Central Queensland University announces its School of Social Work and Welfare Studies has become Australia’s newest provider of professional social work education. The Australian Association of Social Workers, the profession’s peak body, has accredited the CQU degree in social work through to 2007. Vice Chancellor Glenice Hancock, noting 8 May was International Social Work Day, said the visiting panel of social work experts had praised the CQU degree as among the most innovative programs preparing social workers for entry into the profession. “Our social work program is based upon the application of communication technology to problem-based learning”, said Hancock. “This made the degree markedly different from social work programs offered by the more traditional schools of social work throughout Australia.” The accreditation by the AASW of The School of Social Work and Welfare Studies, headed by Associate Professor Frances Killion, is an important indication that the social work program meets the highest professional quality standards. Additionally, the application of communication technologies has allowed CQU to maximum flexibility, enrolling students from throughout Australia.

“Perhaps most important, is that our social work program, with its focus on rural and regional communities, is a direct demonstration of our commitment to actively engage the Central Queensland region by responding to the needs for training social work professionals who are more likely to remain in the region following the completion of their course,” said Hancock The School of Social Work and Welfare Studies also supervises social work students on practicum from Norway, Sweden and other European nations. “The School of Social Work and Welfare Studies will celebrate the AASW accreditation, and International Social Work Day by sponsoring a number of special events, including Welfare in the Pub — an event open to any welfare professional in the area — to be held at the Criterion Hotel on Friday 10 May,” said Associate Professor Frances Killion.