Wasn’t
it just yesterday that we were all worried about Y2K issues? 2009 is coming to
a close, a tumultuous year for many Americans and as a result, putting more
pressure on the services that social workers provide. Add to the mix the
budgetary pressures the state of Illinois is currently experiencing….well let’s
just say we hope that 2010 will be an improvement.
This
is also a good time to reflect on what’s transpired in the chapter as well. A
significant amount of our activities revolved around advocacy for a fair and
humane budget for the human services. The following are just some of the 2009
accomplishments of the Illinois Chapter, much of which has been chronicled during
the past year on the NASW IL blog.
Budget Advocacy
In
late June, the chapter began utilizing the CapWiz legislative alert system. This
coincided with the most recent state budget crisis. Over 4,000 social workers
sent a total of over 27,600 e-mails to their elected officials and media
outlets since that time. The budget issue galvanized the chapter membership
like no other issue I have witnessed in the over ten years that I have served
as NASW IL Chapter Executive Director. Much of our advocacy activity was
chronicled on the NASW IL web blog, with frequent media updates and blog
postings. We have been an active member of the Responsible Budget Coalition, a
statewide group of over 150 organizations committed to building the support
needed to solve Illinois’ budget crisis, prevent harmful cuts to essential
public services, save jobs, eliminate the state’s long-term structural deficit,
and provide Illinoisans with relief from regressive taxation. We will begin to
ramp up our efforts once again when the 96th Illinois General Assembly
reconvenes in January 2010.
2009 NASW IL
Statewide Conference
The
2009 NASW IL Conference, “A Meeting of the Profession,” offered over seventy regular
workshops, eight intensive workshops totaling twenty CEUs, two-thirds of the
licensure requirements.
Passage of
Confidentiality Legislation
Despite
the grim budget news out of Springfield, we were successful in passing two
pieces of important legislation related to social work confidentiality and
school records. They included:
SB1507 – Social Work Confidentiality bill, chief sponsor
Senator David Koehler (D-Peoria) and approved by Governor Quinn on July 23,
2009, as Public Act 096-0071.
The Public Act makes a change to the confidentiality section of the
Clinical Social Work and Social Work Practice Act in a provision that allows a
social worker to voluntarily disclose privileged information to an
administrative superior, colleague, or consultant, who share professional
responsibility by clarifying that “share professional responsibility” includes a
professional responsibility to maintain confidentiality.
SB1508 – Student Records Act, chief sponsor
Senator David Koehler (D-Peoria) and signed by Governor Quinn on August 24,
2009, as Public Act 96-0628. It
amends the Illinois School Student Records Act and provides that nothing
contained in the Act shall be construed to impair or limit the confidentiality
of information communicated in confidence to a school social worker.
Social Work Advocacy
Day took
place on February 25, 2009, in Springfield. A record number of attendees, 722, participated.
Social Work
Academy
Our
new professional development product completed its first full year at the end
of the current licensure renewal cycle. Social workers around the state now
have an additional resource for education and enrichment as well as affordable
and accessible courses to fulfill CEU licensure requirements. There are
currently eighteen courses online and more to follow in 2010.
Restructuring the
State Chapter
The
NASW IL Chapter Board recommended that a Restructuring Task Force be
established to develop a plan for board review at its August 21, 2009, board
meeting. The task force’s charge was to develop a district map that better
represented members throughout the state and was more responsive to their
needs. Additionally, the task force considered issues regarding leadership
development as well as cost containment.
The
chapter is ready to meet the challenges ahead for the social work profession in
2010. All of the accomplishments mentioned above were not done in a vacuum. It
is the membership and volunteer leadership that shapes the activities of the
association. We can’t do it alone and look forward to member involvement in
advocacy as well as leadership. I encourage you to be a part of your
association during 2010. Additional leadership opportunities can be found on
the chapter Web site at http://www.naswil.org/.
Best
wishes for the holiday and the New Year!
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