during January to honor the tremendous sacrifices of all those whose names are known and in many cases, will never be known. Not all were in the spotlight at rallies, protests, or marches, but everyone made a unique contribution towards advocacy for basic human rights, while also laying the foundation for groundbreaking advances in social, economic and environmental justice.  

We highlight this competency in January, as we herald in a new year, and as a reminder to each of us in social work that “the time is always right,” in the words of the late Congressman John Lewis, to "make good trouble." 

Among the amazing developments within the profession are the historic shifts towards the development, introduction and infusion into the social curriculum of content focused on anti-racist and anti-oppressive social work practice. As the nation pauses to observe Black History Month, we bring to mind the sacrifices of social work pioneers who took great personal and professional risks to ensure that each member of our society would be honored for their self-worth, and be treated with utmost respect and dignity. Each of us stands on the shoulders of the giants in the profession who came before us, and we strive hard each day to adopt a stance of cultural humility in the classroom and with our clients, constituents, and communities.  

We highlight this competency in February in order to especially honor Black social work pioneers and to promote dialog about how we can work together to engage diversity, equity and inclusion in practice. As you reflect on this competency, ask:  

» Who are the social work pioneers from whom you derive inspiration to engage in anti-racist and anti-oppressive social work practice?  

» What strategies/practices have you found most helpful to engage in critical reflection, self-awareness and self-regulation to manage the influence of bias, power, privilege, and values in education, practice and research?

Blog Resource: “Intersections for One Person Facing Stage Four Cancer,” submitted by Erika Gergerich  

As a social work instructor of 15 years, I have tried to facilitate student appreciation for the concept of intersectionality in various ways. Intersectionality is such a beautifully layered concept, yet I have found that when prompted to describe how intersectionality pertains to a client case, students often respond by simply noting that a client is a person of color (without exploring implications for this), or by offering a laundry list of ways that the client is “diverse.” Frequently, client strengths are left unmentioned and surprisingly, students rarely delve into the unique intersection of key aspects of the client’s identity. To encourage students to more fully explore the concept of intersectionality, I’ve turned to using my own experiences as a stage four cancer survivor. At 40 years old, I decided to become pregnant through use of a donor with the Seattle Sperm Bank. At 38 weeks pregnant, I learned that I had breast cancer. My doctor recommended that my labor be induced early so I could heal and promptly begin cancer treatment. After my son was born, the cancer aggressively spread to my bones and liver. I had to move back to my home state to be close to my family. At that time, the pandemic demanded that everyone work from home, so I was able to continue working at a distance. 

I was very involved and assertive in my own treatment plan. I sought second and third opinions at Mayo Clinic and MD Anderson. I read research articles frequently as advances in cancer treatment were happening monthly and discovered that the FDA had approved a treatment that could be injected into the thigh, taking just 5 minutes, rather than sitting in a chair for four hours to undergo traditional chemotherapy. This saved me a great deal of time, allowing me to continue work. Having worked as a medical social worker, I was familiar with federal and workplace policies for sick patients struggling to work. I eventually sought and received formal accommodations, allowing me to continue teaching online from home. I say all this to note that my experience with cancer was a unique collage of strengths and challenges due to the intersections of my identity. Not just a woman with breast cancer. A young, pregnant, single woman with no partner, but with resources. A White woman that questioned her doctors, who in response, listened to her concerns. A legal citizen of this country, employed, with health insurance. A former medical social worker armed with a PhD and the ability to read and understand research articles. CSWE Competency 3 states that “Social workers understand that intersectionality means that a person’s life experiences may include oppression, poverty, marginalization, and alienation as well as privilege and power.” My story illustrates the ways that my own privilege likely helped keep me alive, as well as the ways that White supremacy is woven into the healthcare institution. Others have likely had dramatically different experiences at several different junctures on their journey through cancer care. 

Literature Resource

The peer-reviewed articles in this special issue of Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping, "A Call for Social Work Educators to Confront and Dismantle Systemic Racism Within Social Work Programs," will help social work administrators, faculty, staff, and students at all levels to apply knowledge and skills in anti-racist practice by assessing institutional structures, policies, and practices as they relate to issues of race and racism (with particular attention paid to the strengths of social work educational organizations and areas of needed change).  

Peer-reviewed articles authored by social work administrators, faculty, and students provide an important opportunity to understand the pervasive impact of White supremacy and privilege upon social work education as well as stakeholders' efforts to engage in pedagogical transformation, organizational change, and movement-building strategies. This resource can promote anti-racist skill-building in cultural humility, research, policy analysis, critical thinking, and reflexivity among diverse stakeholders. For students, the readings can be used by faculty and practicum instructors to promote discussion-based learning and reading reflections. For faculty and administrators, the resource can be used in Faculty Learning Communities and other professional development opportunities to promote reflexive practices, and to develop pedagogical and organizational improvements that foster anti-racism, equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging. 

