UG begins review of Master of Social Work Programme
The virtual retreat which will run for the next two days was declared open under the theme: “Professional Social Work in Guyana: Reimagining education and practice to achieve planned change and promote social, economic and environmental justice, and human rights”
The virtual retreat which will run for the next two days was declared open under the theme: “Professional Social Work in Guyana: Reimagining education and practice to achieve planned change and promote social, economic and environmental justice, and human rights”

THE University of Guyana’s Department of Sociology, Social Work Unit, along with key national and international stakeholders, on Tuesday, began strategic discussions aimed at reviewing and enhancing the institution’s Master of Social Work Programme, in keeping with the university’s 2040 Blueprint which essentially aligns UG as a key national development partner.

According to a release, the virtual retreat which will run for the next two days, was declared open under the theme: “Professional Social Work in Guyana: Reimagining education and practice to achieve planned change and promote social, economic and environmental justice, and human rights.” It is also being held in celebration of 50 years of social work education in Guyana.

Students, social workers, educators, and various key stakeholders locally, regionally, and internationally will engage on ways to further enhance the Master in Social Work programme offered by UG. Discussions will also ensue to establish the role the University of Guyana, through the Department of Sociology Social Work Unit, will play in ensuring the enactment of Social Work Legislation, Licensure, and establishment of an Accreditation Council.

Delivering the feature address, Minister of Human Services and Social Security, Dr. Vindhya Persaud, expressed: “Fifty years ago the University of Guyana responded to a need that existed and launched the Diploma in Social Work.

This programme has produced generations of social workers, who currently form the body of our social workforce. With great wisdom from the University of Guyana, the programme morphed into a Bachelor Degree, and in 2017 the Master of Social Work was launched under a servicing arrangement with York University and support from the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF).”

The minister noted that the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, and many other institutions in both the private and public sectors, have benefitted from the hundreds of students who graduated from the programme.

MULTIDIMENSIONAL

She highlighted that the profession of social work is multidimensional and requires an intersectoral approach to reimagine the education and practice of social work in Guyana and urged the participants to seriously explore ways in which the programme at UG could be improved.

University of Guyana’s Vice-Chancellor, XI, Professor Paloma Mohamed Martin, in her remarks recognised the contributions of the many stakeholders, locally and internationally, who have contributed and continue to contribute to the Social Work Programme at the university. In particular UNICEF and early pioneers like Sybil Patterson, Patrice LaFleur, Jospehine Whitehead, Dr. Janice Jackson, Barbara Thomas Holder, and Christine King to name a few along with those being specially honored this week. She also noted, in particular, the unwavering support from the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, Professor Barbara Heron and her team from York University, UNICEF, and the team from the Department of Sociology of UG.

“Our second aspirational goal in the 2040 Blueprint is UG being a centre for excellence for some very specific areas. One of the exciting emerging areas that we are developing is human resiliency systems. It has become very important for us as human beings to not only be physically resilient but to be mentally and emotionally resilient in every way. This is why the University of Guyana has framed its resiliency programme as human resiliency systems because we want to look at all of the systems,” the VC explained.

She also said that the review was programmed at a time when the university had launched its Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Research (CeBRES) which will teach and research psychology, criminology, social work and psychiatry and whose dedicated counselling centre will roll out UG’s new inclusion policy which emphasises strongly students with mental health and physical vulnerabilities.

DEEPLY APPRECIATIVE
Head of the Department of Sociology, Andrew Hicks, in his remarks said: “We are deeply appreciative for the work of our local partners and other members of our local academic community who have remained steadfast in their support for our academic activities as a department. I am particularly delighted for the enthusiasm and interest of our partners in the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security under the leadership of the distinguished minister, who is also a former member of the faculty of the University of Guyana, Minister Vindhya Persaud.”

Hicks also acknowledged the support of Professor Heron and her team from York University in Canada whom he said demonstrated consistent passion and commitment to the efforts of the University of Guyana in providing graduate social work education to local practitioners.

In her brief remarks, Professor Heron pointed out that in spite of the challenges brought on by COVID-19 which affected her team’s ability to travel to Guyana to teach the new cohort of students in face-to-face mode, there is an opportunity now to “really give some thought to how the programme continues and I really look forward to participating with everyone”.

The Master of Social Work programme was implemented in August 2017. The university’s Department of Sociology currently collaborates with York University as a strategic partner to deliver the teaching aspect of the MSW programme.

The programme was developed in response to the prevailing demands from the government, the international community and non-government agencies. Stakeholders saw the need for higher levels of skills amongst practitioners in order to effectively respond to the needs of persons. Key partners include; the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, the Child Care and Protection Agency, ChildLinK, and UNICEF.

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