Priority #1 Increasing the number of school social workers in Washington School

What is the ESA Behavioral Health Coalition?
At the close of the legislative session last spring, our board members made meaningful contacts with representatives of the school psychologists, school counselors and school nurses association and together we created the first ESA Behavioral Health Coalition of Washington.  As we know, there are distinctive and overlapping roles within our professions and as a result we created a document that illustrates our work at the tier 1, 2 and 3 level.  As a group, we’ve come together for four meetings to work on a model where all of our roles play a critical role in addressing student health and wellness.

What have we done?
Our ESA coalition met with members at OSPI including deputy superintendant Gil Mendoza to begin the conversation about this important work.  Each group was tasked with surveying our membership to discover how we are being utilized across the state.  We intend to share this data that fully integrates all roles.  We are searching for a multi-disciplinary model at districts across the US that have effectively integrated all of these roles to show improved student outcomes.  If you know of any examples, please contact Carrie Syvertsen.
 
School Social Worker Survey Results
We also conducted a survey to get a better picture of our school social workers.  73 people responded and participated.  Here is some preliminary data:

• Total number of districts represented = 36.
• 89% have their ESA School Social Work.  11% have their ESA counseling.
• 34% have the title School Social Worker; 27% have the title school counselor.  39% have an array of titles.
• 85% are paid on the certificated level
• 80% are 1.0 FTE
• 59% work with K-5; 14% work with 6-8; 27% work with 9-12
• F/L rate: 49% work with populations with 50% or more on F/R lunch
• 50% are paid by 100% gen-ed funds; 12% are paid by 100% SPED funds; 7% by discretionary building based funds; 8% through grants; 23% are a combination of multiple sources.
• 64% respondents serve 1 building; 19% serve 2 buildings; 16% ranged from 3 to 46 buildings.
• For all questions relating to our national model, respondents answered YES 70% or more on all 13 questions.

 We continue to analyze our data and will work collaboratively within the coalition to promote our profession.  Together, we plan to present at various conferences in 2016 including school principals and school superintendents, among others.

The Explosive Child: Non-compliant, Disruptive, Disenfranchised Kids – Moving from Modifying Behavior to Solving Problems Collaboratively
Presented by Ross Greene, Ph.D.

Friday, May 22, 2015
9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Broadway Performance Hall at Seattle Central College
1625 Broadway Avenue
Seattle, WA

Workshop Description Educators, parents, and mental healthy clinicians are increasingly challenged to understand and help kids with social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties. These kids are at tremendous risk for adverse long-term outcomes, and their behavior can significantly impact life at home and in the classroom. . Dr. Ross Greene’s model – as described in his influential books The Explosive Child and Lost at School, and now called Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS) – helps adults and kids collaboratively solve the problems precipitating challenging behavior, while simultaneously teaching lagging skills. The empirically supported CPS model represents a dramatic departure from conventional wisdom and practice, and has been found to be effective in a vast array of setting, including families (where it has been shown to significantly reduce family conflict and improve parent-child interactions), general and special education schools (where it dramatically reduced discipline referrals, detentions, and suspensions), and inpatient, residential, and juvenile detention facilities (where it has produced significant reductions in recidivism and in the use of restraint and locked-door seclusion). Participants in this workshop will leave with an understanding of the underpinnings of the model, along with practical assessment and intervention tools that can be brought back to and used in these diverse settings.

To get more information about the seminar and register, click here. WASSW members receive $10 off their attendance fee to this seminar when registering on-line.  Get code from Membership page.

School Social Worker Association of America National
Conference
April 15, 2015 - April 18th, 2015
Nashville, TN

6th International School Social Work Conference
June 10th, 2015 - June 12th, 2015
Ulaanbataar, Mongolia

Connecting with Care - OSPI Student Support Conference
May 13, 2015 - May 15th, 2015
Wenatchee, Washington

Six members attended the second WASSW Lobby Day on Monday, January 19, 2015 in Olympia. To prepare for the day of advocacy, WASSW members scheduled appointments and met with various representatives and senators to discuss the role of social work within our schools. Members chose to meet with both legislators from their own district as well as legislators who have a history of sponsoring or co-sponsoring bills that support educational initiatives.

Because our scheduled Lobby Day was so close to the beginning of the legislative session, the purpose of our advocacy was focused less on specific pieces of legislation and more on boosting the visibility of school social work. Key talking points included the importance of mental health services in K-12 schools, the ever-present need for continued prevention, assessment, and intervention services for at-risk students, and the role of school social workers as individual service providers who understand how to navigate complex systems in order to access resources for students, families, and communities. Members explained the distinction between SSWs and school counselors, advocated for official recognition in the Washington Administrative Code, and encouraged legislators to support upcoming bills that would allocate funds specifically to create positions accessible to school social workers.

At the end of the day, our members had met with representatives, senators, and staff from eleven different offices, including: Representative Gerry Pollet (46th Legislative District), Senator Tim Sheldon (35th Legislative District), Representative Tina Orwall (33rd Legislative District), Representative Steve Bergquist (11th Legislative District), Representative Reuven Carlyle (36th Legislative District), Senator David Frockt (46th Legislative District), Representative Jessyn Farrell (46th Legislative District), Representative Gael Tarleton (36th Legislative District), Representative Tana Senn (41st Legislative District), Representative Eric Pettigrew (37th Legislative District), and Senator Pramila Jayapal (37th Legislative District). Some representatives currently serve on the House Education Committee and the House Early Learning and Human Services Committee.

Reaching out to these legislators is an important first step that has brought us closer to greater visibility for our profession. However, we still have a long way to go. The next step is to schedule follow-up meetings with those who are supportive of our cause in order to get closer to our goal of being officially recognized as vital members of school support systems. We cannot continue to advocate effectively for students and families under current limitations, so we must organize and make our voices heard. Please contact your legislators and keep an eye out for further updates from WASSW regarding upcoming legislation and action!

Lara Evensen, University of Washington
School Social Work Intern at Chief Sealth International High School

The American School Counselor Association (ASCA), the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), and the School Social Work Association of America (SSWAA) endorse an Interdisciplinary Teaming Approach to SISP staffing that involves School Social Workers, School Psychologists and School Counselors.  Working together, we are stronger than we are if we work in isolation or in competition with our mental health related partners in support of all students.   The national organizations collectively will continue to promote the unique roles of school counselors, school psychologists, and school social workers and will support state and local affiliate efforts toward appropriate hiring models that recognize the role and importance of each of these professionals.  Please follow this link for the full text of the joint statement.

Carrie Syvertsen a school social worker at Chief Sealth High School and current vice President of WASSW was interviewed recently about our profession especially in light of the recent school shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School.  Carrie is able to underscore the importance of our presence, skills and resource in the school setting and for students who become disconnected from others.  Read the whole article here.

As of May 24th, 2014 the Praxis II: School Social Work Content Knowledge is no longer a requirement for Initial ESA Certification.

As of June 7th, 2014 the Educational Testing Service (ETS) stopped offering this pencil and paper test. Since there is no computer version of this exam, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and the Professional Educators Standards Board (PESB) has removed the Praxis exam as a requirement for certification.  For current requirements or to apply, please see the following link: www.k12.wa.us/certification/educational-staff-associate-certificates/esa-first-time-applicant/school-social-worker-first-time

Our hope is to work with both OSPI and the PESB to discuss how this change (and possible future changes to our certification) impacts our profession.  We will provide updates as we receive them.  Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns that you have.