by Gina R. Rosich, PhD, MSW, and Shalymar Cruz, BA
Medical social employees and people working in administration positions, whether or not in community-based companies or non-public apply, maintain distinctive and invaluable views and information that may be harnessed to tell and affect elected officers. Usually, advocacy work can appear daunting or time consuming. But, it doesn’t should be. On this essay, an MSW college member and an MSW scholar mirror on advocacy because it pertains to their skilled growth.
Dr. Gina R. Rosich – Advocacy From an Educational Perspective
Altering careers can appear daunting. Beginning a brand new journey in a brand new avenue of 1’s skilled growth is an thrilling danger to take. It’s one thing I take into consideration for my college students getting into their MSW program, in addition to for myself, having segued from direct apply into academia as a school member in an MSW program. I discovered myself asking: How can I educate my college students about ethics in micro and macro apply and lead by instance when I’m not at a social companies company? I can inform them tales about my skilled apply, as all college do. However I need to stay engaged in social change.
Part 6 of the NASW Code of Ethics compels social employees to form public insurance policies and establishments, and to have interaction in social and political motion to create a extra equitable and socially simply society. That is one thing I take significantly, and it was a big side of my very own MSW training. Now that I’m a member of a social work college and not working within the discipline, I believe again to how and why advocacy and social justice had been emphasised after I was a scholar. These rules information my instructing, analysis, and repair to the career and group.
I moved to a brand new state after I accepted my place. This meant I wanted to construct new networks. By way of the Connecticut chapter of NASW, I discovered an organized and structured means to do that work. I joined the ELAN committee. ELAN stands for the Schooling and Legislative Motion Community, a committee of social employees across the state who meet to have interaction in public coverage work in quite a lot of methods. Though most chapters of NASW have a legislative committee, not each state chapter of NASW has an ELAN committee primarily based on a grassroots organizing method to the work. Some make the most of a authorities relations method.
What does grassroots seem like for us? Foyer days and foyer day trainings are held yearly to show social employees and social work college students in regards to the legislative course of in addition to efficient methods to advocate for insurance policies with the state legislature. We then meet through the energetic state legislative session to establish and comply with payments aligned with social work values, receive and disseminate well timed data for motion alerts, write testimony, and testify in particular person. We additionally comply with up on these legislative motion alerts with telephone banking to our members, encouraging them to name their elected officers in help of (or towards) particular payments heading for a vote.
COVID introduced a problem to grassroots organizing, but in addition a possibility. The Connecticut Common Meeting utilized Zoom, so anybody wishing to testify may accomplish that from a secure distance. These periods had been held stay, broadcast by way of YouTube, and remained accessible for the general public to look at at any time. For the primary time in my profession, I may testify and have a recording to truly present my college students what it’s like to talk earlier than elected officers. We had been in a position to watch it collectively and critique what I did. This meant not solely main by instance when it comes to advocacy work, but in addition in exhibiting what self-reflective apply seems to be like. How did I put together? How did I take advantage of my skilled background to tell my testimony and to reply questions the legislators had? What went via my thoughts? What may I’ve achieved higher? The actual testimony I confirmed my college students was on funding homeless shelter referral and prevention companies. I used to be ready to attract upon my a few years of expertise working within the shelter system in New York Metropolis, my information of analysis on housing insecurity, and what I’ve discovered about prevention and shelter companies in my new statewide group. How did this affect my college students? One in every of them joins me on this essay to share her personal journey {of professional} growth.
Shalymar Cruz – Advocacy From a Pupil Perspective
First-year college students in MSW applications typically enter their programs with a skewed view of what it means to be a social employee. We frequently consider it as being a counselor, therapist, or case supervisor. It’s not typically that college students think about politics, not to mention coverage activism, as part of the tasks of a social employee. Upon getting into my Social Coverage II class, I had an understanding that social work is political and that, in keeping with the NASW Code of Ethics, we’ve a accountability to advocate for social justice. Nonetheless, inside the confines of the sector, it didn’t appear potential to me to advocate for coverage change. Nor did I see the way it was associated to a medical position.
Having a professor who built-in the 2 facets of social work in a single course supplied the instance of not solely coverage’s relevance to medical work, but in addition methods to go about balancing the 2. As college students, we had been empowered to make the most of the social positions we had already acquired and the information of consumer/group must advocate for change on the macro stage that may help the medical work being achieved on the micro stage. Viewing testimonies at school and higher understanding the legislative course of and rights of residents to take part in it confirmed me that I had the accountability, whilst a scholar of social work, to participate in advocating for public coverage change that may result in social justice and fairness. I assumed to myself: If residents are anticipated to take part on this course of, then it’s possible for social employees to take action, too. That is what units social employees other than different therapeutic roles. It was then that I made a decision all through my training and future profession to seek out alternatives to make the most of my community to advocate for coverage change.
This real-life classroom expertise pushed me to look inside organizations I’m part of to see how I may contribute to advocacy efforts. I’m a member of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Included. Every year, they host an annual “Lambda Hill Days” occasion that brings collectively members from totally different states to the state capitol to fulfill with legislators and advocate for the distinctive wants of their communities. Being extra acquainted and comfy with coverage, due to my Social Coverage II course, in addition to COVID-19 necessitating the occasion going down on-line, I made a decision to depart my consolation zone and apply to be part of this yr’s cohort.
My class not solely instilled an obligation to advocate whereas additionally making advocacy really feel easy and never intimidating, but it surely additionally made me understand that that is my proper. Legislators work for his or her constituents, and I’m a constituent. The Lambda Hill Days occasion, together with my sense of responsibility and the boldness I gained from coverage class, allowed me to schedule conferences with my state Senator and Home Consultant to debate proposed payments that may affect my purchasers, communities, and even myself.
My completion of each the Lambda Hill Days occasion and my Social Coverage II course has influenced my view of social work, advocacy, and what my profession as a social employee post-grad ought to entail. I’m conscious that it will possibly change into tough to meet the numerous tasks of social work and to perform on micro and macro ranges. However I’ve come to understand simply how necessary an obligation it’s. I now really feel empowered and assured in coverage and can proceed to familiarize myself with public coverage and politics.
I not see a divide between medical work and coverage. I see the connection and the way this connection informs my continued participation in advocacy. I plan to embrace Part 6 of the Code of Ethics, bringing advocacy management into the companies I work for and becoming a member of with the purchasers and communities I serve to raise their voices from a place of energy and lived expertise. Competent social employees advocate for change, and coverage is one intervention in all of our toolboxes.
Gina R. Rosich, PhD, MSW, is Assistant Professor on the College of Saint Joseph Division of Social Work and Equitable Group Follow. She teaches programs in coverage historical past and advocacy, generalist medical apply, tradition, variety and human rights, and points impacting LGBTQ+ folks.
Shalymar Cruz is an MSW scholar on the College of Saint Joseph Division of Social Work and Equitable Group Follow. She holds a BA in psychology, human growth, and household research.
