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Congressional Briefing Outlines Need for Social Workers and Youth Behavioral Health Programs
By Paul R. Pace
Graciela Chavez of North Carolina is a single mom to her son,
Angel, whom she had at age 15. After graduating from high school, Chavez said
she had little to no support. Compounding this problem was her son’s struggle
with behavioral and mental health issues.
Angel was eventually referred to the Youth Villages Intercept
program, an intensive in-home services program that helped Chavez and her son.
Once Chavez met Angel’s intercept specialist, she said she realized she was
there to help.
“She gave us the tools we needed to overcome some pretty tough
obstacles,” Chavez said. “Through this program, my son was able to learn to
identify triggers and come up with strategies on how to properly manage those
triggers. He learned how to express his emotions. He learned how to work with
challenging cognitive distortions.”
Chavez offered her comments at a congressional briefing on
Capitol Hill called “Rooted in Change: Cultivating Youth Behavioral Wellness at
Home and in Communities.” Read the
full story.
Social Work is Political
By Paul R. Pace
“At the end of the day, politics is not a spectator sport,” NASW CEO Anthony Estreet, PhD, MBA, LCSW-C, said during a presentation at NASW’s national conference in June.
Panelists for the preconference workshop—“Social Work is a Political Profession”— outlined why it’s important for social workers to be involved in the political arena.
Sherron Wilkes, DSW, MSW, program director and clinical assistant professor at the University of Alabama, pointed out the NASW Code of Ethics lays the groundwork for what social workers do, including engaging in social and political action that seeks to ensure all people have equal access to the resources and opportunities that meet their basic needs and to develop fully.
“Politics is social work with power,” she said.