Prohibiting Harmful Practices Against LGBTQIA+ Individuals and Students in Field Placement: Recommendations

ABSTRACT

Field practicum is known as the “signature pedagogy” for social work. Though the Council of Social Work Education’s accreditation standards guide the placement processes, research on the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and other sexual and gender minorities (LGBTQIA+) students shows that this population continues to face discrimination in practicum placements. In this point-of-view article, we present conflicts that can arise when programs do not have explicit conversations with agencies about LGBTQIA+ inclusivity. We discuss current accreditation standards and relevant points from the Code of Ethics that support implementation of specific protections for LGBTQIA+ students and clients in practicum placements. Recommendations are made for addressing barriers of equity now and in future iterations of the EPAS.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 The authors recognize the term ‘field’ is historically related to enslavement, indentured servitude, and other forms of labor injustice. As such, the authors support a change in this terminology as part of social work’s explicit intention to promote anti-racism and equity in our profession. The term ‘field’ is used in this article because it is the current language of the educational policies and accreditation standards, which is referenced and quoted throughout the article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Heidi P. Breaux

Heidi P. Breaux is a social worker and Assistant Professor at Louisiana State University.

Veronica L. Timbers

Veronica L. Timbers is Clinical Assistant Professor and MSW Online Program Assistant Program Coordinator at Boise State University.

Bruce A. Thyer

Bruce A. Thyer is a Professor and former dean at the College of Social Work at Florida State University.