IU School of Social Work Office of e-Social Work Education and Practice Focus Area Graphic. Social Work Distance Education – toward our commitment to social work distance education, we collaborate with faculty to develop and maintain consistent, on-brand online courses for use across all IU School of Social Work campuses. We use evidence-based design practices and strive to meet federal accessibility guidelines and distance education standards of regular and substantive student interaction. Technology-mediated Social Work Practice – toward our commitment to technology-mediated social work practice, we manage the e-Social Work practice graduate certificate program, promote the infusion of technology-mediated social work practice into the curriculum develop e-simulations for online practice courses, and build continuing education course offerings through IU Expand.
In the changing online landscape of tele-behavioral health, the IU School of Social Work is leading the way by establishing the first Office of e-Social Work Education and Practice. Officially established in August 2020, the Office of e-Social Work Education and Practice is committed to two main focus areas: Social Work distance education and technology-mediated social work practice.

David Wilkerson Headshot
David Wilkerson, Ph.D., MSW, director of the Office of e-Social Work Education and Practice

The new Office will expand on team members’ substantial experience in online course design, development, and delivery, previously achieved through their work with MSW Direct. The MSW Direct program is a fully online program established in 2012. MSW Direct is currently the 4th largest online program at Indiana University. The MSW Direct courses exemplify effective distance education and IU Expand showcases one of its course modules in the IU Online Course Test Drive program. The new Office will also develop and design the School’s continuing education (CE) course offerings for delivery through IU Expand. The CE program had over 4,000 participants as of August 28, 2020.
Led by David Wilkerson, Ph.D., MSW, director, and Samantha Wolfe-Taylor, MSW, LCSW, associate director, the Office will continue the work team members pioneered for MSW Direct, including:

  • e-Social Work Practice Graduate Certificate
    Trains social workers to deliver technology-mediated practice to client populations in areas where access is currently lacking.
  • e-OSCE simulations program
    Provides social work practice training authenticity in online social work practice courses.
  • Distance Education Community of Practice
    Provides an online space to engage and support faculty in their online pedagogic practices.
Samantha Wolfe-Taylor Headshot
Samantha Wolfe-Taylor, MSW, LCSW, associate director of the Office of e-Social Work Education and Practice

Dr. Wilkerson is an assistant professor and an affiliate research scientist with the Regenstrief Institute. He led the development of the School’s e-Social Work Practice Graduate Certificate in partnership with the IUPUI School of Informatics and Computing. His research interests focus on the uses of technology to improve social work education and practice in response to social work’s grand challenge to harness technology for social good.

Samantha Wolfe-Taylor is a clinical assistant professor, a Ph.D. candidate with the IU School of Social Work, and a certified clinical tele-mental health provider. She is the creator of the School’s e-simulations and manages the e-Social Work Practice Graduate Certificate program. Her research interests center on investigating the development and implementation of distance education technology innovations in online programs and their impact on student learning and practice preparation.

Course design team members Janna Hitzeman-Crampton, instructional technology specialist, Heather Arle, instructional designer, and Stephen Thompson, administrative support, help support this new Office.

To contact the group you can email esworkhelp@iu.edu