Social Work Research in Schools

Dr. Kate Wegmann’s research focuses broadly on school-based mental health, particularly how systemic oppression and discrimination can affect children’s mental health and academic success. She aims to find practical ways that schools can collect better information about their students’ mental health and social emotional needs, as well as feasible strategies to address these needs while keeping in mind schools’ primary mission of education and their often-limited resources for mental health intervention. Social work guides Dr. Wegmann’s research in several ways: first, she aims to conduct research that focuses on developing proactive solutions and building capacity, rather than simply identifying problems. Secondly, it is essential to her that her research is truly collaborative, based in the community, and meets the needs of the schools with whom she partners.

Currently, Dr. Wegmann is working closely with a local elementary school to improve their social emotional/school climate screening process. In early 2023, she conducted cognitive interviews with 28 elementary school children, and in collaboration with school administrators, she is using those data to inform a teacher survey administration script designed to increase student understanding of the survey and improve response accuracy. Additionally, she is collaborating with an assistant principal at the school to design a study investigating the use of self-affirmation at behavioral crisis points—although there is significant research demonstrating that self-affirmation can improve students’ academic achievement, little to no research has attempted to use self-affirmation as a strategy to prevent problem behaviors and reduce school discipline disparities. Other recent projects of Dr. Wegmann’s include a collaborative study of middle schoolers’ mental health and feelings of cybervictimization before and during pandemic-related school closures, as well as a study of how common developmental assets contribute to positive self-identity for Black, Latinx, and white middle and high school students.