Rethinking Social Work Education in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Dr. Liat Shklarski, LCSW, Ph.D. is an assistant professor at Hunter College, Silberman School of Social Work, and a former assistant professor at Ramapo College of New Jersey. She engages in academic research that examines the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on pedagogical and clinical social work education and practice. Utilizing both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, Dr. Shklarski conducts her research through collaborations with students, scholars, and practitioners at both the local and global levels. The focus of her scholarship is centered on addressing the current and evolving needs and challenges within the field of social work, with her research having significant implications for the roles of social workers as practitioners, scholars, and advocates. Dr. Shklarski is actively publishing in peer-reviewed journals and edited three books on topics related to social work education and practice. Dr. Shklarski is a licensed clinical social worker in New York City, providing psychodynamic psychotherapy to individuals, couples, and youth with a history of trauma. Yael Latzer, D.Sc. graduated from the University of Haifa with both a B.A. and M.A. in clinical social work and obtained her D.Sc. from the Technion Medical School in Haifa, Israel. She has received additional certification in psychotherapy, family and couples therapy, and interpersonal psychotherapy. She held a two-year fellowship position at the Psychoanalytic Institute, Menninger Foundation, in Topeka, Kansas, USA (1989–1991), training in the treatment of eating disorders (EDs). Professor Latzer has published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles in scientific journals and scientific book chapters. She has edited five books, four of them on EDs. During her sabbaticals in New York, she has been a visiting professor at Yeshiva University, Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, and in the nutrition and behaviour and psychology departments at Columbia University.