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Last Fall the BPD Board reviewed concerns about the draft EPAS and then submitted to CSWE the following letter, reproduced
in its entirety. - ed.
December 1, 2000
Dr. Barbara White, President
Council on Social Work
Education
1725 Duke Street, Suite 500
Alexandria, VA 22314-3457
Dear Barbara,
As President of
the Association of Baccalaureate Social Work Program Directors and on behalf of the Board of Directors of Baccalaureate Social
Work Program Directors, I submit our organizational response to the proposed EPAS Document draft by CSWE. The BPD Board of
Directors realizes that this is an arduous task and we would like to commend CSWE for allowing feedback before the final draft
is submitted to the CSWE Board of Directors. BPD understands that CSWE expects continuous feedback from each draft document
that is presented to the membership. It is also our understanding that the second draft mailing to all programs will occur
by the end of January 2001. We assure you that BPD will continue to assess baccalaureate programs regarding each draft document.
BPD understands that the desired outcome by all parties is to produce a document that defines the foundation of social work.
The added goal to set standards and accountability and a sound delivery of the social work curriculum that embraces the mission
of social work and social work education both on the baccalaureate and masters levels is as equally critical.
As
you well know, the mission of BPD "is dedicated to the promotion of excellence in baccalaureate social work education."
In the 2000/2002 strategic plan, the following goals and objectives were identified as priorities for BPD:
Goal
1: Provide leadership in all aspects of baccalaureate social work education
Objective 2: Promote BPD's mission for
baccalaureate social work education in the 21st century.
Task One: Assure and maintain the accredited BSW degree
as the foundation for the profession of social work.
Therefore, from the onset of the posting of the proposed EPAS
draft, BPD stakeholders prepared to be proactive and work diligently. All parties went to insure a document that strengthens,
not only baccalaureate education, but benefits the entire spectrum of social work education.
In preparation, the
Board in June discussed various ways to gain input from programs regarding EPAS. The Executive Board in August charged the
Program Administration and Curriculum Development Committee, chaired by Esther Langston from the University of Nevada, Las
Vegas, to identify two members who would assist the Board of Directors with a written response on ePAS. Paul Dovyak from
the
University of Rio Grande, Ohio and Roy Rodenhiser from rochester Institute of Technology, New York were identified as the
members of that committee to assist the Board. The Board of Directors commends Chair Esther Langston's selection as Professors
Dovyak and Rodenhiser have been diligent with the task of assessing all members regarding ePAS. They are truly leaders within
the profession of baccalaureate social work education. This report, which was conducted in a relatively short time, is thorough
with the added documentation to guide each recommendation that BPD will be making. Professor Dovyak and Rodenhiser will work
with the BPD Executive Committee until the CSWE Board passes the final draft of EPAS.
Please note: At the end of
this report, you will find a detailed chronicle of all of the public meetings that BPD held on EPAS, identifying the date,
the time, and the event.
In reviewing the Executive Summary compiled by Professors Dovyak and rodenhiser, one can
conclude that the proposed EPAS document is of great concern to baccalureate program directors and faculty. As Professors
Dovyak and Rodenhiser reviewed all the letters, e-mails, and constituency group reports, glaring results became evident from
the membership. We will bullet each point below:
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