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Colorism is a salient aspect of race in the knowledge construction and preparation of teachers across the globe. This paper reports the findings of a study that investigated attitudes and experiences of colorism among preservice teachers of color, including their own levels of implicit skin tone bias, and implications for their teaching practice. The results revealed that family background greatly influenced participant understanding and attitudes towards colorism. The results also demonstrated similar experiences across racial groups, highlighting the cross cutting and intercultural nature of colorism. Lastly, intersectionality contributed to participants ability to critically explain how colorism manifests in teaching practices. Implications for policy and practice efforts are discussed.

In this conceptual article, the authors identify the current state of racial disproportionality in U.S. public schools and the ethical call for school social workers to engage in anti-racist practice. Using the ecosystems perspective, a familiar perspective for school social work, the authors present a model for addressing racial climate gaps for students of color in school. Racial gaps are often unaddressed in investigations of school climate. Thus, the explicit focus on race within the school climate is an appropriate target for anti-racist school social work practice. Implications for school social work practice, education, and research are discussed.

The Implicit Association Test (IAT) developed by Harvard University has been utilized in teacher preparation for cultural competence. Various versions of the IAT including race and gender based versions are used to raise awareness of student bias and its influences on teaching practice. Through a qualitative exploratory case study, this article introduces the Skin Tone IAT as another meaningful tool for guiding student teachers through an exploration of colorism and implicit skin tone bias. Results demonstrate participants' increased awareness of their own implicit bias. Implications for teaching practice and other helping professions, research, and pedagogy are explored.

Multitiered systems of support (MTSS) is an effective model for identifying students at risk for academic failure as well as behavioral concerns (excesses and deficits) that impede classroom success. Over the years, researchers have investigated the positive effects of the MTSS model on behavioral needs of students; however, to date the research has not focused on the need for embedding trauma-informed practices into the MTSS tiers. This article fills a void in the research by providing a framework for a trauma-informed MTSS (TIMTSS) model and a case study implementing this model. Specifically, it describes the scope, sequence, assessments, interventions, and staff roles across each tier as utilized in the pilot study. The success of this TI-MTSS model and lessons learned in this urban setting conclude the article along with suggestions for future research in other settings.

As a result of the health and safety concerns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, in Spring 2020 social work programs nationwide were required to make significant shifts in their instructional methods and field placements. These changes often resulted in faculty members taking on new or additional responsibilities related to teaching and field. This work explores the experiences of full time faculty members from the 18 accredited Masters of Social Work (MSW) programs in Texas. Sixty faculty members completed an online survey about changes to their teaching and field related responsibilities during COVID-19. Results indicate that non-tenure track faculty were most acutely impacted by these changes, leading to significant increases in both teaching and field responsibilities relative to their tenure track peers. Additionally, faculty working at private institutions reported less of an impact on their workload than those working at public institutions. These results underscore the importance of supporting non-tenure track faculty, who are often women and from racial/ethnic groups historically underrepresented in academia, who are afforded less job security and employment related benefits, as they continue to take on additional responsibilities essential to the continued operation of MSW programs. Implications for future research and social work education are discussed.

Structural racism--implicitly discriminatory practices and policies that have negative consequences for individuals and groups of color--is a powerful force in contemporary American society, including in our public education system. This article explores the potential for school social workers (SSWers) to address structural racism through the use of the national school social work (SSW) practice model as a tool to guide systemic, ecologically oriented intervention within schools and educational policy spaces. In this article, the authors review data on racial disparities in educational attainment, placement, opportunity, and discipline practices that have led to increased attention to structural racism in schools. They then discuss and describe the national SSW practice model and its suitability for the structural interventions in response to structural racism in schools. Finally, they provide recommendations for how SSWers can respond effectively to this pressing social problem. These recommendations include a list of resources for addressing structural racism.

With more than six thousand charter schools in the United States, charter school outcomes are a growing field of study within the broad discipline of education and specifically within school social work. However, there is little research to document the demographic and clinical characteristics of social workers in charter schools. The current study will examine demographic and practice characteristics of school social workers (n = 298) in one state and compare three school types: traditional public schools, charter schools, and takeover schools. Results from the cross-tabulation analysis demonstrate that both demographics and practice tasks vary according to school type. Implications for practice and research will be discussed.

This article examines the intersection of race, socioeconomic status (SES), and charter type/admission practices in Louisiana charter schools. This study used publicly available Department of Education data to compile the sample of charter school demographic information. A one-way Multiple Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) was conducted using race and socioeconomic status as dependent variables and charter type and admission practice as the independent variables. Findings suggest that there are significant differences in African American student enrollment and enrollment of low income students, particularly for Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) start-ups/conversions and forced conversions/Recovery School District (RSD) charters when compared to all other types. This is also true when comparing selective versus open enrollment charters. Results reveal a higher enrollment pattern of African American and low income students in BESE start-ups/conversions and forced conversion charters (Types 2 and 5) than in local school board start-ups and conversions (Types 1, 3, and 4). This indicates that race and SES are a function of charter type in Louisiana, which adds context to the charter school debate on enrollment patterns.

