An Examination of School District Reopening Plans for Mental Health Supports amid COVID-19 School Reopening

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to understand the types of mental health supports described in school district reopening plans in one southeastern state, and to understand school social workers' involvement in developing these plans during the first full academic year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Publicly accessible school district reopening plans were collected from the 80 school districts in South Carolina, and 15 school social workers participated in virtual interviews. Out of the 80 school districts, 67 had reopening plans, and of those, only 43 percent mentioned mental health services and supports. Most school district reopening plans described Tier 1 universal prevention services and supports and a process for mental health assessment, identification, and referral. Fewer included Tier 2 early intervention and Tier 3 targeted and intensive services. Of the school social workers interviewed, only four were involved in helping to develop their school district reopening plans, and when involved, advocated for mental health services and supports for their students. The article concludes with a discussion of the study's implications for school social work practice.

Disasters in times of sheltering in place: Social work and the COVID-19 pandemic

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was first identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The virus is primarily spread between people during close contact via small virulent droplets produced by coughing, sneezing, and talking, with less common infection spread by touching a contaminated surface and then touching one's face. The coronavirus pandemic has also disrupted the provision of social work services ranging from child welfare and school social work to clinical and psychiatric social work. During the COVID-19 emergency, states and localities issued emergency stay-at-home orders requiring the temporary closure of nonessential businesses, including some private social work practices. As the world recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, social work practice will adjust to the needs of the client groups. The most vulnerable and marginalized populations will experience greater impacts on their health;welfare;economic stability;and access to medical care, education, and technology. Social work will have a valuable role to play in the amelioration of negative impacts that are devastating the United States and the world. The infusion of telemedicine and teletherapy in social work practice seems inevitable, and it is hoped that these will provide an efficient and effective new social work practice modality. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Utilizing a critical race theory lens to reduce barriers to social and emotional learning: A call to action

Social and emotional learning (SEL) and equity issues have each been complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic for students of color. This brief seeks to call to action school social workers who can identify social and emotional barriers to learning that students of color experience in schools through a critical race theory (CRT) lens. School social workers are well positioned to address equity concerns and systemic racism in schools. They play a key role in addressing SEL, reducing equity barriers, and navigating the CRT opposition. The authors view the role of the school social worker as an integral part of social and emotional teaching and learning. This is a call to mobilize school social workers to advocacy roles for SEL, equity, and racism concerns that have long impacted students of color. The authors' aim is to provide social workers with actionable strategies in reducing social and emotional barriers to learning for students of color. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Voices from the frontline: practicing school social work in Greece during the COVID-19 pandemic

This paper draws on interviews with seventeen school social workers in the Attica and Thessaloniki Regions regarding the challenges that they have faced and their responses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings reveal a significant increase in the demands related to behavioural, mental and financial issues faced by students and their families;the inadequacy of means and sources of help, as well as the further deterioration of their working conditions. The limited readiness of school social workers for practicing social work with alternative methods of communication is also discussed. It is argued that in the light of the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic the wider dialogue in the social work profession and academia about the development and use of communication technology should be enhanced. Additionally, it is argued that this period may present an opportunity for school social workers to rethink their models of intervention towards those which draw from the critical tradition of social work and rights-based social work. These models may prove to be more effective in dealing with the complexity and length of the problems that the pandemic has created for professionals and their clients alike, leading to the further development of school social work in Greece. © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Family engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic: Opportunities and challenges for school social work

The COVID-19 pandemic brought dramatic changes in schooling in the United States and across the world, including abrupt shifts to remote learning, immediate cessation of social contact, intensive family engagement in education and diminished school capacity for social–emotional supports. While the initial national lockdown was temporary, the long-lasting effects of the pandemic on society are still being revealed. This study contributes to a growing body of research exploring and documenting shifts in school social work practice in the United States during the COVID era. We used qualitative methods to explore how school social workers (SSWers) practised family engagement during the pandemic and their perceptions of the benefits and challenges of increased family engagement. Analysis of interviews with 20 SSWers from three US states (Colorado, Minnesota and Nevada) revealed five primary themes: reasons for family engagement, ways of engaging with families, frequency of family contact, challenges in engaging families and SSWers' attitudes and perceptions about family engagement. Results indicated a need for a comprehensive, organized and strategic family engagement plan in schools as we move into the post-acute phases of the pandemic. Future research should explore how SSWers may serve as leaders in the development of such plans and how interprofessional practice might advance this agenda further. © 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

School social workers responding to the COVID-19 pandemic: Experiences in traditional, charter, and agency-based community school agency settings

As demonstrated during past historical events such as the September 11th terrorist attacks and Hurricane Katrina, school social workers play a vital role in serving their communities by supporting students and their families during times of crisis. School social workers also engage in social justice work and advocate for the needs of their clients. The COVID-19 pandemic has shed light on a plethora of systemic inequities and challenges that impact the lives of young people and their families, particularly as they relate to schools and education. During the COVID-19 pandemic, schools have relied on the expertise, leadership, and skills of social workers to address multiple issues such as access to technology, food insecurity, services for students with disabilities, mental health support, and crisis intervention. This chapter describes the experiences of three school social workers in different high school settings: a public school, a charter school, and a school-based non-profit program. Macro-, mezzo-, and micro-level factors will be examined as they relate to school-based interventions in response to a national health crisis. Recommendations for clinical interventions in different school organizational systems in a time of crisis will also be discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Social work model in preschool education in the context of covid 19 pandemic in Vietnam - An overview

The article proposes a model of social work in preschool. The content of the article outlines the mission, objectives and functions of social work in preschool and details the content of this model with four main points: testing - evaluating the development of children at each age stage;advising and orienting parents in influencing education for children;connections - providing support services for children;organizing educational activities to strengthen support for children to develop comprehensively and optimally after safely controlling and adapting to the covid 19 pandemic

Remotely Successful: Telehealth Interventions in K-12 Schools During a Global Pandemic.

The K-12 school setting is often considered an ideal environment to provide social emotional programming for children and youths. However, the COVID-19 pandemic caused most K-12 schools to close their physical doors and shift to telehealth approaches to fulfill students' academic and non-academic needs. For the first time, school social workers (SSWs), often responsible for the social emotional well-being of students, were required to provide social emotional services virtually. Subsequently, this research study explored SSWs' experiences implementing social emotional telehealth services in K-12 public schools during the spring semester of 2020. Twenty SSWs from nine school districts across three states participated in key informant interviews related to their experiences navigating their professional role during distance learning. Data were analyzed using a constant comparative approach. The findings highlight the barriers SSWs encountered when providing social emotional telehealth interventions, including poor attendance resulting in ineffective group interventions, technology-specific barriers, and concerns for students' privacy. Opportunities and potential solutions to strengthen telehealth in schools are discussed.