|
School Social Work NOW!
Supporting Innovative Practice,
Effective Leadership, and Applied Research
Vol 4, Issue 29
|
|
|
The end of the year is just around the corner and school social workers across the country are looking forward to a summer that refreshes and relaxes. These last few weeks can be extremely demanding and stressful. Yet it is not too soon to think about what we need to hone our skills and gain new knowledge for the next school year. Be sure to check out the following offerings from ACSSW.
On October 6th, ACSSW will be hosting its 2nd annual Wisconsin-based Mental Health in Schools Institute. Check out the Mental Health in Schools Brochure to view the topics which include: anxiety and school refusal, boundaries/ethics and technology, Signs of Suicide Program, bullying prevention, assisting students in military families, managing conflict in the workplace, violence assessment, and more! Two promising topics not yet confirmed are child abuse and trauma, and current drug use among students. Watch for updates soon. Register today to take advantage of the very affordable Early Bird rate. Seating is limited.
* * * * *
Save the dates--January 26 and 27, 2015! ACSSW is once again heading to beautiful New Orleans for the 4th annual National School Mental Health Institute for School Social Workers. Watch the newsletter and ACSSW website for more news in the future!
Judith Kullas Shine
President
|
Although addressed to teachers, this article offers some positive suggestions that school social workers can use.
"The school year is coming to a close - One group cries "Too soon!" Another group declares "Just in time!" Yet another group shouts "Not soon enough!" In which group do you best fit? How do teachers finish out the current year and recharge to come back the next year with sanity and positivity intact ready to greet new learners after the short summer break? Review360 offers some suggestions for teachers to try when finishing out the year and moving to summer while reflecting, refreshing, and recharging." More.
An intervention is a confrontation generally used as a final resort for getting a loved one the help that individual needs, but denies needing. The issues addressed in an intervention can include an extremely serious drug addiction, compulsive gambling, alcoholism, eating disorders, self-mutilation, as well as excessive porn, computer, television or video games usage. Any person that is addicted to anything that affects their health and their family adversely can be helped by this method. An intervention works because it is relentless. We may cause pain to the recipient, even though the recipient is one we love. How can we do this, and why would we do this? Learn more.
Jonathan Singer of the Social Work Podcast interviewed James Mazza, Ph.D., and David Miller, Ph.D., about assessing suicide risk in schools. Jonathan says about this episode:
"When we think about suicidal youth, we tend to think about hospitals and emergency rooms, or outpatient therapy. When we think about schools we think about standardized testing, or unfortunately, the increasingly common mass shooting. But schools are an ideal place to address suicide risk in schools. That's why I was so excited to talk with two of the leading experts on youth suicide in schools. Jim Mazza, PhD, and Dave Miller, PhD. Jim is at the University of Washington and director of their school psychology program. Jim is the past-president of the American Association of Suicidology. Dave Miller, is at SUNY Albany in the educational and counseling psychology program. He is the president-elect of the American Association of Suicidology and author of the highly regarded text Children and Adolescent Suicidal Behavior: School Based Prevention and Intervention, published in 2011 by Guilford Press." Listen to Podcast.
School social work services generate a variety of revenues for school districts above and beyond the state-imposed revenue caps, which substantially offset the local financial costs to the school district. These revenues include:
- State categorical aid that reduces the local costs of school social work services,
- Additional funds generated by school social workers ensuring all enrolled students are eligible to be claimed for state aid purposes,
- Medicaid funds for school-based services provided by school social workers to income-eligible students,
- Additional funds generated by school social workers ensuring income-eligible students are accessing free and reduced school meals, and
Grants written and managed by school social workers to provide supplemental services and programs. Learn more.
|
|
|
|
October 6, 2014
Pewaukee, WI
January 26-27, 2015
National School Mental Health Institute for
School Social Workers
New Orleans, LA
|
|
 |
|
 Are you aware that professionals with Masters in Social Work (MSW) are found in fields such as government, law enforcement, and corporate realms? There is a disconnect in understanding on how MSWs create positive change in leadership positions across different professions. Furthermore, the stigma associated with social workers as being "baby snatchers," are obstacles that need to be addressed in order for MSWs to gain the respect and prestige deserved. MSWs provide a human experience that is lacking in other professions.
We want to take a closer look into the macro practice to create awareness of the benefits of MSWs. We conducted a survey that consisted of 12 questions that was distributed to over 100 individuals from various professions nationwide. Over 100 professionals from various fields attested to the value added of MSWs in macro settings.
The sentiment across the board is indisputable, MSWs transferable skills sets are desired and appreciated in various fields such as education, government, nonprofit management, research, consultation, and law enforcement. 81% of respondents have an MSW in their respective fields and 76% of respondents strongly agreed that having an MSW within their workforce is valuable.
The top skills identified through our survey can be sorted in three categories: government, Interpersonal, and organizational. Complete article.