Colorism and historical trauma are part of the lived experiences of many racialized and marginalized groups. However, few studies have examined the meaning and function of colorism and historical trauma among clinical social workers and how prepared they feel to support healing from these experiences in their practice and lives. To address this gap, 42 clinicians of diverse racial, ethnic, gender, and regional identities from the United States were surveyed, of which 35 were interviewed, to explore their experiences of colorism, historical trauma, healing, and clinical social work education. Key themes will be presented: 1) Invisibilized healing & wounds: Black, Asian, mixed race, Latine, and people of color (POC) clinicians identified a need to heal personally from intrafamilial and societal experiences of historical trauma and colorist microaggressions, 2) Closing the gaps in clinical education, and 3) Clinical supervision as a compounded barrier or stepping stone. Implications for decolonial clinical social work education and practice will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By using a sample of actual police victims, the current study provides a realistic exploration of the relationship between skin tone and police killings. The guiding research questions for this study were as follows: What, if any, are the patterns based on skin tone in police killings of unarmed Black people? What, if any, are the patterns of skin tone, gender, age, and urbanicity in relation to police killings of unarmed Black people? The results of the current study indicate a need for further research into the effect of colorism as a stereotype-driven bias in police killings. The sample had a higher percentage of dark brown victims of police killings, suggesting that relative darkness of skin tone could increase the likelihood of being shot and killed by police while unarmed. The suggestion that darker-skinned Black people are even more likely to be killed by police while unarmed adds a provocative argument supporting the need to remain focused on colorism when analyzing deaths of people at the hands of police., Although communities of color have long been aware of ongoing violence towards Black Americans by police, Americans outside these communities were much less aware of this violence until recently. The [...]

Positive permanency, or leaving foster care to a permanent family setting, is a priority for children in care. Yet, there are barriers to achieving permanency, particularly among children of color. This study examined child and state factors that impacted permanency outcomes, with a particular focus on racial disparities. The researchers utilized a sample of n = 208,742 children who entered care in 2016 from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS). A series of multi-level survival analyses were conducted to examine child and state system factors associated with positive permanency, with a focus on child race/ethnicity and state disparity indexes. Results confirmed ongoing disparities for Black, American Indian, Hispanic, Pacific Islander, and Multi-Racial children in care. Implications for practice, policy, and future research are explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the relationship between internalizing behaviors (measured as anxious/depressed, withdrawn, and somatic problems) and lifestyle-related, modifiable factors as substance use, sleep, and healthy behaviors in a sample of 191 college students in training for social work and other helping professions. The results indicate that participants with lower scores on internalizing behaviors had fewer sleep disturbances, higher scores on healthy behaviors and lower substance use. The implications for social work education, research, and practice are considered, including exploring the relationships between internalizing behaviors and different components of a healthy lifestyle, such as exercise, sleep, and substance use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the article, the authors discuss a practical guide to empower school leaders, mental health professionals, and parents in implementing responsive reopening of schools in areas affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Other topics include the need for school districts to balance educational goals and student well-being, and the learning challenges faced by students, schools and parents during the pandemic.

Summary: An evolution of thought and practice regarding the relationship of racism to well-being, healing, and trauma continues within social work and the helping professions. Additionally, empirical research on colorism as a key dimension of racism suggests that colorism negatively impacts the psychological and physical well-being of African Americans. However, few studies have examined well-being among African Americans in the context of historical trauma, through the lens of colorism. In this paper, the intersectionality of colorism and historical trauma is explored to inform culturally responsive social work education, practice, and research regarding African American well-being. It is the first step toward developing a colorist-historical trauma framework. The impact of colorism as a function of historical trauma response transmission among African Americans is presented. Findings: Advances in culturally responsive practice in social work address the impact of social determinants of health, such as racism. However, the impact of colorism within systemic racism is often unacknowledged. The authors assert that social work practice must attune to the differentiated socioemotional, political, and economic needs that exist among African Americans due to the impact of colorism and historical trauma. An intersectional lens, such as the colorist-historical trauma framework, is essential for culturally responsive practice. Applications: The colorist-historical trauma framework contributes to the professional social work discourse aimed at strengthening effective micro-, meso-, and macro-level practice with African Americans for well-being. Implications for social work practice, research, and education are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The social work profession has thoroughly engaged the concepts of racism and discrimination throughout history and now explores the growing concept of racial microaggressions in understanding the life experiences of minority communities. Even the burgeoning study of microaggressions, however, overlooks the impact of colorism as a microaggression. Through a literature review, the authors evaluate current literature viewing colorism through the framework of microaggressions and discuss the effects of colorist microaggressions on minority populations. The authors also offer an analysis of where the field of social work stands in addressing colorism and colorist microaggressions in education, practice, and scholarship. The final ten sources included in the study offer specific implications for social work research, education, and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stress is a significant contributor to disease and often worsens pre-existing conditions. Little research to date has focused on stress and coping in black families, particularly black women. The present study examined how self-esteem affects family coping and problem solving among mothers and daughters (N = 119). Results indicate that black mothers had significantly higher amounts of self-esteem than did daughters, potentially signifying that many issues that reduce self-esteem have been resolved for mothers, whereas daughters might still be dealing with issues that lower their self-esteem. Black mothers scored significantly lower than their daughters on perception of ability to solve problems, suggesting that black daughters might still be facing issues that they are actively using problem-solving skills to address. A significant difference between mothers and daughters on the amount of stress they experienced further supports the intergenerational nature of stress, problem solving, and lower self-esteem in the sample of daughters. The results suggest that black women with spouses or domestic partners are better able to adapt to stress than those who are not in partnerships or married. This study provides a more in-depth understanding of intergenerational family processes related to stress and coping among black women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author discusses problems in school settings that can be ameliorated through the use of scientific approaches. Topics covered include individual risk factors for problem behaviors, disparities based on race or ethnicity and urbanity status, and how the 2011 National Prevention Strategy can reduce disparities.

This is a reflective narrative regarding the work that I did with a colleague on issues of race and violence. In my macro practice regarding such tenuous issues, it is imperative to include the micro aspect of work with individuals. This article provides an example of using self-assessment of individuals during a workshop with a macro focus that can be replicated by others involved in this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]