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Adolescent suicide is a public health issue with 15 percent of adolescents experiencing the suicide loss of a classmate, acquaintance, or friend. This article reports findings from an online survey of individuals (N = 40) who lost a peer to suicide in middle or high school. The most frequently provided school-based postvention responses were school counselors, outside grief counselors, education on depression and suicide, and assemblies. Participants identified the following student needs from schools following a student suicide death: genuineness and sincerity of response, easy-to-access supports, recognition that students need help and support, awareness that students have different needs following a death, opportunities for commemoration, and flexibility in terms of academic requirements and expectations. Implications for schools are discussed, including the importance of resources for teachers and other staff supporting students, a trauma-informed response, and the careful consideration of the balance of suicide prevention and grief. Most important, it is essential for schools to recognize the magnitude of the impact of a suicide death on students, and that students need help and support from the school.

Schools have an important role to play in adolescent suicide prevention. This article describes universal screenings for depression and suicidality as one component of the Signs of Suicide (SOS) program in middle and high schools following the suicide death of a student in the past few years. Of the students screened (N = 7,429), 11.0 percent of youth were identified as at risk by the screening tool; 17.3 percent received a same-day secondary screen with a mental health professional. (Students without an at-risk screen could request a meeting with a mental health professional, so more students received secondary screenings than screened at risk.) Characteristics associated with an at-risk screen on the screening tool were identified. Girls were twice as likely to be identified as at risk than boys, and students exposed to a suicide death in the past year were 1.3 times more likely to have an at-risk screen. There was no difference in at-risk screens for middle versus high school students, but middle schoolers were more likely to receive a secondary screening due to help seeking from school staff. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications for school administrators at middle and high schools, including recommendations to screen with both a screening tool and an option to speak to an adult, strategies for planning for secondary screenings, and advantages to universal screening following the suicide death of a student.

Women in many fields have described challenges during their doctoral work due to pregnancy and parenting, but no research has explored these issues within social work education. This cross-sectional survey describes pregnant and parenting female students' (N=75) experiences in social work doctoral education. Participants identified challenges in finding balance between family and academic responsibilities, a lack of supports and resources for pregnant and parenting students, decreased productivity, and less access to professional development opportunities due to pregnancy or parenting. While many received informal support from faculty, chairs, and mentors, few had access to accommodations, like parental leave, official lactation spaces, and childcare and some described implicit bias and stigma against caregiving. Implications for social work doctoral programs conclude the article.

Suicide is a major public health issue in the United States and schools of social work have an important role to play in educating future social workers in suicide prevention. This article describes the results of a survey of BSW and MSW practice instructors (N = 259) exploring the strategies used to teach suicide content, including resources used to support their teaching and assignments to evaluate student competency with suicide prevention knowledge and skills. Most instructors (74.1%) use written resources such as practice textbooks and journal articles to support their teaching, although there are some differences between the practices of BSW versus MSW instructors. Fewer (34.0%) used an assessment of student competency working with clients with suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Implications for social work practice instructors are described, including the need to stay current on best practices in suicide assessment and intervention, expand the use of written resources for diverse groups, the use of culture in suicide assessment, maintaining up-to-date, current resources for students, and developing assignments which can effectively evaluate student competency and skill working with clients with suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

Using Acker's theory of gendered organizations, this study explored the experiences of pregnant doctoral students, the organizational processes that influenced their experiences, and the ways students perceived pregnancy impacting career development and trajectory, if at all. Using a mixed methods survey of women who were pregnant during their doctoral program (n = 733), the study found that 52% of participants reported that being pregnant as a doctoral student impacted their academic career. Participants identified the following themes as challenges with being a pregnant doctoral student: negative interpersonal interactions; decreased productivity; organizational policies, procedures, and supports; fewer professional development opportunities; and the emotional impact of being pregnant as a doctoral student. These findings illustrate the ways that organizational processes sustain gender inequities in doctoral programs by decreasing professional development opportunities, negatively impacting mentoring relationships, and causing emotional distress. Policy and practice implications for programs and universities are discussed.

