National Association of Social Workers Chapter Replication Guide

• NCJ Number: 211457
• Author(s): Donna Newsome Wardell
• Date Published: February 2006
• Length: 11 pages
• Grant Number(s): 1999-VF-GX-0004
• Sponsoring Agency: Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)
• Corporate Author: National Assoc of Social Workers
• Sale Source: OVC Resource Ctr
• Publication Format: Document (Online)
• Publication Type: Handbook
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Downloaded May 25, 2006.

Annotation

This guide assists National Association of Social Workers (NASW) chapters in implementing the Victims of Crime: A Social Work Response project.

Abstract

The Victims of Crime: A Social Work Response project was designed by the NASW/Texas chapter to enhance the response of professional social workers to adult victims of violent crimes. The project is based on the Office for Victims of Crime's (OVC's) 1998 report on victims' rights and services that encouraged allied professionals to become more knowledgeable and involved in providing services to crime victims. The three main objectives of the program are: (1) to develop and implement an awareness campaign for social workers; (2) to offer introductory training for social workers; and (3) to develop links between social workers and victim assistance professionals and organizations. The guide is organized around these three objectives and describes work undertaken toward meeting the objectives. To meet the first objective, articles prepared by the NASW/Texas chapter were published in association newsletters, a special newsletter edition was published on how to respond to the needs of crime victims, a Web site pertaining to crime victims and social workers was launched, and two surveys targeting social work practitioners and social work schools were conducted. To meet the second objective, the NASW/Texas chapter developed a 3-hour introductory workshop on the victim assistance field, which included the provision of local unit training kits, trainer recruitment activities, and a train-the-trainers meeting. To meet the third objective, the report advises local chapters to develop a project advisory committee composed of local and State victim assistant providers. A listing is provided of potential advisory committee members and specific committee activities are identified, such as revising the training curriculum to be State specific and identifying ways for social workers to become more involved in victim service provision. Contact information is presented.