One of Jefferson's most significant features is the web of social and emotional support provided through its counselors, the social worker, the principal, and the teachers. This attitude, one of kindness and respect, is often expressed in the attention by staff to the details of students' lives.

For example, the social worker is able to provide glasses for students through a local service organization, but, according to students, the glasses provided were "really geeky." When they saw that the students were self-conscious about their "free" glasses, social workers used their own money and worked with a local optician so students now have glasses that don't "mark them as charity cases," says the social worker. She also has a PTSA fund to help students buy clothes when needed, replace a worn book bag, or otherwise help with the other details of dress and grooming so important to young teenagers. The need for such a fund became clear solely through informal conversations - another indication of how committed the school is to the students' needs.

Extra Help for Foster Kid

Another of the school social worker's initiatives is a focus on children from foster homes. As part of a university study, 8 of 10 students identified as being from foster homes took part in focus groups with the social worker, regarding student relationships in and out of school. Meetings were also held with interested teachers and foster parents. From the focus groups, the social worker concluded that foster children face "many things they are not developmentally ready for." Two major decisions resulted: The students wanted to continue to meet as a support group, and each student needed a teacher-mentor. Noting that these students had been disproportionately represented in discipline referrals, the teachers and social worker decided that the first stop in the referral process would be the social worker's office. Here, the student's anger and frustration may be expressed, understood, and dissipated without going any further in the discipline process. So far, these interventions are working well. The social worker was horrified to learn that the foster children's birthdays frequently were not celebrated in their foster homes, although the birthdays of the "natural" children were. As a result, a party is held for each foster child's birthday in the social worker's office.

Dev. Responsiveness - NEXT

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