Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Toolkit On Self-Determination And Decision-Making Supports, Johnny Hanson

MSW Capstones

This project is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice. Adult guardianship is being disproportionately assumed and utilized by social workers, and the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF), when DCYF dependent youth transition into adult services with the Developmental Disability Administration (DDA). A meta-analysis of research shows a positive correlations between increased self-determination (choice) and increased short and long-term health. Additional research shows the negative impacts of guardianship on self-determination, and the growing support for less restrictive alternatives to guardianship, like supported decision-making (SDM). Self-determination is increased, the less restrictive a decision-making arrangement …

Integrity Housing: Providing Residence And Social Capital For Persons With Sex Offense Records, T.B. Huber

MSW Capstones

This paper proposes grant funding for Integrity Housing (IH), a community-based housing program that will provide residence and social support to individuals formerly incarcerated for sex offenses. Persons with sex offense records need housing and social supports in order to reduce homelessness and prevent recidivism. We will align with law enforcement and community values to provide a home and place of healing to perpetrators of sexual violence. Our mission is to support persons formerly incarcerated for sex offenses in successful community integration. We aim to improve the lives and well-being of these individuals by providing housing, therapeutic services, and social …

Home: “People As Place”, Amory Ballantine

MSW Capstones

Crises of climate breakdown, ocean acidification, mass extinction, pollution and other forms of environmental degradation demand global transformation. Direct and clinical social workers are on the front lines of responses to the social consequences of these crises. They have critical skills needed for socially and environmentally sustainable solutions to these problems. Yet for the most part, direct and clinical social workers are not engaged in environmental action and do not see their work as “environmental social work.” Micro-level workers need information and resources in order to integrate environmental health in practice, and particularly tools which center the needs of the …

Bridging The Gap: An Immigrant Family Strengthening Workshop, Amber Conley

MSW Capstones

Immigrant families benefit from a wide variety of resources to help in their transition to life in the United States. One area that needs to be more robustly addressed is assistance in preventing harmful intergenerational cultural conflict that can emerge as the children of immigrants grow up in a different cultural context than their parents. In prior research and qualitative interviews, intergenerational cultural conflict has been found to be harmful to family relationships and youth outcomes. While many parenting programs already exist, immigrant families need specialized resources and culturally relevant information beyond what typical American interventions offer. This proposed intervention …

Garage - A Youth & Young Adult Program, Dana Marklund, Hillary Mower

MSW Capstones

Substance use continues to be on the rise in our communities. To reduce substance use in our communities, The “Garage” would be a beneficial agency to implement. The Garage is a youth program that adopts the disease model and will provide youth with a variety of resources to support them and to meet their needs with a trauma-informed approach. The primary goal of The Garage is to provide support to youth affected by substance use by engaging with youth either struggling with their own use and or youth struggling with family or a friend’s substance use. All youth, at the …

Lunch And Learn: Addressing Needs And Resources Of Adolescent And Young Adult Cancer Patients, Philomina Bigelow

MSW Capstones

Historically adolescent and young adult (AYA) oncology patients have been an underserved population. Research indicates they are more likely to experience poorer treatment outcomes, which may result in part from unaddressed biopsychosocial stressors, poor treatment compliance, and poor provider rapport. Research also indicates that oncology providers do not have a formal standardized training they are required to attend on biopsychosocial needs and resources for the AYA population. Oncology care providers need knowledge of the biopsychosocial needs and resources of their AYA patients in order to provide care and resources that remove the effects of biopsychosocial stressors. This project was designed …

Square Pegs Community Arts On Campus, Gabrielle Marina Ortega-Miller

MSW Capstones

My capstone project started with a qualitative research study exploring the value of music through the voices of Autistic adults, for without their voices—whether verbal, non-verbal, or verbally limited—it is difficult to know what the value of music is in their lives. The inclusion and leadership of Neurodivergent Black, Indigenous, and students of color (BIPOC) in the UWT Neurodiverse community is one focus of this project; the other is to provide a community space for all Neurodivergent students at UWT to feel welcome and safe, create art, and support each other. Square Pegs Community Arts on Campus is built on …

