1. (a) Supervision is a professional relationship between a supervisor and a supervisee designed to promote responsibility, competency, and accountability to the:

   1. (1) Agency;
   2. (2) Clients; and
   3. (3) Community.

2. (b) Supervision for all licensed social workers.

   1. (1)

      1. (A) Once licensed as an LSW or LMSW, including provisional license, the LSW or LMSW must obtain supervision from a licensed social worker or other qualified professional from a related field.
      2. (B) The supervision may be within or outside the agency.
   2. (2) The social work practice of an LCSW shall be supervised by an LMSW, an LCSW, or other qualified professional from a related field on a minimum of a weekly basis.
   3. (3) The social work practice of an LMSW shall be supervised by an LMSW, an LCSW, or other qualified professional from a related field on a minimum of a weekly basis.
   4. (4) While supervision of the social work practice of the LCSW is not mandatory, the LCSW should have available, as needed, consultation provided by an LCSW or other qualified professional from a related field.
   5. (5) An LSW or LMSW, including provisional licensees, working in a nonclinical position does not require direct supervision but must report to a supervisor.
   6. (6) The supervision required under this section is independent from any additional supervision requirements placed upon the licensee by his or her employer.

3. (c) Supervision required to obtain LCSW licensure.

   1. (1) In order to provide supervision, an LCSW or a social worker whom the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board determines to have the qualifications equivalent of those required of an LCSW must be fully licensed for three (3) years.

   2. (2)

      1. (A) To obtain licensure as a licensed certified social worker, an individual must submit documentation of:

4. (i) Twenty-four (24) months post-master’s social work experience; and

   1. (ii) Four thousand (4,000) hours in a supervised master’s-level social work position.

      1. (B) The supervisor may be from inside or outside the agency where the applicant obtains their experience.
      2. (C) For documentation requirements, please see subsection (d) of this section.

   2. (3)

      1. (A) During this twenty-four-month period, the applicant must have at least one hundred (100) direct supervision hours, with no more than two (2) hours occurring in any one-week period.

      2. (B) Group supervision is acceptable only if:

         1. (i) There is a maximum of four (4) in a group; and
         2. (ii) Such supervision does not exceed one-half (1/2) of the total supervisory time.

   3. (4)

      1. (A) Social workers who use technology to facilitate supervision shall use appropriate precautions to protect the confidentiality of those communications.

      2. (B) Precautions to protect confidentiality depend on the type of technology being used and may include:

         1. (i) Using passwords, firewalls, encryption, and antivirus software;
         2. (ii) Using electronic service providers that rely on standards of security for data that are transmitted and stored; and
         3. (iii) Ensuring a private setting when using their electronic devices.
      3. (C) See National Association of Social Workers (NASW), Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB), Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), and Clinical Social Work Association (CSWA) Standards for Technology in Social Work Practice.

   4. (5) Supervision guidelines. An LMSW who wishes to obtain LCSW licensure must adhere to the LCSW Supervision Guidelines published on the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board’s website.

      1. (d) Supervision plan and documentation.
   5. (1) To comply with the documentation in subdivision (c)(4) of this section, an applicant must submit a supervision plan, that is agreed upon by the applicant and the LCSW supervisor, to the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board.

   6. (2) The plan must be:

      1. (A) On an Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board-approved form; and
      2. (B) Received in a legible form within sixty (60) days from the beginning date of the supervision.
   7. (3) It is the responsibility of the social worker receiving supervision to verify the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board’s receipt of the supervision plan.

Codification Notes: “LSW” means licensed social worker. "LMSW" means licensed master social worker. "LCSW" means licensed certified social worker.