Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Social Work Educators

Overview: This panel will discuss critical issues facing women in the social work academy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Comparing data from two nationwide electronic surveys of social work faculty, female-identified faculty experienced more burnout, and had decreased work-life climate and job satisfaction in 2021 than in 2015.Proposal text: The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted higher education significantly over the past three academic years. Prior to the pandemic, gender inequity among social work educators was already a documented issue (Authors, 2019; 2021; Lane & Flowers, 2015; Sakamoto et al, 2008), with economic and social rights implications. The pandemic has exacerbated systems of inequity both within and external to the academy, but especially for women and women of color (Ahluwalia-Cameron, 2021; Lechuga-Pena, 2021).

This panel will discuss the critical issues facing women in the social work academy during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2015, a stratified random sample was employed to 18 selected states. Then, emails of full-time faculty from the 237 CSWE accredited schools of social work were compiled. The sample was invited to participate in a follow-up survey in 2021. Comparing data collected in 2015 (21% response rate) and 2021 (8% response rate), social work educators’ experiences differed based on their gender identity.

Faculty who self-identified as female are experiencing higher levels of the two indicators of burnout: disengagement and exhaustion (p = < 0.001). The data also shows that work life climate and job satisfaction decreased between the two points of data collection (p = 0.012 and 0.006, respectively). Quantitative findings will be supported with qualitative data to illustrate the experiences of women in the social work academy. A limitation to the study is the low response rate, especially during the pandemic.

Related to the CSWE APM 2022, the panelists will highlight how social work faculty promote human rights, while they themselves are impacted by social, economic, and gender inequity. Strategies will be identified for higher education policy change and related advocacy in the academy. As stated by Congresswoman Katie Porter (2020), “The burden of the coronavirus pandemic is falling hardest on women” (p.2). The time is now to address gendered inequity in the academy if we are to emerge as a more equitable profession post-pandemic.