Vol. 29 No. 2 (2023): A Call for Social Work Educators to Confront and Dismantle Systemic Racism WITHIN Social Work Programs (Issue 1)

Vol. 30 No. 1 (2024): A Call for Social Work Educators to Confront and Dismantle Systemic Racism WITHIN Social Work Programs (Issue 2)

Social workers use ethical, culturally informed, anti-racist, and anti-oppressive approaches in conducting research and building knowledge. Social workers use research to inform their practice decision making and articulate how their practice experience informs research and evaluation decisions. Social workers critically evaluate and critique current, empirically sound research to inform decisions pertaining to practice, policy, and programs. Social workers understand the inherent bias in research and evaluate design, analysis, and interpretation using an anti-racist and anti-oppressive perspective. Social workers know how to access, critique, and synthesize the current literature to develop appropriate research questions and hypotheses. Social workers demonstrate knowledge and skills regarding qualitative and quantitative research methods and analysis, and they interpret data derived from these methods. Social workers demonstrate knowledge about methods to assess reliability and validity in social work research. Social workers can articulate and share research findings in ways that are usable to a variety of clients and constituencies. Social workers understand the value of evidence derived from interprofessional and diverse research methods, approaches, and sources.

Social workers:

» apply research findings to inform and improve practice, policy, and programs

» and identify ethical, culturally informed, anti-racist, and anti-oppressive strategies that address inherent biases for use in quantitative and qualitative research methods to advance the purposes of social work.

Both social work practice and research are prone to inherent biases, and the role of social work educators is first to recognize our own inherent biases and to address them; and second to provide a safe and nurturing space for social workers in training to come to terms with their own inherent biases and to address them.

Consider the rigorous academic and practical preparation required to provide the highest quality mental health services, especially at a time when there is an urgent need for social workers to deploy culturally informed, anti-racist & anti-oppressive strategies in practice with diverse populations. As we pause to mark Mental Health Awareness month, we honor the vital work of  social workers serving individuals, families and groups experiencing mental health challenges - while also generously contributing their time to research that advances our understanding of barriers to accessing mental health services, and the efficacy of interventions.

The month of May also gives us an opportunity to celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander heritage and Jewish American heritage. Tapping into the experiences of social workers serving these populations and inviting them to share their best practices and practice challenges assists social work researchers to design optimal qualitative and quantitative studies to better serve clients from these and other diverse backgrounds. The findings from such studies can then inform practice, and be of benefit to social workers from all backgrounds serving diverse populations. What has been your experience with the intersection of practice and research?                                       

Literature Resources 

“Centering Asian Americans in Social Work Education, Research, and Policy,” Isok Kim & Cindy Sangalang: The Asian American population is incredibly diverse in terms of ethnicity, culture, language, religion, class, and histories of war shaped by U.S. imperialism. Understanding this immense diversity is crucial for engaging with communities while recognizing the diversity–convergence paradox - the idea that Asian Americans share common experiences of discrimination and racialization despite their varied backgrounds and social locations. This paradox offers a critical lens to address health and social challenges for Asian Americans and other minoritized populations. Drawing on insights that account for this paradox, this article reflects on the authors’ experiences as Asian American social work scholars and alumni of the Council on Social Work Education’s Minority Fellowship Program. We discuss contemporary and historical issues facing Asian American communities as well as offer recommendations for advancing antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion within social work and beyond.

“We Are Still Here: Intersectional Collaborations in Research, Practice, and Resistance Among MFP Scholars,” Antonia R. G. Alvarez, Sameena Azhar, Tyrone M. Parchment, Judith Perrigo, Anne S. J. Farina, Tania Paredes, Jonathan P. Edwards, & Susan Klumpner: As Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Minority Fellowship Program (MFP) scholars, we formed meaningful connections as academics, students, and friends. Throughout this reflective article, we explore the profound impact of our intersectional and critical race-informed scholarship on our professional practice and pedagogy while highlighting the ways that collaborating on this work enriched our journeys as scholars of color. These collaborations have expanded our perspectives and fostered new ways of thinking about the unique health and mental health experiences of ethnoracial communities. Through these partnerships, we have advanced diverse scientific literature and addressed critical gaps within the existing canon of knowledge. Our collective focus is to foster a more inclusive and comprehensive understanding of the challenges faced by marginalized communities.

