Dr. Diane L Scott

Many of the most challenging issues military members and their families are facing are trauma related. Agencies and treatment providers working with military members and their families should be able to recognize and respond to symptoms based on a trauma informed care perspective. This article describes frequent trauma responses found in this population and how to assess these reactions. It explores and endorses a Trauma-informed care treatment framework for understanding and intervening with military-connected clients that centrally emphasizes
individual, family, and systems strengths, adaptation, and resiliency and that is built on the five essential care principles of safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration, and empowerment. The article further highlights research-supported, adjunctive, and alternative trauma-informed clinical interventions for members, veterans, and their families along with providing guidance on how to adjust these approaches for these clients.

The changing environment for higher education requires administrative leadership that is poised to respond and guide faculty and staff through changes while preserving the values and culture of the institution. Challenges to the purpose and goals of higher education institutions posed by both internal and external stakeholders necessitate that leadership communicate their commitment to a shared vision, care and nurturing of workers, innovation, and inclusion. These fundamental values, which higher education advances for the common good, must be presented by engaged leaders as essential, touchstone ideals that serve to bind organizational members during times of significant change. Engaged leaders who understand how to develop and draw upon shared institutional meanings are most effective at advancing their organizations. This paper will make the case for the value of engaged leadership during times of institutional challenge and change by building upon tenants of related/current leadership theories and perspective strategies, and thereafter providing exemplars of engaged leadership experienced by the authors.

This article explores the planning and implementation process for a community partnership school for a historically low-performing elementary school using an asset-based community development approach. We offer insights into the community needs assessment process that enabled four key community partners to identify needs and projects for the school and surrounding community. The community partnership school draws its strength from four local organizations assimilating their expertise and resources on focal areas for community engagement. Beyond organizational resources, the partners also developed local networks and resources that could be useful for the community. Building on the asset-based community development model, insights and challenges are presented for others seeking to employ a similar approach to mobilize assets for student success and community engagement.

This qualitative study explores veteran treatment court (VTC) participant perceptions of the judicial processes within the court, their experiences with the judge and other court actors, and the relationship between their military service and criminal activity. Purposive sampling was employed to recruit a sample of 13 justice-involved veterans, who at the time of interviewing, were being adjudicated in a VTC located in the southeastern United States. Semi-structured interviewing was used to capture veteran perceptions of VTC. Five unique themes emerged, while perceptions of court actors and the connection between their military service and crime had three themes, respectively. From these themes, we developed a maladaptive coping model to illustrate the experiences of veterans in veteran courts. The study results are intended to inform policy makers, judicial actors, and veteran service providers as they design judicial responses for veteran offenders.

Information on the childhood obesity epidemic in the United States abounds. However, the impact of overweight and obesity specifically among children receiving child welfare services (children in care) has received little attention. Although relatively little is known about obesity among children in care, limited studies suggest children in foster care are disproportionally affected, with children in long-term foster care or group homes at highest risk. Although child welfare work has not historically focused on reducing and preventing childhood obesity, child welfare agencies have an obligation to protect children’s physical and mental well-being, and the social work profession is uniquely qualified to deliver evidence-based obesity mitigation efforts among children in care.

Although Americans reduced spending on food during the Great Recession, the prevalence of overweight and obesity continued to increase. This article uses socioeconomic life course models to organize the issues surrounding obesity, striving to illustrate how community, social, and intergenerational factors, compounded over the course of a lifetime, increase risk, particularly among poor, minority, and otherwise under resourced communities. Conceptualizing obesity within life course models informs policy recommendations, practice, and guides future research. Social workers are called to respond with collaborative approaches to create accessible and affordable community food environments where the default option is the healthy, preferred choice.

Veterans and their family members may need clinical services from social workers or other mental health practitioners, but that is not likely their first stop in trying to secure assistance. Instead, they may seek help through their benefit claims or try to find resources from local community organizations. However, volunteers who staff these organizations may have limited exposure to military or veteran populations and lack training in interviewing, assessment, and case management. This is especially true in rural areas or communities that are not in close proximity to military bases or Veterans Affairs facilities. A veteran certificate program based on a social work curriculum can respond to those knowledge gaps and improve basic intervention skills. A newly implemented veteran certificate program using practice-based scenarios is described along with a review of implementation issues, participant outcomes, and recommendations for future needs.

The provision of social services in rural areas has historically presented a challenge for social workers. Rural social service disparities are presented in relation to key challenges surrounding the provision of social work services in the rural United States. Barriers that define rurality and hinder the provision of social work to rural families, a multicultural examination of rural community strengths and resiliency, and creative solutions for rural social work delivery are discussed. A case study utilizing collaborative partnerships between rural churches, schools, and community leaders to combat rural homelessness and streamline service delivery for rural families across the life cycle is presented.