School Social Work: Engaging Social Justice and Racial Equity from Practitioners Perspectives

Are you an emerging practitioner in the field of school social work? Are you new to the field and wondering, “where do I start, do I know enough, or how do I use my social work training in this specific field?” If you are searching for ideas on these questions, then this text is for you.

School Social Work: Engaging Social Justice and Racial Equity from Practitioners’ Perspectives is a compendium of articles written by a diverse group of experienced school social work practitioners and educators. We have combined our collective practice wisdom with research-derived evidence to provide practical guidance to both new and experienced school social workers. We address the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, Performance Expectations for the Pupil Personnel Services Credential in School Social Work and Child Welfare and Attendance as well as the Council on Social Work Education, EPAS Competencies by focusing on the needs for social justice and equity for the most vulnerable children in our schools.

While our focus is mainly on the diverse needs of children in California and the legal codes that impact them, this material will be very informative to school social work practitioners across the country. We address a range of topics from trauma-informed care, alternative disciplinary practices, group work, ethics, attendance, suicide and psychological crisis response, and family, teacher and community engagement. Furthermore, we focus on various vulnerable and underserved groups of children, including Native Americans, youth in need of Special Education, LGBTQ, Foster and unhoused youth, pre-school children, newcomers, and gang-affiliated youth. Our intent is for our material to help school social workers address the systemic needs of schools to create a more equitable and nurturing learning environment for all children.