1. Advocate. Connect. Educate.
CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATI ON OF SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKERS
CASSW Weekly A.C.E.
From Suh Chen Hsiao, CASSW Treasurer:
Greetings from Los Angeles! Social workers will celebrate National Social Work Month in March 2015. At that time, the National
Association of Social Workers (NASW) will also begin an eight-month celebration of its 60th anniversary which will end in October,
the month NASW was founded in 1955. This week’s highlight is Lawndale Elementary School District and SSW’s effort in building
trauma-informed schools.
Lawndale Elementary School District
“A Collaborative Direction to Change the Fabric of Education”
by Maria Ruelas, MSW, Lead School Social Worker
maria_ruelas@lawndalesd.net 310-973-1300
http://www.lawndale.k12.ca.us/
Schools across the states are faced with new educational standards that develop student’s proficiency in all academic areas particularly, English Language Arts and
mathematics thus, enhancing their analytical and critical thinking skills. These new developments in the educational system establish consistent standards to ensure all
students are prepared to enter college programs and/or the workforce. With strong efforts to improve public education, there are also growing concerns over unresolved
mental health issues that are affecting students learning. School districts across America are taking a stance on mental health by implementing school-wide interven-
tions that will improve student and staff behavior hence, promoting positive school climate. The Lawndale Elementary School District (LESD) located in the South Bay
region of Los Angeles County has made progressive shifts in the area of mental health in the past year.
The Lawndale Elementary School District (LESD) has adopted innovative approaches that will not only impact their schools but their community at large. Over the last
year, LESD has changed the infrastructure of their schools by hiring four school social workers and partnering with more than ten community mental health agencies
and universities to address the social and emotional needs of their student’s. LESD’s most supportive and influential partner has been the USC School of Social Work.
Through their collaboration, LESD has become more than just a field placement provider for USC, they have become a Teaching Institute supervising more than 25
master-level social work interns. The LESD values their interns and invest on providing them with an enriching learning experience by teaching, training, exposing and
supervising them within a school environment. Through this comprehensive approach, both interns and students at LESD are provided with the latest evidenced-based,
data-driven frameworks to reduce disciplinary incidents, increase school’s sense of safety and support in turn, supporting improved academic outcomes.
Paradigm shifts in school mental health has lead the Lawndale Elementary School District to become a trauma-informed field placement. This approach will not only
address the social, emotional, and safety aspects of a student’s learning environment but will also disseminate evidence-based trauma services across a continuum,
from prevention services that focus on building resilience in students, to early interventions and more intensive services for trauma-exposed students. By integrating
trauma sensitivity, social work interns will be able to address root causes of behavioral dilemmas, and educators will be empowered to improve achievement expecta-
tions. This kind of interaction will foster relationships within a school setting that will benefit students, parents, staff and members of the community. As a result, LESD
will eliminate barriers to academic success by changing the fabric of education through collaboration, integration and innovation.
Mental Health, Wellness & Academic February 23-27, 2015
Resources
SSWAA 18th National School Social Work Conference
April 15 - 18, 2015 at Sheraton Music City Hotel, 777 McGavock Pike
Nashville 37214. Conference brochure http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.sswaa.org/
resource/resmgr/Conf_2015/Conference_Brochure_2015_Nov.pdf
ACSSW National School Social Work Week: March 1-7, 2015
http://www.acssw.org/temp/SSW%20Week%20Celebration%20Ideas%
202015.pdf
http://www.acssw.org/temp/2015%20SSW%20Week%20Poster.pdf
20th Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health
November 5 - 7, 2015, New Orleans, LA. School social workers are encouraged to
submit via this link https://cf.umaryland.edu/csmha/abstract_conference.cfm
by February 27, 2015
Military Child Education Coalition
http://issuu.com/militarychildeducationcoalitio/docs/art_show_2015_-_rebuilt_-_lr
Building Capacity Newsletter (military connected schools)-January 2015
http://buildingcapacity.usc.edu/newsletters/WP%20Newsletter%20January%
202015.pdf
Social Work Month-Proclamation Template
https://www.socialworkers.org/pressroom/swmonth/2015/documents/SWM-
Please contact the membership Chair at CASSWmemebrship@yahoo.com or visit our website at www.cassw.net