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School Social Work NOW!
Supporting Innovative Practice,
Effective Leadership, and Applied Research
Vol 6, Issue 10
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After the events in Paris last Friday, and other atrocities committed in recent weeks in Beiruit, Lebanon, Baghdad, and the Russian airliner, it is hard to know what to say. Our hearts are with the victims of these terrible crimes. So far this year, the world has experienced over 285 terrorists attacks. ( Wikipedia). The thinking behind these attacks confounds me. I can not wrap my head around it.
My concern rests with children in schools and what they may be making of all of this. Despite how we may try to shelter them, some of this evil enters their world. Most kids will not be directly affected and will be quite resilient. Others, however, immigrants, refugees, and military connected children in particular, may feel the pain and fear more deeply due to their life experiences. In an effort to avoid further trauma please be sure to remember these students; keep a special watch on them and what they may be experiencing. That's what we're about after all, isn't it?
Next Thursday is Thanksgiving and there will be no newsletter that week. Enjoy the time with family, friends, neighbors and, in some small way, please remember those who are not so fortunate. Our country has abundance and yet there are many who do not share in that blessing.
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...Students, teachers, school administrators, staff, and social workers are all affected by multiple demands, pressures, and scarce resources. Both adults and children come to school with unique personal histories that often include experiences with trauma. A trauma-informed approach in school social work practices can be useful, as traditional behavior management protocols and educational approaches, even when skillfully designed and implemented, may not work when trauma is involved, because trauma can affect the brain in ways that interfere with one's ability to think clearly.
Typically, the traumatic experiences that children and adults bring with them to the school setting aren't identified, recognized, or addressed, which can lead to a dysfunctional circular process of mutual retraumatization in school. Hence, an approach to school social work intervention that recognizes how widespread trauma is, the role trauma may play in students' academic, social, and behavioral performance, and how trauma may color how adults respond to students' trauma reactive responses, opens up a wider range of promising, evidence-based, effective interventions. Full article.
U.S. Attorney General, Eric Holder, has called the rise in overdose deaths from heroin and prescription painkillers an "urgent public health crisis." According to the CDC, one in five high school students has taken prescription drugs without a doctor's prescription. And heroin abusers often report that their foray into heroin began with prescription drug abuse...Despite what people think, heroin is an equal opportunity destroyer. More.
Schools and districts across the country will be surveyed about the services provided by their CSMHS (Comprehensive School Mental Health System). This national census in critical to gain a full picture of school mental health structures and services.
It is essential that school social workers, as leaders in school mental health, be at the table as one of the team members who assists in completing the survey. You can also insure that family and community representatives are included in the process in order to get a complete picture on this important issue. Be involved. Be a leader. It may impact your practice in the future. Learn more.
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It is inevitable that social workers will be pressed into leadership roles. They get appointed to positions of responsibility. They initiate community projects. They coordinate teams of stakeholders on behalf of clients.
Leadership is not usually an explicit part of the social work curriculum, but many of the skills transfer aptly to leadership roles. A basic understanding of the nature of leadership can provide the presence of mind to bring these skills into play.
Organizations and groups require a leader. It's almost as certain as a law of physics. Whether the group is a formal organization or an informal social group, it must have a leader. Formal organizations have this built into their structure. Informal groups will establish a leader nevertheless, even in the absence of a pre-established structure. If they fail to do so, the group usually falls apart. And that is a major clue to the functional role for a group leader-to guide the processes that allow a collection of individuals to operate as a coherent group. Read more.
We can hope that what is happening in Washington, D.C. over the past decade is not a mirror of what is happening in organizations around the country and world. The environment though sets up a key leadership question:
As a leader, is compromise a strength or weakness?
To ensure we are on the same page as to the definition, compromise is: "a settlement of differences by mutual concessions; an agreement reached by adjustment of conflicting or opposing claims, principles, etc., by reciprocal modification of demands." Continue here.
This website has a number of quick social work tidbits related to social work and leadership including celebrities who were social workers. You'll be surprised! More. |
...The literature maintains that the school social worker has an opportunity to be a key service provider who reaches a general student population, and address not just individuals, but involve an interplay between wider and broader systems that affect the social ecology of the school community (student, family, classrooms, community, and political and economical systems)...The ecologically focused school social worker is seen as someone who can work at the micro, meso, and macro levels to assists in the interchange of all systems there is the effectively work at all levels and negotiate interactions between each to ultimately meet the needs of children in schools...What is not extensively clear is how and when school social workers are able to function in this manner. Learn more. |
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Open Call for Journal Submissions
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Open Call for Submissions
Advances in School Mental Health Promotion
Special Issue on School Mental Health and Teacher Education
With student learning frequently conceptualized as achieving at high levels on standardized tests, and effective teaching measured by student performance on these tests, teacher education programs narrowly focus on curriculum and instruction. However, current research speaks to the importance of preparing teacher candidates to address a broader range of students' needs, including those needs stemming from mental health problems (Phillippo, 2013). When teachers navigate these student needs in the classroom, they often feel unprepared to handle the mental health concerns of their students (Hoagwood et al., 2007; Koller & Bertel, 2006; Reinke et al., 2011)...
