Tag Archives: school social work

As commonly understood, school discipline seeks to stop misbehavior, teach pro-social behavior, and motivate healthier decision making in the misbehaving student. In practice, the means to these ends often takes a punitive path that fosters a self-protective posture in the misbehaving student, amplified by a sense of powerlessness and a negative attitude that can contribute to an ongoing cycle of ... Read More »

Many children will experience the death of a loved one, and naturally this can affect the performance of a child in school. School social workers can play a critical role in helping bereaved children to process their grief. However, the impact of the death of a loved one on a child is often not fully appreciated by school personnel. Children ... Read More »

It is estimated that the children of parents either who are currently in the military or who are veterans numbers over 4 million in the United States. These children and their families have and/or continue to experience multiple deployments, family separation, frequent transitions and relocations, and other stressful life events that their non-military-connected peers usually do not undergo. Supportive school ... Read More »

School social work is a challenging field, and a social worker just starting out may find she has more questions than answers. Even seasoned social workers can come up against challenges they’ve never faced before. When Alison Varianides started out as a school social worker, she set out to research how she could best handle the difficult issues that were ... Read More »

[Referencing: “Survivors of School Bullying: A Collective Case Study,” Octavio Ramirez, Children & Schools, Volume 35, Issue 2 (April 2013), pp. 93-99.] Much attention has been brought to bear in recent years on the problem of bullying in schools. Social workers and social work educators have done much research on this problem, using an array of analytical tools and surveys ... Read More »

Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction Does Not Reach Agreement The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, also known as the Super Committee, had a deadline of November 23 to find at least $1.2 trillion in spending cuts or tax revenues over 10 years. They could not reach an agreement. Under the Budget Control Act, if the Joint Select Committee ... Read More »

On February 17, 2011 Rep. Grace F. Napolitano and a panel of mental health advocates and experts, including LA Laker Ron Artest and champion boxer Mia St. John, will examine the Mental Health in Schools Act, a bill authored by Napolitano to allocate funding to mental health services in schools. One in five children and adolescents currently suffer from emotional ... Read More »

Shifts in the educational landscape affect services for students and the context in which school social workers practice.  Broad changes in education have consequences for social work practice—specifically, the ability of school social workers to align services with school goals. For example, more emphasis on student and teacher accountability and the expansion of school choice, charter schools and vouchers, calls ... Read More »

On Thursday, June 24th, the House Committee on Education and Labor, Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities, chaired by Representative Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY), held a hearing on cyber bullying.  The witness panel included popular television psychologist, Dr. Phil Mcgraw, and 14-year-old Girl Scout, Dominique Napolitano. Ms. Napolitano offered personal insight by describing a cyber bullying incident involving a school friend, ... Read More »

Dear Social Work Student – Is your school using the Professional Social Worker pin to recognize graduating students? Ask your school to consider the silver-plated Professional Social Worker pin at commencement. Just $10 each for schools of social work, the pins distinguish Social Work from other programs on campus, and instill pride in the profession. All funds from the Social ... Read More »