Lisa Schelbe - Böcker

Some Type of Way: Aging out of Foster Care seeks to address the following questions currently relevant to practitioners, policymakers, and researchers: What are the realities of the lives of youth aging out? Why are they struggling? What are agencies and service providers doing to help them? What should be done to help these youth negotiate the transitions out of care and into adulthood? Based on over 90 interviews and almost 1,000 hours of observation of youth aging out and service providers in a mid-Atlantic county in the United States, the book presents real stories along with relevant research and theories to help understand how youth transition out of foster care and into adulthood. Featuring five youth--Plato, Solana, Titi, Matty, and Jaden--and including poignant examples from many others--the book explores the complex and complicated challenges youth face as well as their creative survival strategies and resilience. The book includes descriptions of service providers' efforts to assist youth aging out and shares service providers' insights. It highlights the limitations of the foster care system and the service delivery system for youth aging out. Schelbe details systematic barriers in society that create obstacle as youth leave care.

Foster Parent Collaboration: A Guide for Social Workers and Other Professionals argues that the foster care system is in crisis and one strategy for meaningful change is for social workers and other professionals to collaborate with foster parents. The collaboration will assist with increasing foster parent retention and the quality of care they can provide to children in their homes. The book provides practical suggestions supported by current research for how this can be done. The book provides information about the foster care system, children in foster care, and foster parents' vital roles. It couples the first-hand experience of a foster parent and social worker with current research. This combined lens provides a critical examination of the current realities of foster parents and social workers in foster care. Derived from both practice knowledge and empirical evidence, the book provides guidance to social workers and other professionals about how to effectively work with foster parents. The goal is to promote change in the foster care system and improve the outcomes for children and families. It serves as a tool to help social workers and other professionals currently working in the foster care system improve their skills and better collaborate with foster parents. Foster Parent Collaboration contains numerous practice examples drawn from actual cases that offer insights into what social workers and foster parents navigate and how social workers best can work with foster parents. Each chapter includes a real-life challenge from a foster parent's perspective. The book also incorporates checklists and reflection questions for scenarios to assist readers in mastering the skills and content.

This unique, multidisciplinary resource incorporates cutting-edge research and best practices in child welfare into a text that aims to teach and refine advanced child welfare skills for aspiring child welfare professionals. Featuring real-life examples and stories from the field, the handbook discusses existing methods and challenges in the field of child welfare practice. Chapters also include materials for instructors to use in classrooms or training settings.Among the topics covered:Overview of child welfare policies and how the child welfare system worksAssessment tools and strategies used to identify various types of child abuse and neglectIndividual, family, and community-level approaches to preventing child maltreatment and preserving familiesPromoting stability after foster care placementEffective collaboration while working with special populationsClinical supervision in child welfare practiceStrategies for healthy professional development of child welfare practitionersThe Handbook on Child Welfare Practice is a valuable resource as both a textbook in child welfare practice courses and a practical reference for child welfare professionals. This book will help develop a more knowledgeable and skilled child welfare workforce prepared to address the significant public health concern of child maltreatment.

This unique, multidisciplinary resource incorporates cutting-edge research and best practices in child welfare into a text that aims to teach and refine advanced child welfare skills for aspiring child welfare professionals. Featuring real-life examples and stories from the field, the handbook discusses existing methods and challenges in the field of child welfare practice. Chapters also include materials for instructors to use in classrooms or training settings.Among the topics covered:Overview of child welfare policies and how the child welfare system worksAssessment tools and strategies used to identify various types of child abuse and neglectIndividual, family, and community-level approaches to preventing child maltreatment and preserving familiesPromoting stability after foster care placementEffective collaboration while working with special populationsClinical supervision in child welfare practiceStrategies for healthy professional development of child welfare practitionersThe Handbook on Child Welfare Practice is a valuable resource as both a textbook in child welfare practice courses and a practical reference for child welfare professionals. This book will help develop a more knowledgeable and skilled child welfare workforce prepared to address the significant public health concern of child maltreatment.