Social Work Commons^™

Parent Engagement At A Cristo Rey High School: Building Home-School Partnerships In A Multicultural Immigrant Community, Thomas M. Crea, Andrew D. Reynolds, Elizabeth Degnan

Journal of Catholic Education

Catholic social teaching affirms the primary role of parents in their children’s education, as well as the importance of a home-school partnership. The purposes of this article are to review the results of a mixed methods study of parent engagement at Cristo Rey Boston High School, and how the results of this study led to specific efforts to include parents more closely in the life of the school. Results suggest that parents in multicultural communities perceive their engagement to be an important part of their children’s education. Yet, this engagement may take different forms that may go unrecognized by school …

Reproductive And Sexual Healthcare Needs Among Adults With Disabilities As Perceived By Social Workers, Kristen Faye Linton, Heidi Adams Rueda, Lela Rankin Williams, Alex Sandoval, Sharon J. Bolin

Social Work Faculty Publications

People with disabilities often experience unique gynecological and reproductive healthcare needs, which may be exacerbated by their experience of sexual victimization. Previous research on adolescents with disabilities found that social workers held beneficial roles in supporting their clients to make empowered decisions concerning sexual healthcare, pregnancy, and parenting. This study aimed to assess the reproductive and sexual health needs of adults with various disabilities from the perspectives of their social workers. Eleven social workers working primarily with adults with various disabilities were interviewed using a phenomenological study design to offer their perspectives of the sexual and reproductive health needs of …

Asset-Based Policy In China: Applied Projects And Policy Progress, Li Zou, Baorong Guo, Suo Deng, Jin Huang, Minchao Jin, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

Since the Center for Social Development (CSD) at Washington University in St. Louis introduced the idea of asset building in China in 2004, asset-based projects and policy discussion have drawn great attention from the central government and mainstream media. CSD research and consultation have played a central role in these developments.

Asset-Based Policy In Hong Kong: Child Development Fund, Li Zou, Simon Lai, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

The government of Hong Kong launched the HK$300 million Child Development Fund (CDF) in November 2008 to “capitalize on the strengths of various sectors in the community to help our disadvantaged children,” according to then Hong Kong’s Secretary for Labor and Welfare, Mr. Matthew Cheung Kin-chung. The Hong Kong government drew upon the asset-building research and experience of the Center for Social Development (CSD) at Washington University in St. Louis. Michael Sherraden of CSD consulted for the Hong Kong Government’s Commission on Poverty that planned the CDF policy.

Examining Relationship Between Food Deserts And Health, Rebecca L. Stack

SPACE: Student Perspectives About Civic Engagement

The purpose of this research is to examine the relationships that exist between food deserts, fruit and vegetable consumption and health on individuals. Using quantitative data collected through surveys that were distributed to students attending an urban higher education setting in Chicago, data was analyzed to determine relationships between the communities they live in, the amount of fresh produce they consume and their current health. The survey looked at factors such as race, income, community of residence, daily fruit and vegetable consumption, current health, diagnosis of diet-related illness for respondent and family along with the distance travelled to purchase fresh …

Serving Among Lgbtq Older Adults, Maria E. Escobar

SPACE: Student Perspectives About Civic Engagement

No abstract provided.

Housing And Child Well-Being, Kate Marcal, Patrick J. Fowler

Center for Social Development Research

Safe and stable housing is essential to support healthy child development and promote strong families. Children thrive in secure, stimulating environments, but far too many are exposed to precarious or unsafe housing conditions that threaten their physical, emotional, and cognitive development. Nearly 40% of the homeless population is comprised of families with children, and many more experience inadequate housing conditions such as overcrowding, household chaos, frequent moves, and poor housing quality. This brief discusses the developmental consequences of housing instability and reviews available resources in homeless services, public housing services, and the child welfare system. It also identifies gaps in …

The Management Imperative: Displacement, Dynamics, And Directions Forward For Training Social Workers As Managers, Barry Rosenberg, Amanda Moore Mcbride

Center for Social Development Research

Management’s place within social work has long been of concern. Social workers are being displaced as managers due to competition from other professions, poor regard for their skills as managers, declining student interest, and weak graduate training. This article examines the displacement, discussing its impact on organizational mission, values, and culture; social work’s future; graduates’ readiness to take on management tasks; and career and compensation advancement. These concerns motivated the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis to implement a requirement that master of social work students complete three credits of concentration-level management coursework. …

Experiences With Grandparents And Attitudes Toward Custodial Grandparenting, Julie Hicks Patrick, Allyson Stella Graf, Danielle K. Nadorff, Bert Hayslip Jr.

