School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Crossing Borders: Exploring the Role of School Social Workers in Immigrant-Serving Schools

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

9-2021

Abstract

Anti-immigrant rhetoric increasingly depicts immigrants as undeserving, but schools are social institutions where these perceptions can be challenged and, ideally, where inequities confronting immigrant students can be ameliorated. Existing research suggests that teachers and administrators are central to this task, but it also raises questions about the role of other personnel in immigrant-serving schools. Drawing on the concept of nepantlera, this study examines how school social workers (SSWs) pursue equity for immigrant students by challenging intersecting power structures. The authors present preliminary findings that attest to the importance of nepantleras for SSWs and the importance of SSWs for immigrant-serving schools.

Comments

© 2021 National Association of Social Workers

Publication Title

Social Work Research

DOI

10.1093/swr/svab011

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