Priscilla A. Gibson

African American grandmothers as caregivers: Answering the call to help their grandchildren

African American grandmothers are increasingly assuming the role of “new mothers again” to care for their grandchildren whose parents are absent from the household. Why these older women decide to take on becoming a new mother again after their primary parenting days are over has not been clear. This article uses a phenomenological perspective to describe, in their own words, the experiences of 12 African American grandmothers and why they assumed the parental role for their grandchildren. Six interrelated themes emerged: (a) tradition of kinkeeping; (b) relationship with grandchildren; (c) distrust of the foster care system; (d) grandmother as only the resource; (e) strong relationship with the Lord; and (f) refusal of the grandchilds other grandmother to assist with caregiving. These themes are used as a guide to make recommendations to enhance the lives of grandmothers.

African American Grandmothers: New Mothers Again

This qualitative study captured the lived experiences of 12 grandmothers who assumed the role of primary caregivers of their grandchildren because the childrens parents were not present. The study found that the grandmothers experienced a role shift from grandmothers to new mothers again, which resulted in unanticipated changes in all aspects of their lives.

Racial Difference in Engaging, Recruiting, and Interviewing African American Women in Qualitative Research

Social work researchers are increasingly interested in capturing the lived experiences of African American women in various settings and circumstances. Qualitative methodologies can fulfill this goal, yet researchers commonly face several barriers in gathering the collective stories of African American women. This article explores the process of conducting qualitative research with African American females from the feminist perspectives of two researchers – one African American and one White. Through dialogue, we describe how our individual standpoints influenced our experiences during three research stages: engaging, recruiting, and interviewing. Although our racial backgrounds contributed to very distinct research experiences, we contend that with cultural awareness and understanding of African American communities, researchers of all racial and ethnic backgrounds can make positive contributions to building knowledge about African American women. Strategies that insiders and outsiders can utilize in qualitative research with disenfranchised communities are presented.

Universal Instructional Design: A New Framework for Accommodating Students in Social Work Courses.

This article provides an analysis of the current method of accommodating students with disabilities in social work education and presents a new framework for providing universal access to all students in social work education: Universal Instructional Design (UID). UID goes beyond adapting already developed social work curricula to fit the needs of an individual student with a disability, to building in accommodations in the front-end of curriculum design that promote a more inclusive environment for all students. The 4 components of UID are discussed, along with the challenges to its implementation.

Barriers, Lessons Learned, and Helpful Hints

Abstract Increasingly, grandmother caregivers must interact with social agencies to obtain services for their grandchildren, but encounter unanticipated obstacles. This qualitative study reports the experiences of 12 grandmothers who were caring for grandchildren of color through five social service agencies. A semi-structured instrument was used that included questions about different aspects of the experience through in-depth interviews and a focus group. Findings describe three categories of experiences: (a) barriers encountered in the systems, (b) lessons learned about the systems, and (c) helpful hints about the systems. Implications for social workers include behavior during service delivery, the dual role inherent in practice with caregivers,and inclusion and support of biological parents.

Extending the Ally Model of Social Justice to Social Work Pedagogy

Social work students, regardless of their multiple social identities in oppressed and oppressor groups, are called upon to take action against social injustice. This conceptual article introduces the Ally Model of social justice and its alignment with social work values and goals and recommends it to social work educators as a pedagogical tool to use when teaching about oppression, differentness, and privilege. It presents the literature on the model and its characteristics through the social work lens of awareness/knowledge, attitudes/beliefs/feelings, and actions/skills. It also provides limitations of the model and observations of students’ responses, based on their identities, that may act as barriers when learning about oppression and privilege. Finally, recommendations for the implementation of the model across the curriculum are offered.

Work/Life Fit The Intersection of Developmental Life Cycle and Academic Life Cycle

A successful academic trajectory tends to be characterized by a singular Standard, that is, doctoral degree, tenure-track position, tenure, and promotion to full professor, administration, or both. Significant numbers of social work faculty struggle with the intersection of the traditional career life cycle and the developmental life cycle. This article discusses barriers that emerge from the intersection of these life cycles. Strategies to support career success and family satisfaction are also discussed, including, current law, work/life policies, self-care, and mentoring.

Grandmother Caregiver-in-Chief Continues the Tradition of African American Families

Grandmother caregiving in African American communities is a tradition used across social classes and circumstances of adult children and grandchildren. Yet, in the literature, it is viewed as a strategy used when the well-being of children is in jeopardy, families have low-incomes and limited resources, and parents are experiencing social problems. However, Mrs. Marian Shields Robinson is serving as a grandmother caregiver to the first African American First Family in the White House. This article provides an expanded view on the variations of grandmother caregiving by critically analyzing it and Mrs. Robinson’s role to provide social workers with four implications for practice.

Solutions to property rights ‘violations’ experienced by Ghanaian (Akan) widows and their children: The role of international social workers in addressing human rights

Social workers are increasingly embracing international perspectives and roles to address persistent human rights issues. This study examines solutions to property rights disputes involving Ghanaian women who are widowed from the perspectives of Akan men and women in four communities. Property ownership is fundamental to the economic survival of women and their children, but millions of women around the world lose their rights to property following the deaths of their husbands. We conducted focus groups with 102 participants in four Akan communities to generate local, culturally viable solutions for preventing property rights violations and resolving them when they do occur.

African American Children and Families in Child Welfare: Cultural Adaptation of Services, by Ramona W. Denby and Carla M. Curtis

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