Social Work Commons^™

Book Review: A Revolution Down On The Farm: The Transformation Of American Agriculture Since 1929, Peter A. Kindle Ph.D.

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Review: A Revolution Down on the Farm: The Transformation of American Agriculture Since 1929 Paul K. Conkin Lexington, KY: The University Press of Kentucky, 2008 240 pp. ISBN: 978-0-8131-2519-0 (paperback)

From The Editor, Peggy Pittman-Munke Ph.D.

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Journal of Contemporary Rural Social Work

Volume 3, Number 1

Fall 2011

From the Editor: Peggy Pittman-Munke, Murray State University

Addressing Health And Social Disparities Through Community-Based Participatory Research In Rural Communities: Challenges And Opportunities For Social Work, Tiffany D. Baffour Ph.D.

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Social workers can increase the translational ability of their research efforts to create sustainable community change in rural communities through the use of community-based participatory research (CBPR). CBPR is a congruent approach to social work values, representing a balance between research and community empowerment. This article focuses on methodological concerns in conceptualization, setting research goals, measurement, data collection, and dissemination of the findings. Recommendations for how interrelated areas of social work education, practice, research, and policy can address rural social and health disparities through CBPR are advanced.

Online Task Groups And Social Work Education: Lessons Learned, George A. Jacinto Ph.D., Young Joon Hong Ph.D.

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

This paper focuses the use of an online task group for social work students to solve problems and produce recommendations. An online site provides students the opportunity to edit documents produced by the group’s work. Online task groups provide an alternative to face-to-face task group meetings in social service agencies with a number of distant service delivery locations. Additionally, online task groups provide a cost effective way to accomplish the business of social service agencies by eliminating the time and cost of travel to attend meetings. This paper offers a stage model of online group development and a discussion of …

A Logic Model For Program Planning And Evaluation Applied To A Rural Social Work Department, Linda Leek Openshaw, Ara Lewellen, Cynthia Harr

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

A logic model is framework that is used to delineate goals and resources. It was used by the Social Work Department at Texas A&M University-Commerce to help visualize and establish the initial accreditation of the MSW program and continues to be a valuable tool for this rural social work program. The model has helped faculty determine a vision for the program. This vision has transferred to other areas such as recruitment and retention of faculty, curriculum choices for students, resources for alumni, and community development to reach rural social service agencies that are lacking in resources. The logic model provided …

Foot Soldiers For Social Justice: Realities, Relationships, And Resilience, Carole J. Olson, Holly A. Riffe, Caroline Reid, Norma Threadgill-Goldson

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Social justice is embraced as a central mission of social work, yet how the profession defines social justice lacks a clear and common understanding. This qualitative study explored social justice as perceived and practiced by social workers in diverse practice settings in mostly rural areas, small towns, and small cities. Their experiences illustrate ways that social workers engage and advocate for their clients with the goal of improving access to tangible and intangible resources through both conventional and unconventional means. The authors provide insight into the resilience that bolsters social workers’ efforts as they navigate between practice ideals and realities.

Building Relationships Across Systems To Enhance Resiliency And Improve Foster Care Outcomes, Karen Rice Phd, Lsw, Acsw, Heather Girvin Phd, Mss

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) of Lancaster County represents a collaborative, systemic response to gaps in current service systems in a largely rural/suburban area. This paper discusses strategies used to foster support for CASA and on-going efforts to develop, implement, and evaluate the CASA program. We share lessons learned related to the development of innovative systemic responses to service gaps in rural areas.

Factors That Impact Service Delivery To Individuals Living With Hiv/Aids In Rural Northeastern Texas, Wilma Cordova, Stephen Cooper, Freddie L. Avant

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

This study surveyed participants in focus groups to identify factors that affect individuals living with HIV/AIDS in rural northeastern Texas. The average age of the respondents was 45.44. Participants included a diverse group of American Europeans, Hispanics/Latinos, and African Americans. Although results are inconclusive, other studies have supported similar results regarding factors that impact treatment and services (Zuniga, Buchanan, & Chakravorty, 2005). Some of the factors include lack of financial resources for the consumer, stigma and discrimination, and lack of understanding on the part of the consumer and the community. More studies in rural areas serving people living with HIV/AIDS …

Contemporary Rural Social Work - Fall 2011 (Volume 3, Number 1)

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Contemporary Rural Social Work - Fall 2011 (Volume 3, Number 1)

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