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

The goals of the current study were to examine attitudes about custodial grandparents and to examine whether personal experiences with grandparents influenced those attitudes. Data were provided by 730 younger adults (mean age about 20 years) who completed surveys regarding their experiences with their own grandparents, attitudes toward custodial grandparenting, and openness to becoming a custodial grandparent in the future. Mean differences in attitudes as a function of experience did emerge. In addition, a mixed structural model showed that young adults who felt their grandparents helped to raise them perceived custodial grandparenting as less distressing, and it was these perceptions …

Challenges And Resilience In African American Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: A Review Of The Literature With Practice Implications, Fengyan Tang, Heejung Jang, Valire Carr Copeland

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

This paper reviews literature on grandparents raising grandchildren, focusing on caregiving challenges and resilience in African American grandparent caregivers within a socio-cultural context. A strengths perspective that emphasizes capacities and competencies at the individual, family, and community levels is applied in understanding how African American grandparents rely on their strengths to overcome caregiving challenges. Building on the review of social programs and intervention services that targeted empowerment practice, the authors propose an empowerment model of working with African American grandparents, that is, building capacities through an empowerment process to address caregiving challenges and to achieve positive caregiving outcomes. Finally, the …

Coming To America: An Examination Of The U.S. Immigration Debate In Its Historical Context, Julie R. Davidson

Kaleidoscope

The United States is considered a country of immigrants, but a historical tension has existed between new arrivals and the “native” population. Policies regarding immigration have frequently mirrored the nativist fervor that is created in opposition to large influxes of immigrants. The debate about revamping immigration policy, that has been a key issue in Congress in 2006, is not surprising in an historical context. The concern about large numbers, the fear of draining social services, dilution of American culture, loss of American jobs, and the compromising of national security are all concerns that have been voiced recently, and are almost …

The Social Justice Project: The Art Of Change, Geoffrey Hillback

21st Century Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Expanding Community Identity: Opportunities For Interdisciplinary Collaboration In Government Practices To Engage Local-Born And Foreign-Born Residents In Building A Stronger Community, Lara Tobin

21st Century Social Justice

Neighborhood building is essential to a diverse and strong New York. We are currently in a progressive political climate where legislation is being crafted so that the laws of New York reflect its residents. This includes foreign-born residents, who have successfully advocated for, and been a part of, this changing legislation. There is work to be done now by local-born residents to increase their ability to change their definition of community to be inclusive, facilitated by social workers and local government offices to ensure that the legislative changes are implemented in the spirit fought for by the coalition of advocates.

Equality: Empowering Queer, Allied, And Trans* Youth, Jessica J. Schpero, Amanda C. Hayden, Nazli Boroshan, Kathy Huynh

21st Century Social Justice

LGBTQQ identified youth are often targets in school settings for harassment, maltreatment, and bullying. This negative treatment often leads to decreased academic performance and limited potential for successful long-term outcomes. Through school and community-wide programming, EQuALITY seeks to increase acceptance of LGBTQQ identified students, foster self-empowerment, and support young adults as they navigate different social environments and interactions between LGBTQQ identified students and allies. The authors hypothesize that with the creation and implementation of EQuALITY, a program designed to create a widespread shift in LGBTQQ acceptance and understanding from the school community, students’ feelings of isolation will decrease, feelings of …

Human Rights And Prison Rape, Lenny Gallo

21st Century Social Justice

Prison Rape is a common occurrence in America’s penal institutions. Sexual assault occurs most frequently on juveniles, the LGBT community, and people who are weak in stature. To combat this problem, The Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA), passed in 2003 with bipartisan support and the backing of special interest groups, was envisioned as a human rights milestone. Prison rape is assumed by an apathetic public to be an expected part of the incarceration experience. PREA, in addition to encountering major time setbacks in implementation, has not become a human rights milestone and, even where it has been implemented, is often …

Self-Efficacy And Mental Health Services Provided By Rural And Frontier Oncology Social Workers, Lindsey R. Overstreet Msw, Lcsw, Diane A. Kempson Msw, Phd, Carol J. Hermansen-Kobulnicky Phd, Rph

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

This pilot study explores the relationship between self-efficacy and professional behaviors of a non-random membership sample of the Association of Oncology Social Work (AOSW) who practice in rural and frontier settings (N = 19). The New Generalized Self-Efficacy (NGSE) scale was used to measure provider self-efficacy; a researcher-designed questionnaire was used to assess the professional behaviors of conducting mental health assessments and providing supportive counseling to individuals diagnosed with cancer. Pearson correlation and two-sample t-tests were used to analyze data. While study results did not elucidate relationships explored, results revealed a disparity between participants’ overall high sense of professional preparedness …

Book Review: Rural Social Work In The 21st Century, Peter A. Kindle Ph.D.

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Book Review: Rural Social Work in the 21st Century Michael R. Daley 2015 Chicago, IL: Lyceum Books 309 pages Paperback, $49.95. ISBN-13: 978-1935871613

Book Review: The Last Best Place? Gender, Family And Migration In The New West, Claudette L. Grinnell-Davis

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Book Review: The Last Best Place? Gender, Family and Migration in the New West Leah Schmalzbauer 2014 Redwood City, CA: Stanford University Press 224 pages Paperback, $24.95 ISBN-13 978-0-8047-9293-6

Contemporary Rural Social Work - Fall 2015 (Volume 7, Number 2)

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Contemporary Rural Social Work - 2015 (Volume 7, Number 2)

Full issue

Supported Housing Experiences Of People With Serious Mental Illness, Troy Mondragon

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of people living with serious mental illness (SMI) receiving housing assistance. A qualitative method was used to interview five adults with SMI living in a supported housing model. An Ecological Systems Theory (EST) was used as the theoretical orientation for the study. The major themes related to success of the supported housing that emerged were independence, involvement of owners, bonds with tenants, having access and means to resources, and positive engagement in well-being. No themes of unmet needs were presented.

The study concluded people with SMI in need …