Shared Responsibility Agreements

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Social Work Portfolio

Rosetta Caraballo

Professor Snowden

SW 421

Medgar Evers College

Table of Contents

I. Dedication

II. Introduction

· Portfolio Introduction

· Social Work Practice Question

III. Agency Internship Experience

· Summary of Agency Internship Experience

· Social Work Practice Question Process and Answers

IV. Summary of Seminar Experience

· Jane Addams Case Study Assignment

· The Color Purple Assignment

· SW 421 Process Recordings (3)

V. APA Reference Page

I. Dedication

Self- love is not something that we are born with.

Self- hate is not something that we are born with.

We come into this world not knowing what is ahead of us.

Some come into this world to a loving family, others to no one to love them, and some just do not make it.

As we grow, we learn what love looks like, and we also learn what hate is.

It is up to us to know what we want to carry in our heart.

Social Workers are voices for people that are scared to ask for help, for people that got lost in life and need help finding their way back. Its for children that need an outlet to express how they feel. We as Social Workers are here to make the world a better place step by step, day by day.

I dedicate my portfolio to my boyfriend. He came into my life when I needed someone to remind me why I was put on this world. Before him, I was ready to give up on love, give up on school and he came around and showed what it was to be loved again which made me fall back in love with social work. He pushes me to be a better me every day and I pray that I can push someone to be a better version of themselves.

II. Introduction

 What does it mean to be a social worker? Social work, to many, speaks to an industry folded over poor people, giving them benefits with the goal that they can meet the fundamental living requirements to endure. Social work refers to the engagement with individuals in the community to meet the basic and complex needs of people and the community. Social work mainly entails helping those who are vulnerable, living in poverty, or oppressed in society to improve their social function and self-determination (Morley et al., 2017). As far as I might be concerned, be that as it may, it fills in as a beneficial source for me to channel my enthusiasm for helping other people. It is the generalist social worker's occupation to work with an assortment of customers to offer individualized types of assistance to help the customer meet the necessities to live in our present society (Rash, 2020). Social work means assisting and being a voice for children who cannot voice their own opinion from a personal perspective. Social work as such requires a great deal of perseverance, cross-cultural knowledge, and resources to meet the basic and complex needs of vulnerable populations in our communities (Thompson, 2020). I was adopted when I was younger, and I am grateful that a wonderful family took me in, but some kids never get placed or just placed with the wrong families. I came into this profession to try to make a change.

As I write this portfolio, I want you as the reader to know how passionate I am about becoming a social worker and how Medgar Evers College is shaping me into a future social worker. I meant some beautiful teachers that inspire me more and more every day. Social work is not just a job; it's a field that can change the new generation by helping them. I came into this field to help foster children with the right families, help trouble teens, and assist in the adoption process. I always wonder where I could have been if I had been placed with the wrong family, which path I would have taken. I am thankful the right family adopted me and gave me the wonderful life that I have; becoming a social worker is a passion for me to help children be the best version of themselves no matter which path they walk.

Social Work Question

My social work question is, "How do I separate my personal feelings from my client's feelings, especially if we are sharing the same issues?" I came up with my question because I want to work with foster care, ACS, adoption agencies, or anything that deals with children/ teenagers. Growing up, I was faced with identity problems and abandonment because I was adopted. I always felt like this shaped me into this person who always wanted to help families and children so they would not feel like they are abandoning their children or children with identity issues. Going into the field, I know I will be faced with families that do not care where or what happens with their babies; I want to learn how to hide my personal feelings and still be there for my client. There are lots of children in foster care or just not being taken care of in today's age, and I do not want my personal feelings to stop me from giving a client any advice, whether good or bad. As a future social worker, I always felt like this topic would be one of my triggers. Another issue is that many women face infertility issues, and working with families would be times they would feel hurt and want to do more than expected. When you are passionate about your job or what you love, it tends to become you, and you forget how to separate your personal life from work life.

Setting boundaries plays a big in the social work field but having inner strength is something I feel like is also needed. Social work can be genuinely testing. At the point when you are devoted, it can remove a great deal from you. It is fundamental to your wellbeing and the adequacy of your training that you deal with yourself, genuinely and mentally (Morley et al., 2017). You will get greater satisfaction from your work, and you will be a more powerful assistant to your customers on the off chance that you find a way to brace your qualities and limits (Simmons, 2020). By the end of the spring 2021 semester, I want to understand how to separate my feelings, set boundaries, and build my inner strength. I want to learn how to be there for my clients but not feeling emotional when I cannot help them at that exact moment or telling them my personal stories.

III. Agency Internship Experience

Summary of Agency Internship Experience

My internship at Medgar Evers Differently Abled was not what I expected, but I did attend some events that touched me. COVID-19 took away the fun of being in an internship setting, but I did make some good friends, and Mr. Phifer taught me a lot without even realizing it. First, I started my internship later than expected, which I was worried about; secondly, being that we are working with differently-abled students, it is a lot harder to do than online. During my internship, we had weekly checked in with some students that would join the call and tell us about any issues they are having with classes or teachers. If students did not attend, Mr. Phifer would ask us how we are doing as students, if we had any issues, or if we wanted to talk. I did not think my internship experience would be noneventful, but it taught me how to ask for help from my peers and taught me how to listen and be there for others. Going into Spring 2021, I am looking forward to working with Mr. Phifer again and the differently-abled group. It is way more for me to learn and work on other social skills to better me as a social worker.

Sickle Cell Anemia was the first event I attended, which was on October 16th. Sickle cell is a disease close to me because one of my childhood friends and sisters has the condition. Sickle cell is a trait passed down and should be tested for everyone. My friend Shanna use to get so sick and miss so many days of school, and we always worried about her until one day our teacher explained her situation. Having sickle cell affects your body so hard that you cannot even function, and we live in a world that many students live with this disease and accomplish so much. As I listened to the main speaker, I realized many people do not know enough details on this disease and do not know what to do if they come across someone with a sick sickle patient.

On October 28th, I attended the Domestic Violence event via zoom, of course! A couple of years ago, I was in a domestic violence relationship, and I did not have anyone to help me other than the cops, and they just told me to stay away from the person. As I attended the event and heard stories and heard about how many organizations there are to help domestic violence victims and survivors, I wish I knew about those organizations when I was going through my situation. Being in a domestic violence situation makes you feel alone and scared to ask for help. Many survivors living the situation are very hard until you have a sound support system to help you through it all. In this event, I learned about the different types of abuse, signs to realize when someone is abusive towards you, and signs to notice about a person if they are being abused. Domestic violence has been around for years, and we as women tend to be shy about the situation rather than ask for help. I am happy I could attend this event because many children witness domestic violence, and then they grow up thinking it is okay to be like that. I want to normalize being able to ask for help without being judged.

Social Work Practice Question Process and Answers

IV. Summary of Seminar Experience

Jane Addams Case Study Assignment

The Color Purple Assignment

SW 421 Process Recording (3)

V.References

Morley, C., Macfarlane, S., & Ablett, P. (2017). The neoliberal colonization of social work education: A critical analysis and practices for resistance. Advances in Social Work and Welfare Education, 19(2), 25-40.

Thompson, N. (2020). Understanding social work: Preparing for practice. Red Globe Press.