Marie Weil

Practice with Culturally Diverse Families of Young Children with Disabilities

Young children from racial minority groups are at higher risk for disabilities and developmental delay as a result of conditions associated with poverty. The authors discuss principles that guide culturally competent practice with families of infants and toddlers with disabilities and ways in which family-centered practice approaches incorporate these guidelines. Practitioner strategies for developing cultural competence in order to work responsively with this diverse population are presented.

Voice and Community in the Corporate Academy: A Collective Biography

This article is the story of the simultaneous feminization and corporatization of universities, themes that emerged in a test of a collective biography, a qualitative research method. Organizers brought together 12 macro social work academic women across generations and, through sampling, attempted to avoid the intergenerational splitting that seems to be leaving junior faculty to be socialized by administrators while simultaneously isolating senior faculty from their generative role. Our analysis identified several trends developed from our collective experiences including changes in faculty governance, formalized mentoring, intergenerational faculty relationships, and shifting expectations. With these changes, we sense a reduction in what we used to think of as a collegium, now in danger of becoming an historical artifact.

P.L. 99-457

In 1986, Congress amended the Education of the Handicapped Act (Public Law [P.L.] 94-142) and authorized an early intervention program under that act for disabled infants and toddlers and their families. This legislation, P.L. 99-457, Part H, changed the kinds of services that infants and toddlers with disabilities—or those at risk—and their families would receive. The authors report the findings from a survey that examined the extent to which master of social work programs prepare students to work with this population. Based on the survey findings, they suggest that, for social workers to respond effectively to the mandates of P.L. 99-457, Part H, graduate social work programs must address personnel preparation issues, such as the gaps in content on this population in both the core and elective curricula; specialization with this population, lack of student interest; curriculum flexibility, and training monies; and need for additional training materials.

Reclaiming and Reimagining Macro Social Work Education: A Collective Biography

ABSTRACT The authors focus on a collective biography of 12 women social work educators, all either tenured or in tenure lines, from five different universities at the time of the study. The participants represent several aspects of macro practice including administration, planning, community practice, and policy. Beginning with reflections about coming into macro practice, we highlight memories about first teaching experiences and examine cultural shifts discovered in our academic journeys. We feature students who inspired us and perceptions of challenges in curricular development affecting the preparation of students. This article includes comments that emphasize the themes and focus of our collective reflections. Finally, we place what we learned in the context of a report from the Association for Community Organization and Social Administration calling for the visibility of and advocacy for macro social work education.

Research on Vulnerable Populations

In this autobiographical account, the author discusses her life and career experiences and how these relate to her work in community organizing and social services. The authors own sense of marginality, which originated in her being a dark-skinned, white, female member of a North Carolina family, formed the basis of her concerns about populations facing vulnerability and risk. Although the authors research and writings have addressed diverse subjects, common themes emerge related to decision making and shared leadership and to helping vulnerable groups design and coordinate programs to serve their array of needs.