Self-care is an essential social work practice skill that should be taught in social work courses. This teaching note describes the evaluation of an assignment for BSW students (N=48) designed to teach self-care skills. The purpose of this project was to 1) understand students' conceptualization of self-care and 2) determine if this assignment expanded the breadth and depth of students' understanding and practice of self-care. These goals were accomplished through an analysis of students' self-care strategies, using a priori self-care domains, and a thematic analysis of responses to open-ended questions about learning. The most common self-care strategies focused on emotional (43.3%), relational (34.9%), and physical (22.5%) well-being. Learning themes included understanding self-care, awareness of personal self-care, and strategies to use learning in the future. Implications for social work programs include emphasizing the intentionality of self-care, clarifying the scope of self-care, considering negative coping, and facilitating the development of self-care practices.

This survey of BSW students (N=909) reports on their experiences with microaggressions in their social work education. About one third (31.8%) of participants reported experiencing a microaggression committed by a social work faculty member. A relationship was found between experiencing a microaggression and participants' social identities, specifically gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, disability or ability, and region of the United States where they were raised. Qualitative data describing the microaggressions revealed 6 themes about the instructor's behavior: devalues, discriminates, or stereotypes; only accepts some viewpoints and shuts down diverse perspectives; makes assumptions about the student's background; uses the instructor's position to further an agenda or opinion or fails to intervene; refuses to acknowledge diverse identities in the classroom; and omits curricular content on some social identities. Implications for social work education and recommendations to prevent, reduce, and address microaggressions in social work education are identified and discussed.

The social work profession is grounded in social justice, and yet, social work education can perpetuate dynamics of oppression and privilege present in the larger society. As a result, students may experience microaggressions during their training. In this national survey of BSW students (N = 795), 24.9% witnessed a microaggression by a social work instructor. Students who noticed microaggressions were more likely to have experienced a microaggression themselves. They also were more likely to have a disability or identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. A qualitative analysis showed that most microaggressions occurred when an instructor dismissed or devalued students' backgrounds. Implications for encouraging social work students to become "upstander"s are discussed.

In March 2020, the federal government declared a national emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In accordance with public health guidelines, social work programs rapidly decided whether students could continue, modify, or suspend their field placements. The current study (N = 1,522) describes these events from the perspective of Bachelor of Social Work (n = 632) and Master of Social Work students (n = 890). Data were collected through a nationwide survey administered in March and early April 2020. The findings include students' experiences with remote service delivery and abrupt terminations, and their insight into the role of social work in an unprecedented crisis. Implications for social work education include the need for contingency and continuity planning, and the importance of emotionally supporting students.

In March 2020, a national emergency was declared due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In accordance with public health guidelines, social work programs rapidly responded by moving their courses online and modifying or ending field placements. The current study (N = 1,522) describes these responses from the perspective of BSW (n = 632) and MSW (n = 890) students who were enrolled in field placements. Data were collected through a nationwide survey administered in the month after the national emergency was declared. The findings focus on students' increased needs during this time period, as well as their perceptions of programmatic responses to the pandemic. Participants described the ways in which their programs offered academic and personal support, and the areas in which they wished programs provided more help. Implications for social work education include the need for strong outreach and communication, emotional support of students, and adjustments to programmatic requirements in response to a crisis.

This teaching note describes the use of anonymous, online, graded, peer review in an undergraduate social work human behavior in the social environment writing-intensive course. Students (N=37) provided written feedback describing their learning from writing and receiving peer reviews. Students identified learning from receiving the peer reviews, improving their writing through the identification of their own common writing errors, and developing a better understanding of the writing process, as well as learning gained from writing peer reviews, including learning from viewing others' writing assignments and developing the ability to provide feedback to peers that is both supportive and constructive. Implications for social work instructors are described, including grading peer reviews, providing guidelines for peer reviewing, being transparent about the perceived benefits of peer reviewing for students, and using online course technology to complete peer reviews outside of class, decreasing the amount of in-class time required.

