COVID-19 Impact on Early Career Social Work Faculty: Creating a More Inclusive Culture

Overview: This presentation discusses the impact of COVID-19 on social work faculty early in their academic careers. Presenters will describe various barriers and opportunities to interviewing in a mostly virtual environment, orienting to a new institution during social distancing and illness, and connecting with other faculty in the current climate.Proposal text: New social work faculty face various challenges when they begin their career in academia. These challenges include the loss of peer and advisor support, professional isolation, extreme pressure to perform, and acclimating to their new university and departmental culture as well as senior faculty and student expectations (Gordon, 2017; Trower, 2012; Wenocur et al., 2021). The high-pressure environment of university departments combined with the lack of a systematic mechanism to identify support and mentorship often leads to a very stressful launch into an academic career (Wenocur et al., 2021). Yet, in the most recent years, the additional stressor of navigating the academic job market, interviewing for a faculty position, and joining a new university department during a worldwide pandemic has significantly increased the challenges and stress for new social work faculty.

The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly plunged social work education into uncharted territory with faculty members experiencing a significant disruption. One major transition social work faculty have made during the pandemic is the quick transition from in-person classes to virtual education (Mascolo, 2020; Shklarski & Ray, 2021; Zimmerman, 2020). Notably, Blumenstyk (2020) examined the ripple effect of universities shifting to the online environment as students were sent home when campuses were shut down across the country. Studies have also examined the shift to virtual education on faculty as distance learning has grown rapidly over the last few decades (Rovai & Downey, 2010; Shklarski & Ray, 2021). Additionally, studies have identified a rising number (over 70%) of tenured faculty considering retirement earlier than planned (Chronicle of Higher Education, 2020). Faculty responses in a recent study conducted by Chronicle of Higher Education (2020) indicates overall high levels of stress with 69% of faculty reporting high levels of stress compared to 35% of the general population. Disparate effects from the pandemic have increased for female faculty, faculty of the global majority, and LGBTQIA+ faculty, with previous disproportionate workloads increasing due to more intense student concerns (Chirikov et al., 2020).

Yet, one impact of the COVID-19 pandemic that has not been a focus of social work research thus far is how it has added to the previously mentioned challenges for faculty who are just beginning their academic careers. Presenters, Dr. Brianna Garrison and Dr. Bonni Goodwin, highlight the challenges and opportunities early career faculty have faced as they graduated during the pandemic, endured a drastically different job market, and entered a particularly unique academic environment. The presenters will describe the impact of completing interviews and campus visits virtually rather than in person while on the job market as well as orientating to a new physical campus in a significantly different environment with social distancing measures in place. The presenters will illuminate facilitators of connection and belonging creatively encountered by new faculty in hopes to aid social work programs in the transition for future early career faculty, paying particular attention to female faculty, faculty of the global majority, and LGBTQIA+ faculty.