Starting this July, Dr. Neil Abell director of the College’s international programs will take on a leadership role with the Council of Social Work Education’s (CSWE) as a member of the Council on Global Learning, Research, and Practice for another three-year term. The Council is one of two councils positioned under the CSWE’s Commission on Global Social Work Education.  The Council on Global Learning, Research and Practice works to promote the, “understanding and integration of human rights and social justice principles into our core curricula.”

The emphasis on a global perspective continues to grow in the social work profession and several opportunities continue to emerge to improve the focus and clarity of professional objectives within international social work. Dr. Abell also notes that although these principles are, “central to our professional identity, they are in some ways just coming into their own as learning goals for students. And, faculties and programs are in need of fresh ideas and examples of global work in progress.”

This is precisely what the Council on Global Learning, Research, and Practice seeks to address. Dr. Abell and its other members will serve to support faculty development as well as international skills in students along with aiding the production of educational materials and standards for the social work field with an emphasis on this global perspective.

“One of the most significant things we can do is learn from the experiences of other cultures and nations how best to define and refine our practice to better serve an increasingly diverse service population, “ Dr. Abell said.

Dr. Abell’s contribution to this wealth of knowledge, comes from working intensively abroad for more than 14 years. Along with his predecessor, Dr. Pat Lager, as the director of international programs at the College of Social Work Dr. Abell has been able to expand the range of international programs offered to its students and faculty.  Field education programs are currently available throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland, the Eastern Caribbean (and soon South Africa); study abroad programs are offered in the Czech Republic and Cost Rica; student exchange agreements have been established with Sweden and Australia; and, an annual Alternative Spring Break trip is made to Grenada. “I hope to share the benefit of running and sustaining these programs with other faculty, and to learn from them what new horizons we might pursue.”