What Is Race-Based Trauma And Why Does It Matter?, Julie Luong

MSW Capstones

Systemic racism continues to be prevalent in our society today, especially with the exponential rate of Asian Americans experiencing racial discrimination and microaggressions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since post COVID-19, members of the Asians and Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) community are more susceptible to experience violence, such as serious physical injuries or death. Misinformation from political leaders are a contributing factor for the anti-Asian hate crimes and violence post COVID-19. This problem is extensive where members of the AAPI community are now concerned for their own overall safety and physical well-being. A workshop will incorporate an overview of …

Larc Pass Long-Acting Reversible Contraception For Public Transit Users, Samantha Ellsworth

MSW Capstones

Abstract

An individual’s control over their reproductive future is essential. The creators of the LARC pass program were motivated to create an anti-poverty and anti-racist approach to providing the best methods of contraception after witnessing the many systemic inequities exposed by the tumult of 2020. Research has shown that many marginalized Americans, including teens and young adults, people of color, those living in poverty and those experiencing homelessness utilize government subsidized clinics to attempt to meet their health and reproductive needs. Promising research shows that when access to free or low-cost contraception (LARC) is provided, abortion and maternal mortality rates …

Data Collection & Aba Therapy With Disability & Child Welfare, Elizabeth Hamre

MSW Capstones

This proposed intervention explains the need for both data collection on children with developmental disabilities in child welfare and how it will benefit future work, as well as a proposal of an evidence-based intervention using Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapy for children with developmental disabilities. The goal is to work towards improved outcomes for children with developmental disabilities and to create equity for these children in the child welfare system. The population focus of this project are children with developmental disabilities, specifically, children who are involved with the child welfare system. This will also include biological family and foster family …

Mental Health Group For Elementary-Aged Children, Rachel Greene

MSW Capstones

Children learn many skills during their time in elementary school. One important area that is not sufficiently addressed in curricula is student mental health. Allowing students to address their mental health needs in the classroom improves their overall outcomes. This intervention is a short weekly group completed within the classroom by the classroom teacher and the school’s counselor. Implementing this low-cost, short mental health group in classrooms can help to address this gap in student learning. In this group, the children will have the opportunity to gain a stronger relationship with an adult and learn to cope with loss. The …

Square Pegs On Campus: Autism And Inclusion At University Of Washington Tacoma, Heather Dawn Swanson

MSW Capstones

Research findings show Autistic students struggle with communication and social interaction and are at risk of failing and/or dropping out of school. Additionally, the social construct of disability and ableism negatively affect the inclusion of Autistic students. While conducting research that included interviewing UW Tacoma students and staff, I learned there are zero Autistic-specific services, support groups, or Registered Student Organizations (RSOs), and there are more than 29 Autistic students attending UW Tacoma. Disability Resources for Students (DRS) reported there are 29 professionally diagnosed Autistic students receiving academic accommodations based on their official autism diagnosis. Not all Autistic students have …

Home Safe, Megan Nigus

MSW Capstones

Home Safe is a housing program designed to provide permanent, affordable, supportive housing for women and children escaping domestic violence. The project is guided by evidence-based practice for serving this vulnerable population most effectively. This program is also guided by the NASW Code of Ethics. Guiding theoretical orientations include conflict theory and feminist theory. A basic description of the Home Share program is provided along with a discussion about program evaluation techniques and Home Share’s strategies for eliminating housing barriers for women and children escaping domestic violence. Volunteer recruitment, funding, and phase 2 planning is described. The program is designed …

Mandatory Domestic Violence Education For Wa State Judges Legislation, Allison Sykes

MSW Capstones

This proposal is a request for legislation that all Washington State judges receive mandatory domestic violence education. There is a need for Washington State judges to receive domestic violence education to prevent biases and misconceptions from influencing their court decisions. The goal of this legislation is to increase safety for victims and increase judges’ ability to make informed judicial decisions in cases of domestic violence. Education has been identified through research and interviews to be the most significant intervention to reduce domestic violence. Judges who are educated about domestic violence make judicial decisions that are more supportive of victims. To …

Durable Power Of Attorney For Health Care In Oncology, Monica Wilber

MSW Capstones

Almost everyone knows someone who has been impacted by cancer, but how many people do you know have a durable power of attorney for health care? Durable power of attorney for health care is a simple form that allows you to appoint whomever you trust to make health care decisions for yourself if you are deemed unable to do so. Durable power of attorney for health care, also known as DPOA-H, is a topic that can create some ambivalence within those working in the oncology field and those who have been impacted by a cancer diagnosis. The ambivalence comes from …

Undoing Institutional Racism: Anti-Racism Training Handbook, India Irons

MSW Capstones

Research has shown that African American children and their families experience racial discrimination and bias in the child welfare system. Therefore, this project proposal aims to address racial discrimination and bias in the child welfare system by defining racism, analyzing color blind policy approaches and how it affects practice when working with families of color.

