News

The Wisconsin Tourette Association will be hosting The Tourette Connect Conference on Saturday April 2, 2022 from 9:00 AM till 4:00 PM at the Best Western Park Hotel at 22 S. Carroll St, Madison, WI 53703 (virtual option to attend will be coming soon!)

This is a one-day free program that all are welcome to attend. Childcare is available for all children with family members attending the conference. Lunch is not provided at this event.

To see more, check out the flier here: TS_Conference_Flyer-3.pdf

Register here: Online Registration Form

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul announced on January 31st the appointment of Trisha Kilpin to lead the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of School Safety (OSS). A former Wisconsin teacher of the year, Kilpin comes to DOJ with over 30 years of experience as a School Social Worker in Greendale, Wisconsin.

“Trisha Kilpin has decades of experience in Wisconsin schools, including experience training on and implementing school safety programming. We’re excited to welcome her to lead DOJ’s Office of School Safety, where she’ll be helping to keep schools across the state safe,” said AG Kaul. “The Office of School Safety has had many successes over the last four years due in no small part to the vision, leadership, and expertise of the office’s current director, Kristen Devitt. Thank you to Director Devitt for her years of work making Wisconsin schools safer.”

As a Greendale School District Social Worker, Trisha Kilpin has been a committed advocate for comprehensive school safety, serving as a leader on district crisis and safety teams. She also frequently served as an instructor for others outside her district regarding how to keep their schools safe, in her role as an instructor for the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) PREPaRE courses and as a leader in threat assessment model practices. In her former roles, Kilpin was a frequent contributor to OSS initiatives, serving on a work team to develop the Wisconsin Threat Assessment Protocol and on the Crisis Incident Response Team Advisory Committee. Kilpin balances preventative work by also consulting and leading trainings in Greendale Schools and across Wisconsin on best practices in response and recovery.

Read the full press release here.

Future Quest Island-Explorations is a free online game-based curriculum that promotes college and career awareness, SEL, and self-concept for 3^rd to 5^thgraders. Program developers are currently enrolling schools in a study to test its effectiveness and get recommendations for program improvements. Participants receive early access to the game, coaching on using it in the classroom, and a gift card. Interested? Fill out this form to learn more. 

Understanding the Differences: Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Competence Assessment and Social, Emotional, and Behavioral (SEB) Screening and Assessment Document (scroll down on the linked page to find this resource)

This document is intended to assist school professionals in differentiating between Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Competency Assessment, Universal Social, Emotional, and Behavioral (SEB) screening, and more targeted SEB assessment. This document provides some basic information relating to screening and assessment, with a selection of additional resources linked at the end to support the comprehensive planning necessary to implement effective practices.

 

Don’t forget other resources from my team on implementing comprehensive school mental health including:

• The SSPW Mental Health E-Learning page
• Referral Pathways Guidance - Referral pathways are formalized processes for identifying and connecting students to needed mental health supports.
• Mental Health Screening Resource Guide.
• MH Stigma Reduction Toolkit

New School Social Work Resource Sharing Sessions - DPI

This is an opportunity geared towards individuals new or fairly new, to the field of school social work - all school social workers are welcome. Drop in to chat about resources available through DPI, ask practice questions, and get support from the state’s school social work consultant and special guests. General session topics are provided, however discussions may stray from the topic. This is not a training and does not supplant coursework from a university program, but instead it is another place to ask questions and learn about state and national resources. 

These sessions are drop-in and no registration is needed. Visit this page to find links for the virtual sessions and more information.

Cost: Free

Time: 11:30-12:30 pm

Dates and Starting Topics:

• Thurs., Aug 26 - NASW Standards, SSWAA Practice Model, State and National Associations 
• Wed. Sept. 22 - Pupil Records, Sharing Information, and HIPAA v FERPA
• Wed. Oct. 20 - Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems Framework, MLSS, PBIS, risk assessment
• Tues. Nov 23 - Special Education, EBD, Related Services, social histories
• Wed. Dec. 15 - Attendance/Truancy
• Wed. Jan 19 - ESSA - Supporting students in Out-of-Home Care & working with child welfare, Cultural Responsiveness, LGBTQ+
• Thurs. Feb. 17 - Trauma Sensitive Schools, Social and Emotional Learning, Self Care & Compassion
• Wed. March 16 -Understanding the roles of School Counselors and School Psychologists
• Wed. April 20 - Reducing and Responding to Sexual Violence, Title IX, Child Abuse, protective behaviors, anti-human trafficking

The Wisconsin Center for Resilient Schools (WCRS) is collaborating virtually with district and school teams. Our unique location within the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction and the Wisconsin Safe and Healthy Schools Center allows us to help teams navigate the many high-quality resources available across the state and nationally. The center supports teams to bring comprehensive school mental health and trauma sensitive, Social Emotional Learning (SEL) to full-scale implementation. Coaching is a relationship and through a partnership with WCRS we can support your team with reflection, growth, and refining structures and practices to shape beliefs and culture toward the vision in your school or district for optimal student outcomes. Our center in collaboration with districts and schools builds on the strengths inherent in your system to take it from good to great! 

This FREE resource is open to all public, private, charter, and tribal schools in the state of Wisconsin. For additional information please visit our website. If interested in exploring a partnership with the WCRS, please fill out this Inquiry Form.

School Social Work Association of America (SSWAA) Members are able to apply for National Certification TM through a self-paced portfolio process. An orientation will be provided to new registrants monthly and applicants should complete the process in one year. National Certification will be good for 3 years with a re-certification process required at that time. To maintain National Certification, holders are expected to keep active membership status at the full or premiere level with SSWAA and fulfill ongoing CEU requirements in their applicable state.

 

Click here to learn more.

The Emergency Broadband Benefit will provide a discount of up to $50 per month towards broadband service for eligible households and up to $75 per month for households on qualifying Tribal lands. Eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers if they contribute more than $10 and less than $50 toward the purchase price. The Emergency Broadband Benefit is limited to one monthly service discount and one device discount per household.

 

For more information please see FCC webpage at https://www.fcc.gov/broadbandbenefit 

SSW Trish Kilpin Joins State Superintendent-Elect Underly's Transition Team

Trish Kilpin, school social worker at Greendale School District since 1991, is also one of five 2021 WI Educator of the Year recipients, and was 1997 SSW of the Year.  She created a mental health toolkit for caregivers and also teaches crisis response and preparedness at the local, state, and national level. Congrats Trish! Learn more about the transition here: https://dpi-transition.wi.gov/Pages/Home.aspx

Introducing New Affinity Group for BIPOC SSWs

We are excited to announce the formation of our Social Workers of Color Affinity Group.  Affinity groups provide an opportunity for people with shared identities to come together in a safe and welcoming space. Participation in this group is limited to social workers who identify as a POC (person of color) or BIPOC (Black/Indigenous/Person of Color).

To help us better meet the needs of the group participants, WSSWA is gathering information about potential interest in an affinity group for School Social Workers who identify as POC/BIPOC.

If you are interested in participating, please take a few moments to answer this quick survey to let us know how to make the group meet your needs: 

http://bit.ly/wsswa-affinitygroup. 

We will share specific meeting dates at a future time.

Thank you!

Nicole Berry, WSSWA Membership Chair

Alex Schirmacher, WSSWA Treasurer