In this week's update:
- NC General Assembly returns on January 29th
- LAST CHANCE: NASW-NC's 2025 Legislative Agenda Priorities Webinar
- 2025 Advocacy Day Register Today!
- NASW-NC Advocacy 101 Webinar in preparation of Advocacy Day
- NASW-NC Ethics Conference
- DEI Policies to be Removed from Two NC Agencies
NC General Assembly returns on January 29th
While the NC General Assembly 2025's Legislative Long Session ceremonially began on Wednesday, January 8th with the swearing in of new members, they adjourned for two weeks. The NCGA returns to Raleigh on Wednesday, January 29th with committed assignments made, and meetings on the calendar. You can follow along with daily NC House and NC Senate calenders on the NCLEG.gov website. Committee hearings and floor votes are streamed both on audio and YouTube if you are unable to attend in person.
NASW-NC is the only organization with two full-time lobbyists advocating on behalf of the social work profession. We will be in-person at the NC General Assembly each week of the 2025 Legislative Session meeting with legislators and attending committee hearings. Our #1 Legislative Priority is the passing of the Social Work Interstate Licensure Compact Bill, which we first introduced in the 2023 session. You can learn more about the Social Work Compact HERE. We have already secured bill sponsors in both the NC House & NC Senate. Please keep reading our weekly Advocacy Alerts & follow us on social media as we will be sharing updates throughout the legislative session on our lobbying efforts around the 2025 Legislative Agenda (see image below!).
NASW-NC's 2025 Legislative Agenda Priorities Webinar
LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER -Join NASW-NC's Director of Advocacy & Policy for an overview of our 2025 NC General Assembly Legislative Agenda, as well as what to expect during the Legislative Long Session. This webinar is free and open to NASW-NC members & non-members. 1 hour CE provided. You can read the 2025 NASW-NC Legislative Agenda here.
Date: January 30, 2025
Time: 12PM-1PM
Location: Virtual
FREE|1CE Hour
2025 ADVOCACY DAY -REGISTER TODAY!
NASW-NC's 2025 Advocacy Day is WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2025 in Downtown Raleigh! We will have a new location for morning orientation (sessions between 9AM-12PM) this year due to the NC History Museum being closed for renovation.
Read More Here: 2025 ADVOCACY DAY
New Location: Church on Morgan
136 E Morgan St, Raleigh, NC 27601
Church on Morgan's meeting space is like an auditorium, not with religious symbolism of any kind.
This event is FREE and open to all. We have limited space for this event and want as many people to attend as possible. Please only register if you are certain you can attend.
An OPTIONAL contribution is available during the online registration process. NASW-NC is proud to make the North Carolina Social Work Advocacy Day free for all. We welcome your contribution to this event. All contributions will be donated to social work students from across the state to aid in their travel to Raleigh. Please consider contributing to this effort to help connect the social work profession to those who represent us and our communities at the North Carolina General Assembly.
Each participant will register for ONE session:
Session 1 begins at 9:00 am
Session 2 begins at 10:30 am
* We ask that those close to the Raleigh area register for Session 1 to allow for those traveling from far to attend Session 2.
Space is limited so be sure to register TODAY: https://www.naswnc.org/event/2025SocialWorkAdvocacyDay
NASW-NC Advocacy 101 Webinar in preparation for Advocacy Day
In preparation for the 2025 North Carolina Social Work Advocacy Day on March 5, 2025 in Raleigh, join members of the NASW-NC Legislative Committee for this free, live webinar as we discuss the 2025 NASW-NC Legislative Agenda. During the event, we will discuss each NASW-NC Legislative Agenda item and cover Advocacy 101 for Social Workers to learn the skills you need to educate government leaders about policy issues that are important to you and reflect the causes you care about.
This event is free and open for everyone (even if you are not able to attend Advocacy Day), attendees will receive 1 hour of CE for free. A link to the live webinar will be distributed to registrants before the meeting date. This webinar will be recorded to view later.
Date: February 12, 2025
Time: 12PM-1PM
Location: Virtual
FREE|1CE Hour
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
NASW-NC Ethics Conference
The 2025 Ethics Conference "Innovation and Ethics: The Future of Social Work in a Tech-Driven World" will explore the intersection of technology and social work in the modern era. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, the role of technology in social work is becoming increasingly significant. This conference aims to create meaningful discussions around how innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics, and digital platforms can enhance the delivery of social work on all levels, while also addressing the ethical challenges they present.
Key topics of focus will include the integration of technology and AI in social work practice, clinical documentation considerations with data privacy and security, and the ethical responsibilities of social workers in navigating the digital divide. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage with seasoned practitioners in these areas and learn how social workers can leverage technological advancements and maintain their commitment to ethical principles, client autonomy, and social justice.
Date: Friday, March 21, 2025
Time: 8:15am - 4:00pm EST
Location: Virtual on Zoom
6.5 Hours Ethics CE
DEI Policies to be Removed from Two NC Agencies
Two Republican statewide elected officials said Thursday they were ending the use of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies in their agencies. Labor Commissioner Luke Farley and State Auditor Dave Boliek, both of whom were elected in November, announced Thursday morning that they had directed their agencies to remove all internal DEI policies that had previously been in place.
The moves by Farley and Boliek come after President Donald Trump, in one of his first actions after being sworn in on Monday, signed an executive order to eliminate DEI policies from the federal government.
Farley said in a statement that he was ending the use of DEI metrics to evaluate the performance of employees at the N.C. Department of Labor. He said he had directed the Office of State Human Resources to remove DEI “as a core measurement for evaluating NCDOL employee performance.”
He also said he had directed managers and supervisors in the department to no longer consider DEI as an evaluation method. Farley said that moving forward, the labor department “will hire and evaluate employees based on merit and on their ability to fulfill our mission to protect the health, safety and well-being of North Carolinians.”
He also said he added a performance measure related to health and safety to “ensure that we hold ourselves to the same standards that we expect and require of our state’s employers.”
Boliek, the state auditor, said in a statement that he was directing his office to conduct an internal review to eliminate DEI from all office policies, “including any training, performance requirements, preferencing, and directives.”
“DEI is divisive and brings little-to-no return on investment of time and resources,” Boliek said. “Corporations across the country are abandoning DEI, as are colleges and universities, and it’s time for the government to do the same.”
Source: NewsObserver.com
Thank you to the members of NASW-NC for supporting the advocacy work we do. We would not be able to advocate for the social work profession or social justice issues in North Carolina without a robust and engaged NASW membership. If you are a social worker and not a member, we ask that you join NASW today. Our voice is louder with your membership.
Learn more about NASW-NC membership here.
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