Undoing Institutional Racism is a facilitated intergroup dialogue that challenges the caseworkers, supervisors, and area administrators within Children’s Administration to “analyze the structures of power and privilege that hinder racial equity and prepares them to be effective organizers for social justice,” (The People’s Institute, 2008). …

Educating And Raising Awareness Of Opioid Addiction, Nhan P. Cao

MSW Capstones

Opioid Addiction is an epidemic in America. The information report found that there are thousands of deaths and emergency visits due to opioids-related each year. Emergency Department [ED] visits and physician services cost millions of tax payers’ money. The cost of health care in 2006 was 2.6 trillion dollars and expected to increase every year. Many individuals who misuse opioids oftentimes seek heroin because it is cheaper and easier to get on the street. Four out of five people who are addicted to heroin have used opioids first. Many patients are not aware of the risks and benefits of using …

Gender Creative Parenting: An Educational Curriculum For Parents Of Transgender And Gender Nonconforming Youth, Kathleen Murphy Pantoja

MSW Capstones

Parental acceptance is a protective factor against negative health outcomes for transgender and gender nonconforming young people. Qualitative research suggests parents just learning of their child’s gender variance have a need for education, peer support, and access to culturally responsive care providers in order to accept and affirm their trans* child. Gender Creative Parenting, an educational group curriculum firmly grounded in social work values, addresses these needs. A thorough literature review and findings from key informant interviews led to the selection of chaos theory as a guiding framework for intervention development. Emerging best practices for working with trans* youth within …

A Safe Place For Soldiers, Marysol Diaz

MSW Capstones

After separating from the service, soldiers often have a difficult time reentering the civilian world. These difficulties become evident in their work place, family environment, with their finances, and through engagement in unlawful behavior due to mental instability, among other factors. The military’s culture of stigmatizing seeking help with mental issues as a sign of “weakness” leaves soldiers vulnerable after separation. Academic research and key informants give insight into the need for making resources more readily available to soldiers. Combining Orem’s Self-Care and Planned Behavioral theories will help change the views of military personnel on mental health and diffuse their …

Breaking Down Binaries In A Binary World: An Athletic Experience, Heather Ashley Denaro

MSW Capstones

Although the acceptance rates of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual (LGB) athletes is growing in society, the gap of understanding athletes in this community is apparent. Previous research has found LGB athletes perform at a higher rate if they are surrounded by those who are supportive and understanding of their perceived lifestyle. Breaking Down Binaries in a Binary World: An Athletic Experience, is a 2-year project to increase knowledge, awareness, and education for collegiate coaches to provide a safer environment for LGB athletes and their straight-ally counterparts. This 4-part curriculum is facilitated by the Title IX coordinator- with the assistance of …

Renew House: A Place For Teenagers To Find Healing From Adverse/Traumatic Events And Experiences, Annika R. St. John

MSW Capstones

Abstract will go here.

Support Group For Spouse/Partners Of Mentally Ill Spouses/Partners, Amie Taft

MSW Capstones

Being a caregiver to a mentally ill spouse or partner can be emotionally draining and isolating. Many caregivers lack both knowledge and skill in dealing with the complex issues that arise from living with a mentally ill partner. They run the risk of a higher rate both subjective and objective burnout, face issues of stigma, and compassion fatigue. This support group curriculum was created to reduce the burden faced by caregivers as it seeks to strengthen these relationships. Academic research, as well as key informant interviews were conducted to create a eight week support group curriculum. Family systems theory concludes …

Exploring Gender Equity: A Social-Justice Oriented Program To Encourage Male College Students To Advance Gender Equity, Lucas Brown

MSW Capstones

A number of social justice issues, ranging from sexual assault to economic equality, disproportionately affect women and persons who represent a challenge to heteronormativity. Holding a privileged position among other gender identities in society, and representing slightly less than half of the population, it is important for men to be involved in addressing these issues of gender inequity. A review of literature and interviews with key informants found that building awareness of gender equity issues with a social justice or human rights oriented perspective through education and service learning opportunities, promoting men’s involvement without reinforcing hegemonic masculinity, discussing how the …