Who are the high and low performers in your company? Do you recruit and hire very talented people? Is your company committed to keeping top performers, and removing low performers? And does your organization develop its people effectively?
The answers to these questions determine how - and if - an organization manages talent. We hear all the time about the importance of recruiting talented people, and how talented people create value for many different types of business. However, while most companies know that they need to attract and retain these talented people, they often struggle to do it. More.
|
Teasing, bullying, and harassment are prevalent among youth and are of public health concern... Past research has emphasized that youth who are bullied in general are at increased risk of developing psychosocial and psychosomatic problems...and also has examined risks associated with individual types of harassment. For instance, results of cross-sectional and prospective studies highlight strong associations between weight-related teasing and emotional problems (e.g., low self-esteem, depressive symptoms) and unhealthy weight control behaviors (e.g., fasting, skipping meals) among adolescents...In addition, there is evidence that sexual harassment is associated with poor mental and physical health in middle and high school students...Furthermore, sexual and race/ethnicity-based harassment each have been associated with negative health outcomes, although this work has focused primarily on adult populations...Thus, a gap exists in our understanding of these forms of mistreatment-and their associated risks-among adolescents. Study.
Military-connected (MC) children can face emotional and academic challenges, but little is known about how these affect schools. This study gathered the perceptions of principals, school counselors, and teachers at eight MC public schools. Analyses of interview, focus group,and survey responses revealed that transitions and deployments had an impact on educators' work in specific ways. Areas of impact were thematically summarized in domains of academic support, social-emotional support, administration and student records, cultural responsiveness, and school-military-community partnerships. These domains complement prior research describing areas of MC student needs. Findings are situated within a framework of responsiveness that integrates school reform with professional standards for school social workers and school counselors. Recommendations include coordination among schoolbased professionals to promote success across domains. More.
|
School Violence in Context:
Culture, Neighborhood, Family, School & Gender
by Rami Benbenishty & Ron Avi Astor
This empirical contrast of universal with culturally specific patterns is sorely needed in the school violence literature. The authors' innovative research maps the contours of verbal, social, physical, and sexual victimization and weapons possession, as well as staff-initiated violence against students, presenting some startling findings along the way. When comparing schools in Israel with schools in California, the authors demonstrate for the first time that for most violent events the patterns of violent behaviors have the same relationship for different age groups, genders, and nations. Conversely, they highlight specific kinds of violence that are strongly influenced by culture... They reveal, for example, how Arab boys encounter much more boy-to-boy sexual harassment than their Jewish peers, and that teacher-initiated victimization of students constitutes a significant and often overlooked type of school violence, especially among certain cultural groups. Crucially, the authors expand the paradigm of understanding school violence to encompass the intersection of cultural, ethnic, neighborhood, and family characteristics with intra-school factors such as teacher-student dynamics, anti-violence policies, student participation, grade level, and religious and gender divisions. It is only by understanding the multiple contexts of school violence, they argue, that truly effective prevention programs, interventions, research agendas, and policies can be implemented.--OUP Related.
|
Free 1.5 CEUs for School Social Workers
ACSSW is very pleased to offer an opportunity for any school social worker to earn 1.5 FREE CEUs due to ACSSW's sponsorship of an excellent program:
Plan, Prepare, Prevent: The SOS Online
Gatekeeper Training Module
The SOS Signs of Suicide® Prevention Program is an award winning, nationally recognized program designed for middle and high school-age students. The program teaches students how to identify the symptoms of depression and suicidality in themselves or their friends, and encourages help-seeking through the use of the ACT® technique (Acknowledge, Care, Tell). This course is available free to school social workers. With sponsorship from ACSSW, all learners will receive 1.5 contact hours upon completion. Click to Learn More. To register call 781-239-0071 or email SOS Registration and mention that you'd like to register.
Columbia University Teachers College Press published 4 guides geared to support teachers, administrators, student personnel staff, and parents. For a limited period, and as supplies last, TCP has agreed to provide FREE copies of the guides to social workers and educators working with military kids in schools including: teachers, school administrators, PPS workers, and military parents. School social workers should be aware of this wonderful, time-limited, FREE offer from TCP. Many school social workers will benefit from these guides.
The process is simple. Each individual desiring a free book would need to click on the link, select the type of book s/he desires, and fill out name, mailing address, etc. on the Qualtrix form after selecting the book desired. The book will be mailed in a few weeks.
|
|
School Social Work Positions
|
Continued - listed by state abbreviation
|
Bethel, AK
Tucson, AZ
Connecticut (various)
Washington, DC
Washington, DC #2
Griffin, GA
Macon, GA
|
Heartland, IA AEA
Lake Bluff, IL
Northbrook, IL
Wichita, KS
Dearborn Heights, MI
Washington, MO
|
Cherry Hill, NJ
Bronx, NY
Providence, RI
|
|
|
A money-saving experiment by a handful of Minnesota school districts that switched to four-day school weeks is winding down because of academic performance concerns.
Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius has told seven of the 11 rural districts with four-day weeks to return to normal schedules, Minnesota Public Radio reported Tuesday. An eighth district, North Branch, is reverting voluntarily this fall. Students aren't making adequate academic progress because of the shorter weeks, Cassellius said.
The shorter weeks proved popular with families and teachers because of the resulting three-day weekends, but the state Department of Education concluded that test scores in those districts weren't improving. Read more.
Gardening Gives Students with Autism New Life
As the temperature climbed into the 90s on a recent school day at Bowden Elementary School, hectic shouts of students at recess rang out while mud and wet mulch flew all over the school's garden.
If you ask Christopher Contreras, who came to the campus through Teach for America and rebuilt the garden as a way to engage the school's autistic students, there is nowhere he or his kids would rather be.
"Sitting at a desk doesn't work for these guys," Contreras said of his students, all of whom are mid- to low-functioning autistic. "We needed a way that gets them less cognitively stressed, and we wanted to learn about the environment."
"Planting a garden is more sensory-based, it's kinesthetic," he added. Continue.
|
SAMHSA launched the Girls Matter! webinar series to discuss challenges, opportunities, and strategies for supporting adolescent girls. Professionals working with adolescents will have a chance to learn more about the unique needs of girls ages 12-18, and how those needs impact their behavioral health and development. Each month, Girls Matter! features a free 90-minute webinar, which covers a related behavioral health topic. Review archived webinars and register for the next 2. Next webinar is June 10th..
Supportive School Discipline Webinar Series Event: School Discipline Laws and Regulations
June 11, 2014, 3:30 - 5:00 pm EST
The U.S. Departments of Education and Justice are pleased to inform you about the next Supportive School Discipline Webinar Series event. This webinar will take place on June 11, 2014 and review the School Discipline Guidance Package's Compendium of School Discipline Laws and Regulations, discuss latest trends in policymaking related to school discipline, and feature a practitioner who is implementing a new policy. The School Discipline Guidance Package was jointly issued by the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice on January 8, 2014. For more information and to register, click here.
Archived
The CSMH and the IDEA Partnership presented a webinar, School Mental Health: A Federal Perspective, on January 30, 2014. Following the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy, the President put forward a number of initiatives aimed at making schools and communities safer and to increase access to mental health services in his plan, Now is the Time. As he said, "We won't be able to stop every violent act, but if there is even one thing we can do to prevent any of these events, we have a deep obligation, all of us, to try." This webinar provided an overview of federal efforts that have already been put in place, as well as those that have been proposed for the upcoming years. Presenters David Esquith, Director for the Office of Safe and Healthy Students (OSHS) Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), U.S. Department of Education, and Ingrid Donato, Branch Chief, Mental Health Promotion, Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), provided participants with information about other existing federal initiatives to prevent youth violence and promote positive student outcomes. Strategies that support students, schools, and communities as well as the importance of cross-system partnerships were highlighted. The webinar recording is available as well as the PowerPoint. Access here.
|
"Now Is the Time", Project AWARE Grants
from Nic Dibble, WI Education Consultant for SSW
The purpose of this program is to assist local educational agencies to begin to support the training of school personnel and other adults who interact with youth in both school settings and communities to detect and respond to mental illness in children and youth, including how to encourage adolescents and their families experiencing these problems to seek treatment. The training for staff provided through the grant must be Mental Health First Aid or Youth Mental Health First Aid. Award amount: Up to $50,000/year. Deadline: June 16, 2014. Eligibility. More info.
The School Climate Transformation Grant-Local Educational Agency Program provides competitive grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) to develop, enhance, or expand systems of support for, and technical assistance to, schools implementing an evidence-based multi-tiered behavioral framework for improving behavioral outcomes and learning conditions for all students. Projects should: (1) build capacity for implementing a sustained, school-wide multi-tiered behavioral framework; (2) enhance capacity by providing training and technical assistance to schools; and (3) include an assurance that the applicant will work with a technical assistance provider, such as the PBIS Technical Assistance Center funded by the Department, to ensure that technical assistance related to implementing program activities is provided. Deadline: June 23, 2014. Eligibility. Applicant info.
This program provides funding to LEAs to increase their capacity both to identify, assess, and serve students exposed to pervasive violence, helping to ensure that affected students are offered mental health services for trauma or anxiety; support conflict resolution programs; and implement other school-based violence prevention strategies in order to reduce the likelihood that these students will later commit violent acts. These projects must offer students: (1) access to school-based counseling services, or referrals to community-based counseling services, for assistance in coping with trauma or anxiety; (2) school-based social and emotional supports for students to help address the effects of violence; (3) conflict resolution and other school-based strategies to prevent future violence; and (4) a safer and improved school environment, which may include, among others, activities to decrease the incidence of harassment, bullying, violence, gang involvement, and substance use. Applicants must address all four subparts of this absolute priority. Deadline: June 30, 2014. Eligibility. Applicant info.
|
|
|
|
