Competency 5:

Engage In Policy
Practice
MOLLY TUTTLE
SWK 4910 FALL 2022
Competency 5.1

• Identify social policy at the local, state, and federal level that
impacts well-being, service delivery, and access to social
services.
Relevant Activities or Tasks

•Student will actively and continuously review policies which may

impede the delivery of or access to services.

•Student will seek clarification and guidance about policies they

do not understand as it pertains to their client(s).
Outcomes

• In my placement with CPS, I work with investigations, case

management, and foster care. Although child welfare policy is
created by the state, each sector has different policies and
procedures. After a foster home visit that is moving into
adoption, I learned that the process to adopt is very lengthy and
filled with a lot of paperwork, so I looked more into the policies
and procedures surrounding adoption, adoption assistance,
requirements, etc. and how the process could be improved
overall.
Competency 5.2

• Assess how social welfare and economic policies impact the

delivery of and access to social services.
Relevant Activities or Tasks

•Student will ask questions about policies they do not understand

so they are more effectively able to assess said policy.

•Student will discuss any policy as it may relate to a case.

Outcomes

• Having a background that includes current knowledge about government

assistance programs and eligibility requirements, I feel more knowledgeable
about the changes that need to take place in a way that social workers can
advocate for change, that would in turn help parents and children to live better
lives, together. One such example that can be led by social workers at a macro
level, is to advocate for change to subsidized childcare assistance policies that will
help single parents receive daycare assistance in events such as job interviews.
Currently, daycare assistance can not be approved unless a parent is working,
however, this creates a vicious cycle when a parent does not have reliable
childcare and is thus unable to go to a job interview, which then puts themselves
and their children at risk of homelessness which can eventually lead to the
interference of CPS.
Competency 5.3

• Apply critical thinking to analyze, formulate, and advocate for

policies that advance human rights and social, economic, and
environmental justice.
Relevant Activities or Tasks

• Student will engage in staffing to discuss cases as well as

concerns. While doing so, the student will be able to analyze
policies and how they impact clients and families.
Outcomes

• In previous circumstances where childcare and employment

have been causes for concern as listed in competency 5.2
outcomes, I expressed my concerns to my field supervisor to
find out what options there are for people in those situations
and what we can do to help.