The Hear.Us Project - Reducing Anti-Immigrant Sentiment And Myth Through An Online Awareness Intervention, Douglas J. Epps

MSW Capstones

The following is an online awareness intervention designed to reduce anti-immigrant sentiment and myth throughout the greater community by means of an educational toolkit. The foundation of this toolkit was designed using macro level theoretical intervention frameworks. The content is grounded in empirically based interpersonal communication strategies specialized in addressing anti-immigrant sentiment. The goal of this toolkit is to provide a source for humanizing and factual education especially for those who are unfamiliar with immigrant community members. The intervention achieves this goal by means of three specific elements: 1) Humanizing and inspiring personal stories from immigrants in the local community …

Stress Management, Choices, And Self-Confidence, Pamela P. Thompson

MSW Capstones

Abstract

When adolescents do not learn appropriate coping mechanisms for stress, they are more likely to develop problem behaviors that can inhibit their abilities to live productive and meaningful lives. When adolescents do not learn the appropriate ways to cope, they can sabotage their self-esteem, confidence, and learn negative coping strategies. A focus group was held of adolescents between the ages of 11 and 17 years of age. They discussed their point of view of what is stressful and how they handle the stress. All information was compared to evidence based research of coping strategies and the best practices to …

Army Family Readiness Groups (Frgs): Are They All That They Can Be? A Curriculum Menu And Guide To Conduct Frg Meetings On Joint Base Lewis-Mcchord, Lauren K. Mcbride

MSW Capstones

This intervention addresses the current, complex needs of Army military families and the ability of Family Readiness Groups (FRGs) to address and support those needs as a resource. It is a curriculum to reduce stress on all FRG members by providing a menu for commanders and leaders to select from, conduct meetings and thus, empower its members. The curriculum also implements common outcome indicators and measurable goals to assess if families are obtaining needs and fulfilling the FRG mission. Army personnel including a battalion commander, two company commanders, one Family Readiness Support Assistant (FRSA), one soldier and three spouses from …

The Invest Program: An Education To Employment/Post-Secondary Education Transition Program For Students With Mid To High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder, Alicia E. Schmoker

MSW Capstones

The time of transition from adolescents to adulthood is a difficult one for many individuals, disability or not. One of the biggest challenges within this large developmental milestone is that of transitioning from secondary education to competitive employment or post-secondary education. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) refers to a continuum of disorders that impact an individual’s ability to function in daily life. The impacts of ASD range from mild to severe. This disorder is believed to be persistent and one that commonly causes significant social, communication, and behavioral challenges that can result in lifelong adjustment needs and supports. These autistic symptoms …

Staying Well: A Training For Understanding, Remembering, And Making Informed Decisions, Caitlin W. Simmons

MSW Capstones

Low health literacy can cause poor health outcomes, and anyone can have low health literacy regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, education, or class. Efforts to reduce health literacy have focused primarily on healthcare practitioners, and little effort has been put toward educating patients. To remedy this, a health literacy articulated training was developed. Staying Well: a training for understanding, remembering, and making informed decisions is an interactive and self-paced educational presentation lasting 20-30 minutes. Grounded in the asset model of health literacy, systems theory, and social learning theory, the Staying Well demonstrates simple analytical skills that support greater knowledge …

Discovering Compassion: A SchoolʼS Guide To Working With Difficult Children, Youth And Teens, Allyson Land

MSW Capstones

On a daily basis school teachers, administrators, counselors, and social workers deal with students who present inappropriate classroom behaviors. These behaviors can create barriers for their future success. Mental illness, poor discipline, violence in the community, and the inability to understand cause and effect can all be contributing factors influencing poor behavior. Each of these lead to poor coping skills, little respect for authority, desensitization to violence, and lack of remorse for their actions in childhood and adulthood. Typically these children come from single, low-income families and spend more time in school and daycare than with their families. For this …

Promoting Safe Relationships With African Immigrant Women, Caroline Waceke

MSW Capstones

Women who immigrate to the United States from the continent of Africa are “at risk” of continued abuse from their spouses and significant others due to the conflicting cultural beliefs and expectations. The African culture supports men having power and control over their women while the American culture supports women having the right to live a life free of any abuse. The PAMOJA Connect is a support group whose mission is to improve the quality of life for immigrant women from Africa by empowering them to ensure they are safe in their relationships. Twenty women will participate by attending twelve …