CAPACS’ Commitment to Equality, Equal Opportunity, and Non-discrimination

The Commission on the Accreditation of Programs in Applied and Clinical Sociology (CAPACS or the Commission) is an accreditor of higher education programs in sociological practice in the United States and abroad. CAPACS-accredited programs honor a call to educate and train students under professional standards to serve society in interdisciplinary fields. Examples include behavioral health care, social service administration, criminal justice, forensic counseling, and public policy research (Fleischer 1997, 1998, and 1999; Fleischer and Winston 2018; cf. Fritz 2012; Perlstadt 1998). Graduates of CAPACS-accredited programs may choose to practice as applied sociologists, clinical sociologists, engaged public sociologists, translational sociologists, and forensic sociologists.

The Commission's accreditation Standards require Programs to conform to the principles of equality, equal opportunity, and non-discrimination with regard to race, ethnicity, religion, creed, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disabilities, and the marital status of faculty, staff, and students, especially in hirings, promotions, and admissions.

Accordingly, CAPACS joins its accredited programs in condemning injustice and dehumanization wherever it occurs in the world. The ethical obligation to respond constructively and effectively to egregious acts of indignity and hate is articulated, notably, in the "Statement of Solidarity and Action” of The Program in Public Sociology at Radford University (Radford, VA). An affliction exacted on a fellow human being is a scourge to all humanity. Nowhere was this exemplified more indelibly and heartachingly than in the brutal death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020. Witnessed by the world, and punctuating only one recent tragedy resulting in the untimely demise of countless victims of institutional discrimination throughout history, these assaults on humanity have no place in civilized societies. There is no safe harbor for the mistreatment, abuse, and violent death of loved in our homes, communities, houses of worship, cultural centers, schools, and workplaces -- especially at the hands of law enforcement which is entrusted to serve and protect the peace, joined by elected and appointed officials who swear an oath to preserve the health, safety, and welfare of the citizenry, including immigrants and refugees who seek freedom from oppression and dream of a better life for themselves and their families in the United States and other free nations.

The Commission marches shoulder-to-shoulder with everyone who declares that “Black Lives Matter,” and actively pursues freedom, equality, equal opportunity, and non-discrimination for all, dedicating themselves to the realization of this vision of justice for people of all walks of life in our lifetime.