How often have we heard BSW and MSW students say something like, “Oh, I am specializing in micro practice, I don’t have any interest in policy.”

This competency is not a requirement only of macro social workers in training, it is a requirement for all social workers in training. Everyone is affected by policies, and our profession especially is concerned with ensuring that social welfare policies governing the delivery of and access to social services are upholding the dignity and worth of every recipient of those social services. Therefore, the competency calls on social workers to recognize the historical, social, racial, cultural, economic, organizational, environmental, and global influences that affect social policy.  

These policies must be socially just, promote inclusion, and avoid further oppressing and marginalizing the very populations the policies are intended to serve. Now more than ever, it is imperative for social workers to be immersed fully into the process of policy development and policy analysis. As we observe Arab American Heritage Month in April, social workers pause to celebrate the rich diversity and substantive contributions made by Arab Americans, many of whom arrived into the United States after historic changes in the nation’s immigration policies.

We also pause during National Deaf History Month to appreciate the tremendous policy advances we have made as a society to accommodate those who are deaf or hard of hearing. Until only very recently, survivors of sexual assault suffered in silence. During Sexual Assault Awareness Month, we pause to uplift everyone who has been impacted by sexual assault, and express gratitude that there are now policies in place to ensure the safety of survivors, provide avenues for them to pursue justice, and promote awareness about sexual assault. Our profession trains us to engage in policy practice precisely so that all in our society can be celebrated, appreciated, and uplifted. 

Organizational Resource

The Congressional Research Institute for Social Work and Policy (CRISP) was founded in 2012 as a nonprofit organization to complement the work of the Congressional Social Work Caucus. Learn more about CRISP and view photos from the 2025 Social Work Day On the Hill to see how social workers engage in policy practice on the Hill.

Literature Resource

“Policy Education in U.S. Social Work Programs: Results of a National Study,” Suzanne Pritzker & Natalia Giraldo-Santiago

Using data from the Council on Social Work Education’s Annual Survey, this study captures a baseline snapshot of policy practice education in U.S.-based bachelor of social work and master of social work programs. Results indicate that the nature of students’ preparation to incorporate policy change into practice depends on which program they attended. This first study of policy practice education across U.S. BSW and MSW programs examines policy-related coursework, instruction, field-based learning, and hands-on educational experiences. The study finds substantial program variation, including the type of faculty teaching policy courses and their direct policy practice experience, as well as in the inclusion of field-based and hands-on policy learning opportunities. Implications for strengthening policy education in the United States are discussed.

Within Competency 6, social workers are called to consider engagement with various practice populations. Social workers apply knowledge of human behavior and person-in-environment, as well as interprofessional conceptual frameworks, to engage with clients and constituencies; and use empathy, reflection, and interpersonal skills to engage in culturally responsive practice with clients and constituencies. 

There has been considerable attention given to culturally responsive practice in the profession, but this endeavor is still very much a work in progress. Beyond learning about human behavior, social workers rely on the training they receive to engage with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. 

It is imperative that a one size fits all attitude not characterize the engagement, rather social workers can best serve their clients and constituencies by applying both conceptual frameworks as well as key elements such as empathy and reflection.  

In June, the spotlight is on Caribbean American heritage, on LGBTQ Pride and the observance of Juneteenth. The American social fabric is strengthened from the unique contributions of clients and constituencies from diverse backgrounds. While we have made progress in teaching students to adopt an anti-oppressive, anti-racist approach to inclusive and meaningful engagement, it is imperative that we allow space for celebrating how our clients self-identify, and how to work to address their presenting challenges by meeting them where they are. We need to assess to what extent even our current conceptual frameworks are suitable to support impactful engagement with diverse clients and constituencies. Through connecting the real-time experiences of practitioners during the engagement phase, concerted energies can be directed towards researching best practices with serving diverse clients and constituencies. 

How do you include input or voices of those with lived experience in your social work practice, whether it is in the classroom, the field, in policy, or research?  

Literature Resources

“Assessing the Preparedness of MSW Students to Work with and Alongside People of Color,” Britt Lewis, This capstone project examined whether final-year MSW students at Southern Connecticut State University felt adequately prepared to support people of color in their social work practice. The study gathered responses from 21 students, with 8 completing the full survey. It details the importance of knowledge around social movements related to racism and the importance of having diverse faculty and learning experiences to enhance cultural humility and racial awareness in future practice.  

