SSWAA VOLUNTEERS
VOLUNTEERS IN THE SSWAA PROFESSIONAL COMMUNITY
Carlos A. Evans Jr. is a school social worker in Peoria, Illinois working in a K-8 school. His main practice is focused on managing RtI, MTSS, providing service for special education students, administrative support and teacher consultation. Carlos' passion is bringing all stakeholders to the table to increase access to education for all students. Carlos also enjoys exercise, cooking and traveling with his family & pets. Carlos is the current President of the Illinois Association of School Social Workers and is a SSWAA Delegate Assembly volunteer for 2018.
School Social Worker to School Social Worker (SSW 2 SSW):A Peer Assistance Network
The School Social Work Association of American (SSWAA) is excited to offer SSWAA members an opportunity to participate in peer assistance sessions with experienced school social workers. It has become apparent from speaking with SSWAA members that school social workers, many of whom work in relative isolation, want a way to seek ideas from peers in a manner that protects the confidentiality of both the school social worker(s), their clients, and their school district. It is intended to be a safe space for sharing strategies, providing support, and assisting one another with ideas that may help the school social worker with practice issues.
A peer assistance group is comprised of school social work professionals that meet on a regular basis to discuss ethical dilemmas, difficult case issues, and the impact of their work on their health and well-being. Peer assistance groups provide practical help and counter isolation and burnout. Although members of a peer assistance group receive input and suggestions for dealing with their clients, the individual receiving the support and advice is solely responsible for their actions and interactions with their clients. Being part of a peer assistance group may be helpful but does not replace all forms of professional support. Thus, it is distinguished from supervision, where a professional supervisor is legally and ethically responsible for the actions and interactions with clients. This Group should be a safe space to share ideas and experiences, both successful and unsuccessful, for the betterment of all school social workers.
SSWAA Committees
How To Get Involved With a Committee:
If you would be interested in sharing your expertise and serving on one or more of these committees, please login to your membership profile and select the "My Subscriptions" option and select the available committee you would like to join.
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We appreciate you and your input!
Standing Committees
The SSWAA Standing Committees meet on a regular basis throughout the year to address a standing issue/topic.
Standards & Practice Committee
The Standards and Practice Committee meets on the 3rd Thursday of the month from 7:00 - 8:00 pm EST. We are specifically seeking members who would like to assist in the writing of resolution statements to timely meet the practice needs of our members as well as to respond to media inquiry and legislative actions.
Please email your interest to Laurel Thompson at Let23@caa.columbia.edu
Advocacy & LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE
Are you Interested in being on the front line of SSW advocacy? Consider joining the Advocacy and Legislative Action Committee during our monthly meetings (the fourth Monday of each month at 8:00 PM EST).
Reach out to the co-chairs Emilie Souhrada - emiliejsouhrada@gmail.com and Robert Lucio - robert.lucio@saintleo.edu for more information.
Ad Hoc Committees
The SSWAA Ad Hoc committees meet to address a focused project for a specified time.
SEL
COMMITTEE
This committee will meet in the fall and winter to collect and review existing tools and devise a “best practice” toolkit for a School Social Worker’s role in implementing SEL in schools. Meets the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month at 7pm Eastern in October, November, and January. (6 meetings total)
EMERGING LEADERS PROJECT COMMITTEE
The focus of this committee will be to design and develop a program for students or young professionals in School Social Work. This committee is a perfect fit for seasoned or retired School Social Workers who have expertise and specialty in practice areas that can be shared with emerging leaders in the field of School Social Work. This committee will meet once per month, November through May. Day and time to be determined. (7 total meetings)
SSW WEEK
COMMITEE
This committee will meet in the fall and winter to develop and promote the National School Social Work theme and resources. Meets the 1st and 3rd Monday at 4pm Eastern in October, November, and December. (6 total meetings)
SPECIAL PROJECTS COMMITTEE
Meets for a determined amount of time to work on special projects when they arise. We have a need at this time that has come out of our Membership Survey data. The focus of the Special Projects Committee at this time will be to collect, review, and in some cases create practice tools that can be shared with SSWAA members. This committee will meet the 1st Thursday in December, and the 1st and 3rd Thursdays in January, February, and March at 4:30pm Eastern. (7 total meetings)
PRACTITIONERS OF COLOR (POC) COMMITTEE
This committee seeks to build the leadership capacity of Practitioners of Color (POC) in school social work and collaborate across professional contexts we work within. We hope to do so through collective healing to validate our experiences within institutions as POC, build stronger bridges between social work and education through critical lenses, and challenge institutionalized oppression while finding joy in our cultural and professional identities.
This committee meets monthly at 6pm CT on the first Tuesday of each month.