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School Social Work NOW!
Supporting Innovative Practice,
Effective Leadership, and Applied Research
Vol 5, Issue 16
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Greetings!
The "Spread the Word to End the Word" 2015 Awareness Day is Wednesday, March 4th. The R-Word Campaign website has many resources and ideas to help you develop activities for your school or district.
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Request for Proposals: 20th Annual Conference on
Advancing School Mental Health:
Getting Jazzed About School Mental Health
November 5 - 7, 2015 ~~ New Orleans, LA
Submission Deadline: extended to February 27, 2015
School social workers are encouraged to submit!
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Steve Whitmore, Oakland Schools (MI) Social Work Consultant, is interested in applications and websites used on I-pads and other tablets that address the learning, practice and/or improvement of specific skills, resources, functions and tasks. Please take a few minutes to help with this research. Deadline is February 28th--but why not do it today?
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Medicaid & School Social Work Services
courtesy of Nic Dibble, WI DPI Education Consultant for School Social Work Services
"A change in federal policy could significantly increase the school social work services that are billable through Medicaid. The federal HHS Center for Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a short memo stating the 'Free Care Rule' now applies to schools. They did not give any details on impact or how this would affect schools' reimbursements through Medicaid, though the implication is that it would expand Medicaid funding for schools providing health, including mental health, services to eligible students. For example, it is not clear if this applies to all students eligible for Medicaid (implied) or only those in "School-Based Services", which is restricted to students with an IEP. Which services are eligible for reimbursement is also not clear.
This brief provides educators with an overview of the issue of minor sex trafficking and suggests specific steps that schools can take to respond to signs of trafficking among its students. It also offers suggestions for how State Coordinators for Homeless Education and local homeless education liaisons can help guide their states' and school districts' efforts to address trafficking within schools. Youth experiencing homelessness are particularly vulnerable to being targeted for victimization through trafficking; because of this, educators working with homeless and other at-risk students should be well informed about the issue and effective ways to respond within schools. Read/download here.
. . .As often is the case with trends, whether societal, educational, or professional, it is prudent to examine the tools that have been developed concomitantly and the way they have been used. Although several of the assessment instruments discussed by Allen-Meares and Lane (1983) are still in use, many others have been developed. In addition, although Allen-Meares and Lane discussed one culturally sensitive instrument called the System of Multicultural Pluralistic Assessment (SOMPA), the consideration of cultural and ethnic factors in assessment has gained more importance given the increasing ethnic and racial diversity within certain school systems. Furthermore, cultural and ethnic factors are of particular relevance as the overrepresentation of ethnic minority students in special education classes has been documented by researchers. . . once labeled, ethnic minority children are less likely to receive instruction in a mainstream classroom, are more likely to face harsher discipline than that received by their peers, and are less likely to graduate. Outside of school, African American students, in particular, face a greater rate of unemployment and arrest (Children's Defense Fund, 2004). Full article.
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Abstract: There is an imperative for school leaders to develop the skills of persuasion as an essential to successful leadership in today's school environments. The author proposes that successful leadership requires that school leaders hone their persuasive skills. Leadership is viewed as an influence relationship in which stakeholders utilize persuasion to influence decisions. Persuasion involves a complex exchange involving numerous factors. The elements of persuasion are discussed leading to practical suggestions as to how leaders can persuade effectively. More.
Abstract: One way to develop critical and culturally reflective leaders is to wed critical theory with textual material rich in complex cultural meaning and ambiguity. In this essay, the author will discuss critical theory, leadership paradoxes imbedded in critical theory, and the use of narrative texts (ethnographies and cultural novels) that provide contextually rich opportunities for future leaders to understand complex groups and situations. Intended and unintended outcomes using narrative novels and ethnographic texts will be explained. Continue.
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Responding to Today's Mental Health Needs of Children, Families and Schools: Revisiting the Preservice Training and Preparation of School-based Personnel
. . . Increasingly, school-based personnel are faced with students who present with growing mental health concerns. While the rate of mental illness in youth continues unabated in the United States (Morris, 2002), and, with the contributing etiological factors many and varied, questions are raised about the training adequacy of school-based personnel to combat this growing concern in today's school environment. To illustrate, Rones and Hoagwood (2000) suggest that university-based preservice educational training programs do not adequately prepare and thus provide sufficient knowledge, skill, or field experience to work with children in schools who present with mental health problems. If this is true, then what training do school-based personnel actually receive at the preservice level? To elaborate, is preservice training focused on a strengths-based prevention model or one focusing on traditional broad and global standards that emphasize pathology and mental illness? Learn more.
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Recommended Reads for February
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10 Recent Non-Fiction Books to Read for Black History Month
- Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward
- The Warmth of Other Suns: the Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson
- The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood by Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention by Manning Marable
- Mo' Meta Blues: The World According to Questlove
by Ahtnir "Questlove" Thompson and Ben Greenman
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How to Be Black by Baratunde Thurston
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The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
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White Girls by Hilton Als
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How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America by Kiese Laymon
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Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America by Gilbert King
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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. Or 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.
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School Social Work Positions
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Continued - listed by state abbreviation
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San Francisco, CA
Denver, CO
Connecticut (various)
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Arlington Hts, IL
Chicago, IL
Lisle, IL
Palatine, IL '15-'16
Evansville, IN
McPherson, KS '15-'16
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Boston, MA '15-'16
Kansas City, MO
Utica, NY
Edinburg, VA
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Grief in the Classroom: 'Saying Nothing Says a Lot'
Deborah Oster Pannell's husband died when her son, Josiah, was 6 years old. That week, Pannell visited Josiah's school and, with his teacher and guidance counselor, explained to his first-grade class what had happened.
"I'll never forget the three of us sitting up there - and all these little shining faces looking up at us - talking about how Josiah lost his dad and he might be sad for a while," Pannell says. Josiah, who is now 11 years old, has a few painful memories of the visit. "That day they were all just blatantly explaining what had just happened to me," he says. "It was really uncomfortable." But Josiah also believes the visit helped make his classroom a healthy, safe space for his grieving. So how should educators handle the death of a student's loved one? Read more. School Social Worker Heads Up Efforts to Combat Bullying, Prevent Teen Suicide . . .[At Brunswick High School, it] quickly became obvious last year that students were dealing with many mental health issues the school wasn't equipped to handle with its existing staff. A grant from the U.S. Department of Education allowed the school to hire a fulltime mental health specialist. Nicole Stacey, a licensed clinical social worker with more than 20 years of school social work experience, was hired last March. She works at the high school every day of the week and is available for any crisis or "walk-in" problems students might be having. She has helped students who are dealing with depression, suicidal ideation, problems at home and other mental health concerns. She helped form the school's Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) and is the adviser to STAND, a student-initiated group that focuses on advocating for students who are being bullied or having mental health issues. "She's really become vital in our building," [Principal Michael] Draves said. Stacey said communication and follow-up have been key. Learn more.
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1st Quarter Deadline: March 31, 2015
Grants of up to $500 are available for "innovative programs, events, or projects" from the Meemic Foundation. Apply online using their easy application that takes less than 30 minutes to complete. These grants are open to any employee of a K-12 public or private school. Universities and colleges may also apply. Fill-in-the-blank application.
Grants are accepted year round, but the first quarter cycle ends March 31st. Grants are up to $1000. Recipients will be notified by May 15th.
The foundation says it supports "basically anything that supports teachers and enhances the student's educational experience" - from field trips to books to behavior modification programs; science, music, or art equipment to professional development.
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