Park University’s Master of Social Work program is progressing towards accreditation.

According to an announcement made on Park’s website, the Council on Social Work Education’s Commission on Accreditation has approved for Park’s Master of Social Work program to “move forward in ‘candidacy’ toward final accreditation in February 2016.”

After the accreditation commissioners met earlier in the month to review all of the programs that were in position for candidacy, Walter Kisthardt, PhD, chair and Master of Social Work program director, was informed that approval was given to all of the programs to move forward to final accreditation.

Kisthardt initially proposed accreditation for the Master of Social Work program in 2008, and he said he worked to propose the idea each year since.

In 2010, the Bachelor of Social Work program received its second accreditation.

“We really started to move forward on trying to influence the university to realize the MSW would be a very important part of our program,” said Kisthardt.

In January 2013, the MSW program was first approved for development and the work towards accreditation went from there.

Since then, students have been able to enroll in the Master of Social Work program Park offers.

“Our first students were admitted this past summer,” said Kisthardt. “We have 14 students in what we call the advanced standing and they will be our first MSW graduating class this May, so we are very excited about that.”

Of those 14 students, 11 are students who received the BSW from Park and chose to transition into the MSW program.

The BSW program currently has 10 to 12 students enrolled, and having an accredited MSW program would benefit those students, Kisthardt said.

The accreditation process is a “very lengthy process,” said Kisthardt, typically considered a three-year process with “benchmark documents” to send in to the CSWE for review and assessment of the program.

A site visit made to campus by a member of the CSWE is also completed during the accreditation process to talk with faculty, administration, students and the program’s community partners.

Kisthardt said the second benchmark document is used as final assessment and the program will know by next February whether it will receive full accreditation or not.

Accreditation for the MSW program stays in place for eight years so the program has to go through reaffirmation every eight years.

But even with not having full accreditation yet, the MSW program is already collaborating with university administration on post-accreditation such as expanding the program even further and advancing the curriculum.

Kisthardt said proposing and working towards accreditation all goes back to why Park should have a MSW program.

“When you propose the MSW, you know that applying for accreditation is an integral piece of that,” he said. “To call yourself a MSW program, you need to have CSWE accreditation or no students will come into the program.”

Kisthardt also said many students are choosing to study social work because of the jobs available in the work force for social work students with masters from accredited schools.

“There is a huge demand for the MSW,” he said. “Social work is one of the fastest-growing professions.”

Before he came to Park, Kisthardt worked at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where he helped develop the MSW program there.

Aside from UMKC, the University of Kansas was the only other option for students to study social work in the greater Kansas City area.

Upon Park’s addition of a social work program, Kisthardt said students were thrilled to have another option for studying social work.

One primary requirement for Park’s MSW program to receive accreditation is the number of faculty on board with the program.

“For us to be accredited, we have to have six full-time faculty whose primary assignment is the MSW program,” said Kisthardt. “So for Park, that was a huge investment in the program and that really demonstrated [the university’s] support.”

Kisthardt also said several Park faculty members have dedicated their help, work and support to getting the MSW program accredited, including Jane Wood, the former dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; Rhonda Weimer; Jan Kircher; Geri Dickey; Tami Radohl-Sigley and Emily D. Sallee, the current dean of CLAS.

“[Sallee] has been a very strong supporter of the MSW program and her counsel as we have moved forward in this process has been invaluable,” said Kisthardt. “Also, our administrative assistant, Ms. Edwina Fontana, has worked tirelessly to help us organize the Benchmark documents and coordinate logistics with the Council on Social Work Education.”

With not knowing results now until February 2016, Kisthardt said it is basically a waiting period at the moment, but he is excited for what the future holds for Park’s MSW program.

“We are all very, very excited to have the MSW program where it is right now,” he said. “It’s very exciting and very affirming.

“The word is spreading to the community, students are coming in to talk about it and apply to the program, and it’s very gratifying. We’re just really excited for the future.”