Urbana School District #116

TITLE: Social Worker

LOCATION: Thomas Paine Elementary

SUPERVISOR: This position reports directly to the building Principal and the Assistant Superintendent for Special Services.

SUPERVISES: Supervises the work of student social work interns as applicable.

JOB SUMMARY: The Social Worker promotes and enhances the overall academic mission of the Urbana School District #116 by providing services that strengthen home/school/community partnerships and alleviate barriers to learning. The Social Worker contributes to the development of a healthy and safe environment by advancing the understanding of the social, emotional and developmental needs of District students and their families.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential function satisfactorily.

• Provide assertive outreach and act as a liaison between students, parents, staff and community agencies.
• Assess students to determine their need for school social work or other services and address the social and emotional needs of students based on assessment.
• Provide crisis intervention to school age children and their families as appropriate and as requested by administrative personnel assigned to school.
• Establish and maintain home/school ties for students and work with families concerning home situations that relate to school performance.
• Participate in Special Education Services evaluations of students, including adaptive behavior assessments and social development studies.
• Provide assistance to teachers or teams in planning to meet the needs of students.
• Participate in efforts to remediate student truancy, delinquency and behavior problems.
• Maintain records memorializing professional social work services rendered.
• Coordinate student transitions within District programs, schools, services and communities.
• Maintain communication with appropriate community agencies and aid in finding solutions to community-wide problems that affect students and families.
• Evaluate and refer students and their families to appropriate resources within the school and community.
• Adhere to laws and procedures involving child abuse/neglect and cooperate with community agencies to identify the need for protective services for children.
• Identify and offer in-service training for school personnel and parents engage in group social work meetings.
• Participate in professional growth activities including workshops, institutes, seminars and research projects.
• Participate in local, state, regional and national professional organizations related to social work profession.
• Recommend lesson and curriculum modifications to meet needs of individual students and groups of students.
• Perform any and all additional duties as assigned by the Board of Education, Superintendent of Schools, Building Principals and/or the Assistant Superintendent for Special Services.

QUALIFICATIONS:

EDUCATION

Minimum Master’s Degree from an accredited college or university in social work.

EXPERIENCE

Two years or more of school-based experience preferred except in the case of a new Social Worker.

LICENSES/CREDENTIALS: Valid Illinois School Social Work Certificate

OTHER SKILLS AND ABILITIES: Ability to communicate and collaborate

START DATE: ASAP

NOTE: This is a position within the collective bargaining unit and is not an administrative position.

AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

REVISED: April 2012