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OVERVIEW OF SOCIAL WORK SERVICES

Social work services is a specialization which applies social work principles and methodologies to educational environments with the primary goal of removing any barriers that prevent a student from fulfilling his or her academic potential. Social workers are assigned to every school and center in the school system. Most social workers serve two to three sites.

SCHOOL SOCIAL WORK RESPONSIBILITIES:
Participating in the special education screening and eligibility process is the primary role responsibility for school social workers serving in general education settings. This includes participated in student-centered meetings such as Child Study Teams and Local Screening Committees, interviewing parents to complete sociocultural assessments and serving as a member of the school's Eligibility Committee to identify students with disabilities. Social workers in general education settings also provide crisis intervention, behavioral consultation and some limited individual and group counseling and parent groups. Social workers in special education centers and programs participate in the re-evaluations process and deliver ongoing direct services, which include individual, group and family counseling. All social workers serve as liaisons between home, school and community and all are involved with child abuse reporting and monitoring as well as collaborating with community agencies to offer services through the Virginia Comprehensive Services Act.

EDUCATION, TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION:
School social workers have the generic social work knowledge, skills and abilities that are fundamental to social work practice as well as specific training related to providing social work services in an educational setting. All social work staff hold a Master of Social Work (MSW) or Master of Social Science (MSS) degree; many have earned a Doctorate of Social Work (DSW) degree. All school social workers are licensed by the Virginia Department of Education. The majority of the staff is clinically licensed by the Commonwealth of Virginia Board of Social Work (LCSW) or in other jurisdictions and trained to provide mental health services in any setting.

RELATIONSHIP TO SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS AND SCHOOL COUNSELORS:
School social workers focus on family and community factors that influence learning. They provide intensive services for students facing issues that pose risks to their academic success such as parent divorce and separation, poverty, truancy, chronic illness, mental health problems, conduct problems, child abuse, etc.. School social workers serve alongside school psychologists and school guidance counselors to form a mental health team. Together, they provide crisis counseling and short-term and ongoing individual, group and family counseling.

School Social Work:
Linking School, Home and Community
to Provide a Quality Education for Students