I am going to argue that whiteness flavors the assumed norms in our society just as much as it does in our social service system. We must remember that whiteness—like all of the… Continue reading
Often, child welfare work with intellectually disabled clients involves collaboration with disability service systems such as the Department of Developmental Services, Vocational Rehabilitation and the like. Different state social service agencies often have… Continue reading
Lamont D. Simmons, M.S.W., Ed.D. and Elspeth M. Slayter, M.S.W., Ph.D. The following essay is the written accompaniment to a workshop to be given by the authors on February 26th, 2021 at the… Continue reading
#SWEduActs, a grassroots group of social work educators, has organized a national social work teach-in on police violence as a form of structural racism for the last week of October 2020. We are… Continue reading
[This is the text of a speech I gave to the Massachusetts Department of Children & Families this morning] I’m so pleased to be with you all today – it’s always good to… Continue reading
Readings on police brutality in the United States: American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) (2020). Fighting police abuse: Community action manual. https://www.aclu.org/other/fighting-police-abuse-community-action-manual Adedoyin, A.C., Moore, S.E., Robinson, M.A., Clayton, D.A., Boamah, D.A. & Harmon,… Continue reading
Guest blogger & #Disabled MSW student Lynne Fetter talks about her hashtag activism centered around #CrippingSocialWork & why #Disability is a #SocialWork issue – read & learn more!
Conversations about police violence are happening all over the world since the killing of Mr. George Floyd – among so many other Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPoC). Needless to say, it… Continue reading
I’m pleased to announce the publication of a new article with my colleagues, lead author Dr. Lisa Johnson (Salem State University) and Dr. Allyson Livingstone (Brandeis University). We used intersectionality as a framework… Continue reading
I’ve always been an over-packer when traveling, due to being concerned that I might need something at my fingertips when across the globe, usually in rural Turkey (where I’ve travelled 12 times with… Continue reading
That parents with intellectual disabilities are noted to have risk factors for child protection involvement as well as disproportionate rates of involvement in that system is well documented. Whether this is truly warranted is… Continue reading
Today is Sexual and Reproductive Health Awareness Day across Canada and a few other countries. Thisis an especially important day this year given the rise of the #MeToo movement. Designed to bring about awareness… Continue reading
Many social workers I interact with express the idea that the civil rights of disabled people were taken care of with the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). In… Continue reading
Did you know that over one fifth of the United States population has an impairment that leads to a disability? Given this, social workers are bound to engage in practice with disabled people… Continue reading
You may be asking what a pulpy reality television show about finding a partner could possibly have to contribute to informing social work practice? This season, the “Bachelor” franchise has taken on the topic… Continue reading
I don’t know about you, but I find my students’ use of laptops in the classroom to be a distraction. I really don’t like it. However, there’s more to the story than me,… Continue reading
Debates about how to refer to the people social workers support through the provision of care and service referrals ebbs and flows. We have moved on from the medicalized “patient” to the more… Continue reading
I am currently teaching a course on social work practice with people with disabilities. The course uses an intersectional lens, acknowledging the fact that people have many intersecting social identities that can result… Continue reading
I’m looking forward to giving at talk on the potential impact of the Trump administration on disability policy and people with disabilities in general. I’ve drawn on the expertise of these disability experts and colleagues:… Continue reading
Recently, I have been wrapping up my Social Expertise Exchange grant from the Eurasia Foundation. This grant allowed me to engage in an exchange with a Russian colleague who was also interested in youth… Continue reading
We’ve all heard the phrase “great minds think alike,” but this morning’s disability initiatives roundtable sponsored by the Eurasia Foundation’s U.S.-Russia Social Expertise Exchange really blew my mind. I was honored to participate… Continue reading
I am honored to have been interviewed for an article on disability social work for the national NASW News. Please see the entire article at this link. Here is an outtake from… Continue reading
The spirit of Lev Vygotsky’s theory about cultural-historical psychology lives on in a vibrant community center for youth with a range of disabilities in Moscow, Russia. I had the honor of visiting… Continue reading
Nastavniki, otherwise known as Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Moscow, is an organization specializing in mentoring young people in the child welfare system – including young people with disabilities. As I understand it,… Continue reading
On Friday, January 20, 2017, I presented a lecture introducing the social work concept of evidence-based practice as a process that includes program evaluation. This lecture was presented to the social work… Continue reading
In this training, presented in Russian (transcript below), I argue that people with disabilities need to be seen in a different light – a more empowering light. In both the United States and… Continue reading
My Russian child welfare colleagues are experimenting with a number of different models designed to support children with disabilities in stable family placements. Today, I visited one of these experimental models, a family… Continue reading
The concept of universal design is based on the idea that the production of buildings, products and environments that are inherently accessible to all – regardless of disability – is a best practice.… Continue reading
As a social work educator, I have been particularly curious about the nature of social work education in the Russian Federation. Therefore, I was thrilled to receive an invitation – facilitated by the… Continue reading
While Russia may face a stereotype that people with disabilities are stigmatized, this does not mean that there is a dearth of social change agents actively working to re-frame the status of this population… Continue reading
As I arrived in Moscow for the first time in 33 years, I wondered what kind of bridge I might need to build between me and my new colleagues. We were all interested… Continue reading
Teaching statistics to social work students can be challenging on the engagement front. It is critical to help students make important connections between the use of statistics and the practice of social work –… Continue reading
Social Support of Citizens:Youth with Disabilities in the Child Welfare System in the United States and the Russian Federation Dr. Elspeth Slayter was awarded a grant from the Eurasia Foundation to consult with… Continue reading
Excited that my new work on youth with disabilities in the child welfare system is coming out in the Children and Youth Services Review – available for free until 5/5/2016 at this link. … Continue reading
