The Faculty of Management and Development Studies (FMDS) renewed its annual institutional membership to the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW) last 15 February 2017 as part of its efforts to widen UP Open University's network through partnerships and linkages. Membership to the organization is seen as beneficial in learning about the current professional practice and trends in social work education thus enriching the faculty's Diploma in and Master of Social Work curriculum.
The IASSW office is located at the Department of Sociology and Social Research, University of Milano- Bicocca, Italy and is the global association of social work schools and social work educational programs at the tertiary level. It advocates for the development of social work education in the world, creates standards to improve social work education, boosts international exchanges, offers a venue for creating discourse on social work research, and conducts policy and advocacy activities to support human rights and social development. IASSW aims to engage social work educators in the whole world for the exchange of knowledge and expertise. IASSW has been granted consultative status at the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) as an NGO since 1947 and represented at the United Nations in Geneva. The association shares studies and research in social work through the International Social Work journal and conferences and seminars organized.
Besides IASSW, UP Open University through FMDS' Social Work program is also a member of the Asia Pacific Association for Social Work Education (APASWE), the National Association of Social Work Education, Inc. (NASWEI), the Social Welfare Development Learning Network, and the Regional Sub-Committee for the Welfare of Children-CALABARZON Region. Through these linkages, FMDS hopes to reach prospective Social Work students and contribute to the development of the Philippine social work curriculum through open and distance e-learning. (Paula Grace Muyco)