The aim of this special issue is to feature research that illuminates the ongoing work of professionals to build capacity across the teaching workforce in areas of School Mental Health. Specifically, we are seeking original, empirical research that will bring new understanding to the status of mental health capacity-building efforts in one or more of the following areas: 1. Pre-service teacher preparation 2. In-service teacher professional learning 3. Local and federal teacher preparation or teacher education policy 4. Teacher and mental health practitioner collaboration
Authors who plan to submit a manuscript for the special issue must submit a letter of intent by December 15, 2015. More details.
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The Community-Partnered School Behavioral Health Modules
~ Free Training Series and CEUs Offered ~
www.mdbehavioralhealth.com
Signs of Suicide Program & Gatekeeper Training Module 1.5 CEUs. Free.
from Teachers College Press. A hard copy will be mailed to you. Free.
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Recommended Read for November
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The School-to-Prison Pipeline
by Christopher A. Mallett
"The expanded use of zero-tolerance policies and security measures in schools has exponentially increased arrests and referrals to the juvenile courts-often for typical adolescent developmental behaviors and low-level misdemeanors. This is the first truly comprehensive assessment of the "school-to-prison pipeline"-a term that refers to the increased risk for certain individuals, disproportionately from minority and impoverished communities, to end up ensnared in the criminal justice system because of excessively punitive disciplinary policies in schools. Written by one of the foremost experts on this topic, the book examines school disciplinary policies and juvenile justice policies that contribute to the pipeline, describes its impact on targeted-both intentionally and unintentionally-children and adolescents, and recommends a more supportive and rehabilitative model that challenges the criminalization of education and punitive juvenile justice. . . The book is a vital resource for undergraduate and graduate students of social work and criminal justice as well as for juvenile court and school personnel and policymakers." Sample chapter.
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| Professional Development Opportunities |
A five-minute walk from the rickety, raised track that carries the 5 train through the Bronx, the English teacher Argos Gonzalez balanced a rounded metal bowl on an outstretched palm. His class-a mix of black and Hispanic students in their late teens, most of whom live in one of the poorest districts in New York City-by now were used to the sight of this unusual object: a Tibetan meditation bell.
"Today we're going to talk about mindfulness of emotion," Gonzalez said with a hint of a Venezuelan accent. "You guys remember what mindfulness is?" Met with quiet stares, Gonzalez gestured to one of the posters pasted at the back of the classroom, where the students a few weeks earlier had brainstormed terms describing the meaning of "mindfulness." There were some tentative mumblings: "being focused," "being aware of our surroundings." Continue.
ESEA (No Child Left Behind)
The U.S. Senate and House have a tentative agreement regarding the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), often called the "No Child Left Behind" act. According to NEA, this bill is an improvement over the last ESEA bill. Final negotiations are anticipated to be completed before year's end. Any compromise bill will then go back to the Senate and House for passage prior to being sent to President Obama's desk for signature.
Please take the opportunity now to contact your Senators and Representatives. Urge them to come to agreement on a strong reauthorized bill that provides better educational supports for children and youth and includes continued funding for these programs and services. Tell them that you, the school social worker, are expecting them to draft a bill that speaks to the needs of children in schools in a realistic, effective, and supported fashion.
Senators and Representatives can be contacted via the free hotline, 866-331-7233, or find your Congress person and share your voice. The email address will show when you click his/her name. Alternatively, click this NEA link to email your message today. It takes only 5 minutes! Can you spare the time? Can you afford not to? (A word of caution: please call or send your message only during non-work hours using non-work computers/phones).
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School Social Work Positions
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Continued - listed by state abbreviation
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Death and grief will affect the lives of almost all children at some point, often leading to struggles with academic performance, social relationships, and behavior. The death of a loved one is immensely challenging for anyone, but children and teens can find it particularly difficult. Scholastic.com, through the generosity of the New York Life Foundation, hosted a live, interactive webcast on the subject of Children and Grief. Using actual scenarios from children and parents, childhood grief expert, pediatrician, and author Dr. David Schonfeld, MD, and Chris Park, president of the New York Life Foundation, talked about misconceptions, and imparted valuable advice on how educators and all other caring adults can best support grieving children-whether it's right after the loss or years later. Download webcast.
Archived by SAMHSA & KSOC-TV
One Hour in Duration
This archived wepisode describes SAMHSA's definition of trauma, the long-term effects of unaddressed trauma, and ways communities can work together to minimize the impact of trauma. View webisode.
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SchoolGrants
SchoolGrants was created in 1999 as a way to share grant information with PK-12 educators. Grant writing can be intimidating to those who are new at it. SchoolGrants helps ease those fears by providing online tips to those who need them. Finding suitable grant opportunities requires a great deal of time and research - SchoolGrants reduces the effort by listing a variety of opportunities available to public and private nonprofit elementary and secondary schools and districts across the United States. Sample grants are available as well as the opportunity to sign up for a listserv and newsletter. More info.
4th Quarter Deadline: December 31, 2015
Grants of up to $500 are available for "innovative programs, events, or projects" from the Meemic Foundation for Michigan, Wisconsin or Illinois. 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 fourth quarter cycle ends December 31st. Grants are up to $500. Recipients will be notified by February 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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