School Social Work

What is School Social Work?

After being in the educational field for 15 years, I still don't have a simple answer.  My answer varies as my role changes with the needs of the students, families, staff , school and community. One reason I decided to enter into the tech world and blog is to promote what I do in the schools. Many people hear Social Worker and think of foster care or government case managers.  Social Workers cover many environments and systems and our direct practice varies. School Social Work is a unique field.

The School Social Work Association of America , SSWAA,  has a simple but comprehensive summary of the many roles School Social Workers have in the educational system.

School Social Work Association of America also has many resources for parents, administrators and school social workers.  It's a great organization for school social workers.

Thank you for taking a look at my blog.  My hope is to have a variety of information relating to School Social Work.


SCHOOL SOCIAL WORK SERVICES

WHY do today's schools need School Social Workers?
Children today are increasingly victims of many social forces that negatively affect their role as students.  The family is in a state of change and until it becomes stabilized, in whatever form, children's unmet physical and emotional needs will continue to interfere with their ability to learn and adjust in school.

WHO are School Social Workers?
School Social Workers are trained mental health professionals with a degree in social work who provide services related to a person's social, emotional and life adjustment to school and/or society. School Social Workers are the link between the home, school and community in providing direct as well as indirect services to students, families and school personnel to promote and support students' academic and social success.

WHAT are some of the specific services that School Social Workers provide?

RELATED SERVICES:

• Participating in special education assessment meetings as well as Individual Educational Planning meetings.
• Working with those problems in a child's living situation that affect the child’s adjustment in school. (home, school, and community)
• Preparing a social or developmental history on a child with a disability.
• Counseling (group, individual and/or family)
• Mobilizing family, school, and community resources to enable the child to learn as effectively as possible in his or her educational program
• Assisting in developing positive behavioral intervention strategies.

SERVICES TO STUDENTS:

•  Providing crisis intervention.
•  Developing intervention strategies to increase academic success. 
•  Assisting with conflict resolution and anger management. 
•  Helping the child develop appropriate social interaction skills. 
•  Assisting the child in understanding and accepting self and others.

SERVICES TO PARENTS/FAMILIES:

• Interviewing the family to assess problems affecting the child's educational adjustment.
• Working with parents to facilitate their support in their children's school adjustment.
• Alleviating family stress to enable the child to function more effectively in school &community.
• Assisting parents to access programs available to students with special needs.
• Assisting parents in accessing and utilizing school and community resources

 SERVICES TO SCHOOL PERSONNEL:

• Providing staff with essential information to better understand factors (cultural, societal, economic, familial, health, etc.) affecting a student’s performance and behavior.
• Assessing students with mental health concerns.
• Developing staff in-service training programs.
• Assisting teachers with behavior management.
• Providing direct support to staff.

SCHOOL-COMMUNITY LIAISON:

• Obtaining and coordinating community resources to meet students' needs.
• Helping school districts receive adequate support from social and mental health agencies.
• Advocating for new and improved community/school service to meet the needs of students and families.
• Helping the system respond effectively to each child's needs.

 SERVICES TO DISTRICTS:

• Assist in developing and implementing educational programs for children for
• exceptional children
• Developing alternative programs for drop-outs, truants, delinquents, etc.
• Identifying and reporting child abuse and neglect.
•  Providing consultation regarding school law and school policy including IDEA and Section 504.
•  Providing case management for students and families requiring multiple resources.

(Lists are exemplary and not exhaustive)
Developed by Dot Kontak, LCSW, SSWS (2003)
Director of Communications, School Social Work Association of America
© 2012 School Social Work Association of America