We Move On and Get It Done: Educating Social Workers Through a Pandemic

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ABSTRACT

The global effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and related closures that began in spring of 2020 created an unprecedented challenge for higher education broadly and social work education specifically. This article describes qualitative data collected from a survey of social work educators in the spring of 2020. Social work educators from across the United States representing diverse institutions described the challenges their students experienced as well as sources of strength and resilience they witnessed in students during the early phases of the pandemic. Findings highlight challenges that social work education will continue to face in the coming years in addition to clear actions that social work educators and programs can take to support student resilience. Findings also highlight ways in which the experiences of the pandemic could serve to strengthen social work education.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Stacy A. Gherardi

Stacy A. Gherardi is an assistant professor in the School of Social Work at New Mexico State University. Jason R. Mallonee is an assistant professor in the School of Social Work at New Mexico State University. Erika Gergerich is an assistant professor in the School of Social Work at New Mexico State University.