Female doctoral students with children face significant barriers to successful program completion, leaving programs at higher rates than students without children. This qualitative study (N=28) explored female doctoral students' experiences with institutional and programmatic supports during their pregnancy and transition to parenthood within social work (n=16) and other professional health care fields (n=12). Results highlight the availability of specific formal supports such as leave of absence, lactation space, and childcare as important. Due to a lack of formal supports, many used informal supports. Finally, recommendations for doctoral programs are provided. Addressing the needs of parenting students may result in beneficial outcomes for both students and institutions by increasing opportunities for academic success and lowering attrition rates.

In the United States, suicide rates have risen 30% from 1999 to 2016. To decrease suicide rates, mental health professionals must use best practices to assess, manage, and intervene with clients with suicidal thoughts and behaviors. This qualitative research study (N = 60) interviewed participants of a one-day continuing education training titled Suicide Assessment and Intervention Training for Mental Health Professionals (SAIT) to explore if and how they changed their practice as a result of the training. Most participants (N = 54) described changes in practice. The major themes involved conversations about suicide, responses to client disclosure of suicidal thoughts and behaviors, and relationships with clients.

This descriptive study used a mixed-methods approach to explore social work dissertation committee chairs' (N = 150) conceptualizations of their role including their understanding of successful relationships, perceptions, and experiences with the scope of the role. Most chairs had no formal training and learned through their own experiences as students and committee members. The majority believed the chair role included academic support but disagreed on whether the role should include psychosocial support (e.g., self-care, physical, mental health) and family support (e.g., pregnancy, parenting, family issues). Qualitative data provided further details and examples of how chairs learned or prepared for their role, conceptualized their role, and defined successful and challenging relationships and the scope of their role. Implications for social work education including strengthening training for chairs and supports for chairs and students are discussed.

In 2012, the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention recommended more education in suicide prevention for mental health professionals. This study of social work instructors (N = 225) explored attitudes, beliefs, and feelings toward teaching suicide content in practice courses; the content covered; barriers to teaching about suicide; and desired supports. Overall, instructors were confident and perceived themselves as knowledgeable, teaching primarily assessment, crisis intervention, and safety planning. However, some instructors described teaching outdated material (e.g., "no suicide" contracts) and some best practices were sparsely covered. Recommendations are presented here, including increasing training opportunities and creating materials and guidelines to support instructors teaching this content.

Mentorship is an important component of doctoral program success, providing socialization to the profession and academia, professional development, and psychosocial support. For women in particular, mentoring increases feelings of preparedness, self-esteem, and rates of program completion. Within a gendered institution like academia, which does not support work-life balance, women who experience pregnancy and become parents during their doctoral program may need their mentor to take on different or additional roles. This qualitative study (n = 28) examined the perspectives of doctoral students on the role of mentorship during a pregnancy and transition to motherhood in their health care-related doctoral program. Participants identified the critical impact of mentoring through role modeling, guidance, and psychosocial support. Implications for effective mentorship of pregnant students for mentors and doctoral programs are discussed.

Adolescent suicide rates are rising, particularly for adolescent girls, and increasing numbers of adolescents experience the suicide of a classmate, peer, or friend. School social workers can play an important role in suicide prevention with this age group. This article will describe one agency's experiences conducting universal screenings in schools in thirteen communities in the Northeast United States as a component of an organized postvention plan following student suicide deaths. These communities ranged from urban areas to affluent suburban communities. Students (N = 9,984) were screened in middle schools, junior high schools, and high schools. Of the students screened, 12.6 percent screened positive. These students were more likely to be female (67.2%) and not currently receiving treatment (57.6%). The agency's experiences will be described, including barriers and strategies for working with school staff, administrators, teachers, and parents; lessons learned; and recommendations for school screenings.

