Teaching/Working Remotely, Service, Research & Crisis Response
Dear BUSSW Community,
Over the past weekend, I shared information on several important administrative changes during this time of uncertainty at our school, along with context to help everyone understand the rationale and necessity behind them. We are in uncharted waters, and at this time we do not have all the answers to how this pandemic will unfold. However, we are also coming together to collaborate and support each other through this unfortunate time – and, we will get through it.
I write today to acknowledge your demonstrated commitment to innovate and adapt, as we find new ways to maintain the work we do together.
Teaching/Working Remotely
I would like to recognize the incredible tenacity and achievement you have shown in an incredibly short period of time as you took on the tremendous challenge of teaching and working remotely this semester. We are indebted to our colleagues Mena DaSilva Clark, Sonia Mee, and Terese Romano for their amazing help during the teaching transition and for graciously agreeing to continue serving as Remote Teaching Coordinators for this summer’s programs. Please note the RTC will be sending out a survey to the spring instructors and offering an orientation and Q&A opportunity for those teaching remotely in the summer. They have also posted a BUSSW Teaching Remote Guide on our COVID-19 page.
Following the University’s lead, we are planning to resume our in-person programs for CRC and OCP this fall — if deemed safe to do so. If we are not able to re-open our residential campuses in the fall, we will explore other alternatives. We’ll be working on those plans this summer.
Service
Over the weekend Massachusetts legislators put a strong eviction and foreclosure moratorium bill on Governor Baker’s desk. Many BUSSW students, faculty and alumni were involved in the organizing efforts behind the H.4647 bill — from attending the initial rally before the lock down, to making hundreds of phone calls and sending emails, and BUSSW is one of the institutional signatories. Kudos also to alumni Katie McCann who did her 2nd year placement at City Life / Vida Urbana and has been leading the eviction moratorium fight. I am thrilled to share that the Governor signed the bill.
We have set up an emergency fund to assist our students who have been impacted financially by the crisis. Thanks to the generosity of one alum already, we’ve been able to support many students. If you would like to help our students during this unprecedented time, please donate here or contact Assistant Dean for Development Kate DeForest with any questions at kated@bu.edu.
We are grateful to Mark Gianino and our PEP team for offering support to our alumni community in our first webinar effort, Staying Connected While Physical Distancing, which filled up quickly.
Our next webinar will focus on spiritual practices for resilience during these extraordinary times of challenge and loss and will be facilitated by Reverend Dr. Michelle Walsh, PhD, LICSW, BUSSW lecturer, who is also a trauma-informed licensed independent clinical social worker, a Unitarian Universalist clergy person, and a trained spiritual director through Still Harbor. Please check the BUSSW COVID-19 page in the Events section for more information as it becomes available.
Research
As I noted in a previous message, faculty have begun important work on COVID-19-related research. Some recent examples include Ashley Davis’ study on how the disruption of field education has impacted social work students nationwide, and Chris Hahm’s new study documenting the physical and emotional experiences of young adults during the Covid-19 pandemic is showcased in BU’s The Brink. Please review other research highlighted on our website’s News section and COVID-19 page, as well as the CISWH website.
Crisis Response
Lastly, I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce BUSSW’s Crisis and Response (CARE) team who are developing ongoing protocols and processes for our school to follow during the continuing COVID-19 crisis, as well as for other emergency scenarios. Thank you to the following members for taking on this vital work: co-chairs Ellen DeVoe and Wade Taylor, Mena DaSilva-Clark, Luz López, Douglas Luke, Dawn Belkin Martinez, Jordana Muroff, Michele Walsh, and Emily Robichaud. The senior administration team will collaborate with this group on fine-tuning a Continuity of Operations Plan to be used as a guide during situations that impact our school’s ability to operate. Please stay tuned for more updates on this important work.
As we monitor COVID-19 developments that impact BUSSW, I will continue to keep you informed.
Wishing you all good health,
Jorge