“LGBTQ+ People’s Perceptions of Interactions with Outgroup Members: Implications for Social Work Education and Practice,” Morgan E. Braganza & David R. Hodge  

This study explores how LGBTQ+ social work graduate students and alumni perceive their interactions with people outside of the LGBTQ community in different areas of their lives. Through narrative interviews with 11 participants, researchers identified six recurring storylines. These patterns revealed both barriers (such as avoidance and stereotyping) and potential bridges (like nuanced representation and recognition of commonalities). Building off these results, the authors propose culturally sensitive strategies for social work education and practice, emphasizing the need to move beyond stereotypical views of LGBTQ+ community members.

Within Competency 7, social workers are called to consider assessment with various practice populations. Social workers apply theories of human behavior and person-in-environment, as well as other culturally responsive and interprofessional conceptual frameworks, when assessing clients and constituencies; and demonstrate respect for client self-determination during the assessment process by collaborating with clients and constituencies in developing a mutually agreed-upon plan. 

In July, the nation’s attention turns to our founding, and an opportunity to assess where we started as a nation, how we are doing currently, and what our future prospects are. Social workers appreciate very much the freedoms that are enshrined in the constitution. We hold ourselves, our profession and our country to account so that we keep front and center the goal of ensuring that everyone is to be treated with dignity and respect, to have basic human rights, and that there is never a cessation of efforts to assess our state of affairs and work to course correct whenever we fall short in that goal.  

Assessment is a central aspect of social work practice because it follows the step of excellence in engaging our clients and constituents and generates the essential data which can then be used to develop the most responsive and effective, mutually agreed-upon plan of intervention. Just as the founding of our nation was predicated on a chosen path of self-determination, a path which ultimately liberated us from tyranny, so too there must be respect for client and constituent self-determination, and a comprehensive assessment of systemic forces impeding their growth and progress. 

July is also Disability Pride Month, which celebrates the achievements and experiences of people with disabilities as well as the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Integral to achieving the most thorough assessment is the respect for self-determination which must be afforded to clients and constituents of diverse backgrounds, experiencing a range of social and economic justice issues. While existing theories of human behavior and person-in-environment can serve as a starting point, much more bold and diligent effort must be exerted towards the development of and meaningful incorporation of culturally responsive and interprofessional conceptual frameworks to undergird the assessment. When thinking about the population of people with disabilities, the planned change process, which includes assessment, may look less linear as every client is different and their needs and lived experiences may require a different path to achieving their goals. Being flexible within social work practice allows clients to have self-determination and culturally responsive interactions that can have a positive impact on the working relationship and client outcomes.  

What has been an effective assessment tool/approach for the examination of systemic forces of oppression impacting the lives of your clients and constituents? Which culturally responsive frameworks have resonated with your clients and constituents during assessment?  

Literature Resources

“A Model for Social Work Practice with Disability Communities: Connecting Critical Cultural Competence, Intersectionality and Anti-Oppressive Practice,” Elspeth Slayter; Rose Singh; and Lisa Johnson 

This chapter introduces a comprehensive practice model grounded in intersectionality, cultural humility, and anti-oppressive frameworks tailored to those working with disability communities in social work. The model emphasizes the importance of self-determination and collaboration within the client-social worker relationship. The practice approach illustrates interventions at multiple levels—from roleplay skill building to family and workplace advocacy—ensuring social workers address both individual and societal barriers. Throughout, the chapter highlights how professionals can respectfully navigate client relationships while allowing individuals to have autonomy over their situation.  

“Building Multicultural Humility: The Role of a Clinician’s Intersectionality of Identities and Privilege Awareness in the Therapeutic Alliance & Clinical Practice,” Samuel Murad-Martinez 

This qualitative study explores how clinicians in training understand and experience multiculturalism in relation to their therapeutic relationships. Using a phenomenological approach, six participants from Adler University reflected on their identities, privilege awareness, and how these factors influenced their clinical work. Four major themes emerged: identity exploration, awareness of privilege, enhancement of clinical practice, and application of the intersectionality model in therapy. The findings highlight the importance of the use of cultural humility as a framework and the need for self-reflection when working with diverse populations.

Within Competency 8, social workers are called to consider intervention with various practice populations Social workers engage with clients and constituencies to critically choose and implement culturally responsive, evidence-informed interventions to achieve client and constituency goals; and incorporate culturally responsive methods to negotiate, mediate, and advocate with and on behalf of clients and constituencies. 

Educators will be returning to campus this month, perhaps having had an opportunity to take a break from the routine of teaching and researching throughout the academic year. An often-asked question from colleagues will be, what did you do during that break? Depending on the nature of the previous academic year, some of us may have just needed time away from campus while others may have needed an actual intervention, an intentional, planned getaway that allowed space and time for rejuvenation and yes, healing.  

