What is a Pupil Personnel Worker?
Pupil personnel workers are specialist trained to assess student needs, serve as student advocates, and act as a motivating force in removing barriers to student achievement.
What do Pupil Personnel Workers do?
The role of the Pupil Personnel Worker may be divided into four major job functions. The Pupil Personnel Worker serves primarily as an advocate for all students and as a consultant to school staff and parents/guardians on a variety of issues such as attendance, discipline, counseling, residency, homelessness and crisis support for schools. In an effort to forge home, school, and community partnerships, the Pupil Personnel Worker serves as a liaison between various departments within local education agencies, as well as a referral source to outside agencies and community resources. Some of the most common functions of the Pupil Personnel Worker throughout Maryland’s twenty-four local education agencies include:
- Counseling/conferencing with individuals and groups
- Conducting home visits to promote family involvement
- Responding to emergency welfare situations for students and families
- Collaborating with the classroom teacher to facilitate the adjustment of students
- Providing crisis support for schools
- Interpreting school policies, local education agency Board of Education policies and procedures for students and families
- Coordinating home and hospital teaching
- Monitoring/supervising home schooling cases
- Investigating out-of-county and out-of-district residency requests
- Petitioning cases to the court for violations of the Maryland Compulsory Attendance Law
- Arranging and facilitating intake conferences for students returning from DJS facilities
- Providing case management for suspended and/or expelled students
- Providing homeless liaison services to students, parents and all schools
Contact:
John McGinnis
Pupil Personnel and School Social Worker Specialist, Foster Care, State Point of Contact
Office: (410) 767-0295
john.mcginnis@maryland.gov