Running head: Field Placement Report

Summary: SW 4441 Field Seminar I

This assignment, I believe, was intended to help us learn about our field placement
agency. We had to report on the mission of the agency as well as the population served, our role,
other disciplines working within the agency, how clients accessed and entered the agency,
eligibility, intake procedures, how clients move through the system and the termination process.
The competencies listed for this course are 2.1.1 through 2.1.11 which is extensive for an
assignment such as this paper. I think they are intended to cover our actual field work as well.
I have practiced most of these competencies in my field agency. The first, 2.1.1 is to
Identify as a professional social worker and conduct oneself accordingly. I had a difficult time
with this competency at first and truthfully I am still working toward thinking of myself as a
professional social worker. Im sure some of it is because I still lack experience, but I am aware
that it also is attributed to my own self-image and this is an issue I will have to continue to
address. You see, no one in my family has ever earned a college degree and become a
professional, its always been something that other people do, so I will continue to learn to view
myself in a much different light.
I have gained practice in the use of ethical principles to guide practice (2.1.2) and in
engaging diversity (2.1.4) in many ways. One in particular is by working with individuals of
varying faiths and allowing each to express their faith in meaningful ways. I have performed
research-informed practice (2.1.6) and used knowledge of HBSE (2.1.7) in choosing
interventions used in working with bereaved children and adults. I have practiced all of the
competencies listed for the field placement except 2.1.5 which calls for the advance of human

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rights and social and economic justice. Unfortunately, there was no opportunity for this in my
agency which focuses solely on providing grief support.

New Hope Center for Grief Support

Lynda Reimer
Wayne State University
SW 4441

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Mission and Purpose of the Agency

New Hope Center for Grief Support is a small non-profit 501c (3) agency that provides
grief support services to children, teens and adults who have experienced the death of a
significant person in their lives. The agencies mission is based on Christian principles but is
open to all regardless of religious beliefs. The agency offers on-going grief support groups, eight
week workshops, educational seminars, a weekly drop in group and other resources. They have a
small paid staff which includes one full-time director and three part-time employees. The array
of services offered are made possible by their use of an extensive network of volunteers. They do
not receive any state or federal funding. They are funded through individual donations,
endowments, business sponsorships, and corporate grants, as well as special fund raising events.
This enables them to offer services to individuals at no charge.
Overview of the Population Served
The agency was founded 24 years ago by a woman who suddenly found herself widowed
with young children. Through her experience she saw a need for grief support for young widows
and widowers with children and made it her mission to create the agency to help others in their
grief. It has grown to include all ages and types of loss and provides services to over 2000
people annually. The grief support groups are facilitated by trained volunteers who have
themselves experienced a loss and been members of the support groups offered by the agency.
The eight week workshop/small group format begins with a short lecture by an experienced
speaker on eight different topics about the grief process. Participants then break up into small
groups based on the type of loss experienced where they can share, listen and support each other

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in their grief. The ongoing support groups are also based on type of loss but meet by-weekly.
The group for young widows and widowers with children meets biweekly and runs concurrently
with the childrens and teens program. This makes it convenient for the parent and provides for
the needs of children as well.
My Role within the Agency
My role within the agency is quite diverse. I perform a range of duties which include
phone intakes, editing and formatting an updated workbook for groups, making copies,
facilitating groups for children and adults as well as the drop in group, assisting with grant
writing and event planning, creating flyers for workshops and occasionally, washing dishes.
My role in this agency is providing me with the opportunity to practice and attain the required
performance outcomes for field instruction. In this first semester of field placement I have begun
to identify with the role of a professional social worker. I did not see myself in that capacity
when the semester began. I am learning through practice with the support groups and individuals
I have had the privilege to assist, how to apply the principles of social work that I have learned in
my courses.
Other Disciplines Represented in the Agency
This is a very small agency so there is not many other disciplines within the organization.
The executive director is a former human resources manager for Ford Motor Company who has
an MBA. She is having me assist her with grant writing and actually brought in a professional
grant writer to provide a two hour training session for the staff social worker and interns. There
also is a part-time bookkeeper, but I have no interaction with that person since we work different
days.

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How Clients Enter and Leave the System, Eligibility, Intake Policies and Procedures
Intake is done by phone or in person at the workshops. If it is determined that a client is
suffering from prolonged grief, trauma or severe depression or if they ask for a referral the
agency will provide a list of recommended therapists. Individual therapy is not provided by the
agency. Termination is at the clients discretion, they can leave the groups at any time they
choose. Those attending the eight week workshop/small groups are encouraged to attend all
meetings if possible, but it is not required. This group has a more formal ending at the last
meeting of the session which allows participants the opportunity to say goodbyes.
How Clients Progress Through the System
Clients generally become aware of New Hope Center by referral from funeral directors,
chaplains, and friends or through the agencys website. It is preferred that clients pre-registration
for the eight week From Grief to New Hope workshops by phoning the agency but, they can
also register at the first meeting. Registration for these workshops close after the second week.
There are currently eight locations for the eight week workshops. They begin new sessions in the
fall, winter and spring. Clients may, if they wish, attend more than one session. Widows and
widowers may choose to continue on to one of the other groups for those who are beyond the
early stages of grief and learning to adjust to the changes in their lives and then to a group for
those who are ready to find new beginnings. There are groups specifically for widows and
widowers who are retired with or without children, for parents who have lost a child, and for
young widows and widowers with or without children. The agency also has an ongoing program

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called KIDZ for children and teens ages 3-18 years. This group meets biweekly throughout the
school year.
The Agencys Commitment to the Community
New Hope Center is committed to providing grief support services to all members of the
community at no cost. They offer workshops and support groups in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb,
Washtenaw and Livingston counties. They continue to expand the number of locations for
workshops and seminars to broaden outreach in the community. The most recent addition is a
partnership with North West Church of Christ in Detroit. The agency is working with the pastor,
who was himself a participant in one of the workshops after the death of his wife, to offer more
workshops in the city. With increased funding the agency hopes to increase the availability of
drop in groups and add a crisis line for those who are in need of immediate support.

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Bibliography
New Hope Center for Grief Support. New Hope Center, Web. 20 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.newhopecenter.net/>.