In much the same way, clients and constituents who turn to social workers for professional assistance, are expecting that their social workers are staying informed about state-of-the-art techniques to facilitate the selection of culturally responsive, and evidence-informed interventions. Drawing upon the information gathered during the engagement and assessment phases, social workers review client and constituency goals and apply critical thinking skills to facilitate the development of intervention plans that are culturally congruent and responsive. 

Consider what types of educational resources have been most helpful in the development of your own critical thinking skills, especially with regards to implementing culturally responsive, evidence-informed interventions.  

Are those resources still relevant, helpful in today’s context? Are they newer, more contemporary resources you can share for the common good? What interventions have you found most effective for clients and constituents of different cultures?

Literature Resources

"Social Justice Integration in Clinical Social Work: Teaching with Current Events from the Media” 

This study explores how clinical social work education can integrate social justice issues through practice with vignettes in the classroom. Researchers analyzed 41 vignettes created by 82 Master of Social Work students between 2016 and 2019 at a public university in the Southern U.S. These vignettes were reviewed, looking to see what level of practice challenges were represented. Results revealed that although most vignettes addressed micro-level issues, there was significant representation of macro-level and mezzo-level challenges as well. Common themes included enhancing client self-efficacy, confronting systemic oppression, improving mental health access, fostering social connections, and addressing safety concerns. Authors discussed how this can be an important learning tool to integrate into education for multiple levels of practice. Now in 2025 with access to new learning technology such as AI, professors and students have greater access to tools that can create vignette style learning resources, therefore more successfully integrating all levels of practice into the classroom.

Within Competency 9, social workers select and use culturally responsive methods for evaluations; and critically analyze outcomes and apply evaluation findings to improve practice effectiveness with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.

Developing competence in evaluating one’s practice is both a practice skill and an ethical obligation. Among the goals of social work education is to train students to pursue continuous improvement in all aspects of social work practice, and at all levels of practice, including with individuals, families, groups, and communities. While evaluation is the final stage or step of the problem-solving process, it is also the first step because a mechanism for evaluation must be developed in parallel with setting the goals, objectives, and milestones of a particular intervention. 

Evaluation is so integral to our professional commitment to ensure that our clients and constituents are receiving services which meet their needs, that the mode of service delivery is culturally responsive and of the highest quality, and that there is a clearly defined mechanism/pathway to adjust the goals, objectives, and milestones as needed. It should be treated as a matter of professional pride that social workers put aside our egos and admit to incorrect assumptions or to the need to adjust a course of action because it is not responding to the needs of the clients and constituents, it is not culturally sensitive, or the course of action appears to be ineffective or to have minimal impact on the clients and constituents. 

While a thorough evaluation should occur at the end of the service delivery period or intervention, ongoing evaluation must be embedded into our practice. Ongoing evaluation is connected directly to our ethical obligation beyond just ensuring that the services or interventions are effective. Social workers must also evaluate to ensure that the services or interventions are not causing harm. This motivation to monitor potential harm reinforces the importance of not waiting until the end of the service delivery period or intervention to evaluate our practice. 

As you reflect on this competency, what best practices have guided your approach to practice evaluation? How have you made course corrections to intervention plans or service delivery modalities based on the outcome of your evaluation?

Literature Resources

“Skills for Collaboration: Training Graduate Students in Using Evidence to Evaluate Homelessness Program,” Bridgette Lery, Jennifer Miller Haight, Joseph N. Roscoe

This article describes a training model that equipped MSW and PhD social welfare students with practical skills to address complex challenges in child welfare. Through a partnership between UC Berkeley and the San Francisco Human Services Agency, students were placed in a real-world supportive housing project for homeless families. They gained hands-on experience in continuous quality improvement, navigating implementation challenges, using evidence for decision-making, and fostering cross-system collaboration. This model also allowed students to practice evaluation within the different stages of their work with families as well as evaluate their own practice throughout their service delivery. 

“The Client in Intrinsic Agency-Based Evaluation: Implications for Social Work Pedagogy,” David P. Moxley

This article discusses the importance of evaluation when working with individual clients and how often evaluation from the client perspective is left out of research. Evaluation is an important part of the service delivery process when working with clients whether they are individuals, families, or communities. The article highlights the importance of aligning evaluation efforts with client needs and emphasizes how evaluation is important when trying to foster understanding or improvement of specific practices or programs. Considering racism, intersectionality, and different cultures during evaluation is important not only for the effectiveness of services but also for improvement as a social worker.