ATL Standard

The bachelor's and master's social work programs at Clark Atlanta University’s Whitney M. Young Jr. School of Social Work have been reaffirmed accreditation by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Commission on Accreditation for another eight years, ending in June 2030. The Commission voted to reaffirm the programs’ accreditation at its June 2022 meeting.

According to Dr. Jenny L. Jones, dean and professor, the school’s eight-year accreditation recognizes that the programs maintain high performance, integrity, and quality.

“It is a vote of confidence in the caliber of the programs for our graduates and the public they serve,” she said. “It ensures excellence and is evident that our programs meet the highest level of practice in the field—which allows us to be competitive with other social work programs across the nation.”

The Whitney M. Young Jr. School of Social Work is the first accredited school of social work in Georgia and at a historically black college or university. In 2020, the School, which also offers a doctoral program, celebrated its centennial anniversary. The school is currently ranked #51 by the US News and World Report. 

Guided by the Afrocentric perspective, the school prepares students to address specific psychological, social, spiritual, and economic problems experienced by people of African descent while encompassing the intersectionality of race and other societal factors such as gender, ethnicity, social class, ability status, and sexual orientation.  

“Racial, ethnic, and gender inequalities continue to be front and center in our society,” said Jones. “Families are being impacted in every possible way. Gun violence in our schools and communities, racial violence, and income inequality threaten our security. The continued development and enforcement of oppressive policies challenge the values upon which this profession is built. “Now more than ever, we need social workers to challenge injustices and work to alleviate human and social issues to effect positive change.”

Original source can be found here.