School Social Workers

All students in Prince William County Public Schools will be physically and emotionally available for learning in a safe, supportive, and caring environment.

Prince William County Public Schools social workers build on the strengths of each student and empower them to be active participants in their own personal growth. School social workers foster collaborative relationships with parents, school personnel, and the community to promote the understanding of a student's social/emotional and academic needs. They will use best practices and meaningful interventions to address the whole child in today's diverse and changing environment.

School Social Workers are trained mental health professionals with a master's degree in social work from a university accredited by the Council on Social Work Education and are licensed by the Virginia Department of Education.

Children today are increasingly impacted by social forces that can negatively affect their role as students. These negative effects result in unmet physical and emotional needs that interfere with their ability to learn and succeed in school. School social workers facilitate activities and interventions that increase students' motivation to learn and provide a connection for them to their school environment.

School Social Workers serve as the vital link between home, school and community for all students while providing the following services:

Direct Services to Students and Families

• Individual counseling.
• Group counseling.
• Assist families in applying for Medicaid waivers.
• Assist families in obtaining outside supports for out-patient and in-home counseling services, food, clothing, shelter and connecting with community based agencies that will support the student and family.
• Partner with community agencies to case manage high risk students experiencing homelessness, foster care, abuse, and human trafficking.
• Work collaboratively with Department of Social Services and schools to support Best Interest Determination meetings for all foster care students enrolling in PWCS.

Services under IDEA

• Attend intervention team meetings and participate in developing interventions and strategies for students who are experiencing social, emotional, and/or behavioral issues that are impacting their learning.
• Prepare social history reports for the social-cultural component of initial and triennial student referrals for special education. Attend multi-disciplinary eligibility team meetings.
• Provide IEP individual special education counseling for students.
• Participate in team development of Functional Behavioral Assessments and Behavioral Intervention Plans for students.

Crisis Intervention

• Provide suicide assessments and referrals.
• Participate on Threat Assessment Teams.
• Serve on the Critical Incident Team.
• Provide Triage for Victims of Human Trafficking.
• Assist with Child Protection Services reporting.
• Student, staff, and parent prevention education.
• Co-teach signs of suicide, human trafficking, and sexual harassment lessons to students.
• Provide in-services and presentations on self-injury, trafficking, parenting, substance abuse and behavioral interventions.
• Provide staff and parent consultation.
• School-community liaison.
• Coordinate service delivery and communication between schools, families, and community agencies.
• Serve on interagency committees serving children.