School Social Work

Swain County DSS and Swain County Schools have integrated school social workers in the public school system. The social workers serve as an advocate, liaison, coordinator, case manager and consultant for students, parents, school staff and community agency personnel. School social workers can assist school personnel and families in identifying and aiding students experiencing difficulties academically, social-emotionally and behaviorally.

Major Functions

1. Assessment of student needs
   The school social worker uses assessment skills to determine special needs of students.
2. Program planning and evaluation
   The school social worker provides input for program planning and evaluation and contributes to the development of departmental and system-wide policies.
3. Direct service
   The school social worker employs appropriate social work methods in situations affecting the student's educational progress.
4. Advocacy
   The school social worker maintains an advocacy role to assure that the student's educational, social, emotional and material needs are met in accordance with established laws, rules and regulations.
5. Consultation/Education
   The school social worker provides consultation and in-service experiences for teachers and staff and engages in the mutual exchange of information with community agencies.
6. Coordination/Liaison
   The school social worker serves as a liaison between home-school-community and promotes effective resource utilization and positive relation with various publics.
7. Management
   The school social worker organizes time, resources and workload in order to meet responsibilities and maintains accurate case records and documentation.
8. Professional practice and development
   • assessing and intervening in the social and emotional needs of students in relation to learning, understanding, evaluating, and improving the total environment of pupils; thus making for a positive school climate;
   • strengthening the connections of home, school, and community by identifying and linking essential components to create the best learning environment for the student, and to personalize and make education relevant to all constituents of a pluralistic society;
   • building mutual communication and support among all participants in the school system, including parents, students, staff, and the community;
   • developing systemic preventive and remedial intervention programs for identified problems;
   • providing meaningful and relevant consultation and in-service programs for identified problems;
   • providing group and individual counseling for students and,
   • playing an integral part in the pursuit of educational excellence.

Professional School Social Workers do play an integral part in the pursuit of educational excellence. They are charged to analyze barriers to learning and achievement, and develop and implement strategies which address and eliminate identified barriers to student learning. While school goals and objectives are educational, achievement is linked to broad aspects of student health, well-being and other affective needs.

School social workers strive to help students:

• increase academic success
• maximize educational opportunities
• improve interpersonal relationships
• cope with crisis situations
• develop self-discipline
• learn problem-solving and decision making skills
• resolve conflicts without violence
• improve attendance
• build self-esteem
• remain in school and graduate

In practice, school social workers serve individual children but they also intervene with the social contexts in which they function, in particular the school environment, the home, and the community. Their preventive, remedial, and crisis intervention activities seek to remove barriers that impede student learning and frustrate teacher efforts in the school environment.

The key to helping students learn and grow is problem prevention and intervention. Substance abuse, truancy, teen pregnancy, under achievement, child abuse, family dissolution, aggressive behavior, and suicide are amenable to early intervention. When appropriately employed, school social workers can frequently prevent or minimize the effects of such problems. The savings achieved by their intervention are realized in both human and fiscal terms.