School Social Work Policy & News

This briefing examines the merits of the Counseling Not Criminalization Act (H.R. 7848), introduced by Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA-7) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN-5).

This letter is  a revised sign-on letter to Congress re: COVID-19 relief.

Martha Rodriguez, LCSW, is service manager of recovery at Broward County Public Schools in Florida. She also works at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., which was the site of a mass school shooting in 2018.

There's debate over whether youths’ use of technology and social media on phones and devices is harmful or helpful. Many agree it is both.

And most youth are not addicted to technology. If anything, they are addicted to each other. That speaks to something that's true for every generation: teenagers want to hang out with each other.

"Actions like bullying, threats and figts are all red flags, and they need to be addressed before they elevate and students become a threat to themselves or others," says Libby Nealis, Policy and Advocacy Director at the School Social Work Association of America.

School social workers work to prevent mass killing in schools as well as guide schools in recovery after a crisis has occurred. Today more than ever, there is a growing need for school social workers to help prevent school violence and to support students in moments of crisis.