Doctoral program attrition is a significant issue, with 50% of doctoral students leaving their program before completion. Personal life events, such as marriage and children, are risk factors for attrition, but little research has focused on factors that positively affect persistence and success through these life events. In a nationwide survey project, individuals who had been pregnant during their doctoral program in the United States (n=626) suggested strategies and approaches that pregnant students could implement to support continued success in doctoral education, highlighting the voices of those with lived experience with doctoral education and pregnancy. Thematic analysis identified four primary themes in the responses: the creation of systems that support success, the need for clear expectations, the importance of productivity, and the feasibility of success. Implications for doctoral programs and social work educators include the need to identify ways that programs can activity support students through pregnancy, remain informed about supports and accommodations for pregnant students, and consider options to allow for a slow-down in productivity without penalty to the student. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A dissertation demonstrates a doctoral candidate's knowledge of a content area, mastery of research methodology, and readiness for future scholarship. Doctoral candidates, social work programs, and the profession as a whole are invested in ensuring that candidates successfully complete dissertations and enter academic, research, and leadership positions. This strengths-based study offers the wisdom of recent social work doctoral graduates (N = 196). Data were collected by an online survey and analyzed through thematic analysis. Findings described sources of support, managing a project of this scope, considerations in study design, and effective research attitudes and behaviors. Implications for social work education are discussed.

Although statistics and research are key components of social work education, students are often described as reluctant consumers and users of statistics. Self-efficacy theory has been used to understand students' engagement with the statistical knowledge needed for practice. This quantitative study explores the relationship between self-efficacy, self-reported ability, and demonstrated statistical knowledge among MSW students (N = 101). There was a weak positive relationship between self-efficacy and the ability to apply statistics, but self-efficacy was not associated with perceived or demonstrated ability to define statistical concepts. Although many students demonstrated a strong ability to define statistical concepts, the majority of students were unable to apply the concepts to a practice-based example. The implications for competency-based statistical instruction are discussed.

Suicide is a major public health issue worldwide, with approximately 46,000 individuals dying by suicide each year in the United States alone. To prepare a mental health workforce to work effectively with individuals with suicidal thoughts and behaviors, schools of social work must teach students to use evidence-based practices for suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention. This descriptive study includes undergraduate and graduate practice instructors (N = 267) at accredited American colleges and universities. Participants described their level of knowledge about 21 suicide competencies (e.g. safety planning, evidence-based interventions, means safety conversations) and then completed a survey of evidence-based practices in suicide prevention. While high levels of perceived knowledge were found in some areas, there were differences between undergraduate and graduate instructors perceived knowledge, and knowledge levels were low in areas such as culture, working with loss survivors, and means safety. Knowledge of evidence-based practices was inconsistent, with as many as half endorsing several non-evidence-based practices. Implications for schools of social work are discussed, including the need for increased leadership in suicide prevention from national social work organizations, more support for practice instructors to teach suicide content, and an increased focus on suicide postvention skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although suicide has been identified as a major public health issue in the United States, social work education has not yet clearly determined its role in suicide prevention. There has been a dearth of research on suicide content and education within social work programs, particularly baccalaureate programs. This teaching note presents the result of a cross-sectional survey of social work practice instructors (N=289) from Bachelor of Social Work (46.7%) and Master of Social Work (53.3%) programs. Almost all participants (87.5%) include suicide content in some of their practice courses. Teaching practices about suicide in suicide education are described, including frequency that topics and competencies are taught, factors affecting the inclusion of suicide content in the classroom, and instructors' perceptions of student competence on completion of the course. Implications for social work education are identified, including the need to increase continuing education for practice instructors, and to expand coverage of some topics, such as evidence-based practices, and the role of culture in suicide assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historically, graduate training programs have not taught suicide assessment and intervention skills in depth; therefore, the development of effective continuing education offerings is relevant and necessary for practicing social workers. Although the ability to increase knowledge and confidence is critical, a focus on competency-based education demands that training participants also incorporate the new skills into practice. This study evaluates a 6 hour continuing education program on suicide assessment and intervention. A one-group, pretest/posttest/3-month follow-up design assessed changes in knowledge and confidence as well as participants' self-reported integration of knowledge and skills into their practice. Implications for continuing education programs on suicide assessment and intervention are discussed.

Many social work students feel anxious when taking a statistics course. Their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors after learning statistics are less known. However, such information could help instructors support students' ongoing development of statistical knowledge. With a sample of MSW students (N = 101) in one program, this study examined students' feelings of anxiety and confidence, beliefs about the relevance of statistics to their education and practice, and the relationship of these attitudes and beliefs to their actual statistical competence. The findings indicate that repeated exposure to statistics supports the development of statistical competence, particularly in relevant applied contexts like field education.

