School Social Worker

Position: School Social Worker
Start Date: TBD
Reports to:     Supervisor of Special Education/Special Education Coordinator/Principal
 
Position Overview:  The School Social Worker facilitates communication between family and school, hoping to resolve issues that may be affecting a student’s academic and behavioral performance.  He/she is a consultant to families and a counselor to students who are experiencing difficulties with guidance for behavior plans and training.
Employment and Salary:  The School Social Worker is employed for 186 days as designated on the school district calendar and on the basis of a 37.5-hour week.  He/she receives a salary commensurate with the Teacher Salary Schedule most recently adopted by the School Board.
Minimum Position Qualifications: 

• Qualifications are specified in Bulletin 746, Louisiana Standards for State Certification of School Personnel, including, but not limited to, an endorsement as school social worker; Board Certification as a social worker (BCSW); demonstrated knowledge of successful behavioral strategies for students with disabilities and of regulations set forth in Bulletins 1706 and 1508;
• Demonstrates professional and personal characteristics necessary for working effectively with staff, parents, school personnel, and members of the community;
• Demonstrates the ability to travel independently to varied locations during the course of a single day;
• Demonstrates the ability to visually and auditorily monitor teacher and student behaviors in varied locations;
• Demonstrates the ability to stand, speak, hear, sit, kneel, and walk for prolonged periods and to push or lift up to 40 pounds, understanding that reasonable accommodations may be made to assist the employee in performing essential functions; and,
• Demonstrates the ability to read handwritten or typed material at close range and to prepare written and oral reports as necessary to complete performance responsibilities.

 
Performance Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
 

• Explaining and interpreting school social work services to parents, teachers, principals, and others;
• Facilitating communication between the home and the school, seeking to involve families in the educational process of their children and providing feedback to the school on family situations and problems;
• Providing consultative services to families of and, when necessary, counseling services to students who are experiencing problems in social and behavioral functioning at school, which results from circumstances or events present in the home;
• Serving as a liaison between the school and community agencies through reciprocal referral arrangements, collaboration on cases, and assistance to families in obtaining and utilizing local resources;
• Functioning as a pupil appraisal services staff member in accordance with the guidelines set for in Bulletin 1508 and the regulations implementing Act 754 in the conduct of evaluations of referred children when social, developmental, adaptive behavior, and/or family assessments are determined necessary;
• Functioning as evaluation coordinator for designated referred students;
• Interpreting social assessment findings to parents, teachers, principals, and other professional personnel and to responsible practitioners outside the school;
• Producing written reports for any social work assessments or other services provided to students;
• Providing assistance to students and their families in meeting physical and economic needs through cooperation with the referral to community agencies and services groups;
• Providing or assisting with professional development of school personnel in areas of expertise;
• Participating in special education eligibility determinations and IEP staffings;
• Maintaining accurate case records on all students regarding their referral, evaluation, and any other services provided by the social worker in accordance with the requirements of the parish, state, and federal laws, regulations, and/or policies;
• Attending staff, professional, and interagency meetings as assigned;
• Keeping abreast of new developments in the areas of school social work and keeping appropriate school personnel informed of those developments;
• Completing all parish or state-required reports;
• Promoting regular school attendance through on-going monitoring at school and providing assistance to families to resolve problems which interfere with school attendance, including collaboration with and referral of the Office of Child Welfare and Attendance;
• Providing parent counseling and/or training on meaningful communication and on child management concerns, either on a group or individual basis;
• Completing other duties and responsibilities assigned by the Supervisor/Coordinator/Principal.

 
Evaluation Criteria:  
The Social Worker’s performance of duties will be evaluated in accordance with provisions of the Board’s policy on the evaluation of certified staff.
 
___________________________________________         __________________________
Signature of School Social Worker                                        Date
 
 
Disclaimer:  The preceding job description has been designated to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification.  It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees to do this job.  Additional duties are prescribed in the most recent agreement between the St. Bernard Association of Educators and the St. Bernard Parish School Board.
 
 

  

  

Date:________