The College of Applied Sciences and Arts at San José State University is hosting its second Social Work Education Enhancement Project Fellows Academy, with eight Vietnamese professors visiting for three weeks in March to learn skills they will be able to bring home to their own universities in Vietnam. The 2015 fellows arrived in San José on March 1 and have been involved in lectures and workshops all week. The Fellows Academy is March 2-20.
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- College of Applied Sciences and Arts Interim Dean Alice Hines, left, and Director of the School of Information Sandy Hirsh, center, talk with one of the Social Work Education Enhancement Project fellows from Vietnam during a reception March 4, held at the Yoshihiro Uchida Hall rooftop terrace. The fellows are staying in San Jose for three weeks to learn about social work education and practice in the U.S.
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- Health Science Professor Jane Pham, second from the left, and Social Work Professor Meekyung Han, second from the right, talk with visitors from Vietnam during the Social Work Education Enhancement Program Fellows’ reception March 4 on the Yoshihiro Uchida Hall rooftop terrace.
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- Director of Social Work Jack Wall, second from the left, enjoys appetizers during the Social Work Education Enhancement Project Fellows’ reception March 4 while he speaks with some of the visitors from Vietnam.
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- Social Work graduate student Veronica Cavillo talks with visitors from Vietnam at the Social Work Education Enhancement Project Fellows’ reception March 4.
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- School of Social Work Director Jack Wall speaks with one of the fellows from Vietnam who will be at SJSU for three weeks to learn about social work education.
Many SJSU social work faculty are involved in sharing knowledge about how to teach social work for the fellows, but other departments at SJSU are also providing support including the School of Information, the Center for Faculty Development, the SJSU Global Leadership Advancement Center, Academic Technology, and the University Library. The fellows will also have a chance to visit social service agencies in the Bay Area to see what types of services are provided in the United States as the field of Social Work is relatively new in Vietnam, established 10 years ago.
Interim Dean Alice Hines is the director of SWEEP, while Social Work Professor Ed Cohen serves as a co-director. SWEEP is an international consortium which includes USAID, SJSU, eight universities in Vietnam, government ministries, Cisco Systems, Inc., and community agencies and stakeholders. The purpose of SWEEP is to assist eight universities in Vietnam with improving their undergraduate social work educational programs. The project, which is funded through September, 2015, aims to improve:
- The administration of social work programs
- Faculty capabilities in teaching and research
- Social work curriculum, and
- Network communication among the universities through the use of improved technology