Fifteen percent of adolescents lose a peer to suicide. Suicide exposure elevates an adolescent’s risk of depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and suicidality. After a death, schools are faced with the task of supporting students’ grief while simultaneously preventing adverse outcomes, including suicide. Although social media is an integral component of modern adolescent life, little is known about its impact on suicide loss survivors. This mixed-methods study (N = 34) explored adolescents’ perspectives on the role of social media following a peer’s suicide death. Thematic analysis identified four themes related to social media: communication about the death, commemoration of the deceased, support and comfort, and the cause of additional challenges. Implications for schools and clinicians include the need for safe messaging, responsive communication, and education about suicide grief and self-care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women enter doctoral programs at higher numbers than ever before, earning half the doctoral degrees in the United States. Some women doctoral students experience pregnancy and parenthood during their studies. As infertility and pregnancy loss are common occurrences, likely many women doctoral students encountered these reproductive challenges as well. This research study (N = 328) explores the experiences of women doctoral students who experience infertility, fertility treatment, and pregnancy loss. Participants described the influence of these experiences on their doctoral education, productivity, and professional development, the institutional resources available to support them, and the gaps in supports. Women who accessed fertility treatment reported more of an impact on productivity and more desired institutional supports than those who experienced infertility without treatment or pregnancy loss. The implications of these findings are discussed, including the use of the mentoring relationship to support women doctoral students, the role of grief, and the creation of formal institutional policies that explicitly address these types of circumstances, allowing for accommodations such as flexibility and class absences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youth suicide is a critical public health issue. School-based suicide prevention programs are one strategy to address youth suicide. This research study explores students' (N = 2,806) perspectives on the SOS Signs of Suicide program, a school-based suicide prevention program for youth in grades six through twelve that includes education and screening. Most youth supported the implementation of SOS (84.2%) and universal screening (86.3%) by the school and reported that they did not experience increased stress and/or anxiety (90.3%) or sadness (93.8%) because of the screening process. Feedback on the SOS process was generally positive (80%), with some youth (20.7%) offering constructive feedback directed toward improvement of the program. A small number of youth (0.9%) had negative experiences but screening was viewed positively by most youth, with 55.5 percent feeling generally positive about the experience; 9.5 percent describing it as simple and easy; and 9.2 percent identifying it as educational, sparking insight and reflection. Some youth (6.2%) offered critical feedback on the screening process, and a few (3.7%) said that it evoked negative feelings, describing it as uncomfortable or scary. Students who were identified as at risk were more likely to experience the screening process as stressful, provoking anxiety or sadness. Implications for school administrators who are considering implementing SOS and universal screening, as well as for mental health professionals supporting the SOS program, are identified and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social work students need to develop skills to respond to microaggressions targeting people from marginalized social identity groups. In this qualitative study, BSW students and recent graduates (N=20) were presented with 10 five vignettes based on real-life examples from social work classrooms. Through semi-structured interviews, students shared their perspectives about whether, and how, each situation should be addressed by witnesses. Interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. Themes included the ethical obligation to intervene, confidence, allyship, the value of self-advocacy, and the effect on the targeted students. Primary themes about intervention included address politely, call out instructor, do nothing, check in with the student, and advocate with administrators. Implications for supporting students' awareness and skills in responding to microaggressions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Suicide is a major public health issue in the United States, but it is unknown how many social work programs have courses specializing in this topic. The purpose of this study was to establish baseline knowledge of suicide-focused course offerings in social work programs in the United States. A survey of CSWE-accredited programs (n=151) in the United States was used to collect data on social work programs' suicide content in their curricula at three levels: baccalaureate, graduate, and continuing education. While only 6% of programs offered a required course on suicide, 13.9% offered an elective focused on suicide, and courses with substantial suicide content were available in 25.2% of programs. Continuing education offerings with a focus on suicide were present at 26.5% of programs. The implications for social work education are discussed, including the need for more courses specializing in suicide, especially within MSW programs, and for future research to better understand the factors which limit the development of such courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]