Response to Stoesz and Karger's Article, "Reinventing Social Work Accreditation"

In: Research on social work practice, Band 19, Heft 1, S. 112-113

Abstract

The article by David Stoesz and Howard J. Karger, "Reinventing Social Work Accreditation," is misleading and erroneous in its assumptions, makes unsubstantiated assertions, and demonstrates an ideological shallowness on the part of the authors in their understanding of social work education, the Council on Social Work Education, and the role of quality assurance on the part of accrediting bodies. The principal function of accreditation in the United States is quality assurance. Through a peer-review system, social work programs exercise appropriate autonomy to leverage resources and intellectual integrity in the design and administration of the curriculum. Stoesz and Karger's limited definition of a scholar misrepresents the multiple roles of faculty, deans, and directors. Furthermore, they fail to recognize that social work programs—their faculty, administration, and students—are actively pursuing the mission of social work through innovations in research, evidence-based interventions, and practice for an increasingly global community.