The Changing Environment of Social Work Practice in SchoolsCalvin L. StreeterandCynthia FranklinUniversity of Texas at AustinSchool of Social WorkSchool social work is one of the oldest and most revered fields of social work practice. Traditionally, most of the practice of school social work was thought of as being separate from clinical social work practice. School social workers practiced in public school systems and clinical social workers practiced in psychiatric and other mental health facilities. Changes in how children and family services are delivered and broader political and economic changes, however, are re-shaping the delivery of school social work and other student services (e.g. psychologists, nurses). In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in school-linked andschool-based health and mental health services and national resources to support the development of school-based health and mental health clinics (Franklin and Streeter, 1995; Franklin and Allen-Meares, 1997; Taylor, 1999; Weist, 1999). For example, there are two national training and technical assistance centers for school-based mental health services. Both centers are housed in universities and have been in operation since 1995. The UCLA School Mental Health Project, Center for Mental Health in the Schools is operated by the UCLA Department of Psychology (http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/) and the Center for School Mental Health Assistance is operated by The University of Maryland Department of Psychiatry (http://www.nasbhc.org/).The emphasis in the 1990s on funding collaborative-based services in the human services, and school-linked services programs in particular, has added to a plethora of clinical professionals working in schools including clinical social workers. Franklin (1999, 2000ab) has previously discussed the fact that these changes in mental health delivery are also redefining the roles and practices of school social workers. This current chapter summarizes the trends in service delivery and major political and economic changes that are having an impact on the organization of schools. The chapter further discusses the types of collaborative skills that clinical social work practitioners need to effectively work in school organizations. The chapter further highlights the increases in school mental health and health clinics and the influence these types of programs have on school-based practice. Finally, this chapter offers guidelines for helping clinical and school social workers effectively work together in school programs. Trends in Service Delivery Affecting School-Based PracticeClinical social workers, clinical psychologists, and other mental health professionals are workingin school-linked programs offering services to children and families on or near school campuses. David Austin (this volume) suggests that, in the future, children and family services are going to continue to be offered through the schools. Presently, in schools, we can already see this trend in0service delivery. Trends toward offering services in schools were fueled by several developments. Major examples include: (a) managed behavioral health care; (b) the increasing competition of private practice which led practitioners to seek other practice domains; (c) the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which required more comprehensive health and mental health services be offered in schools for special education students; (d) changes in funding in Medicaid and the Child Health Insurance Program (Chip), which more readily allowed schools to receive funding for primary health care and mental health services for adolescents; and (e) PL 105-17- Individual with Disabilities Education Act improvement grants (1997), which spoke to prevention and early intervention and promoted interagency agreements between schools and community agencies. Major Political and Economic ChangesWorldwide economic restructuring in the last decade has produced a global economy in which organizations have been forced to become decentralized and flexible as they strive to provide high quality services and products, respond to individualized demands from consumers, and remain competitive in a rapidly changing social, political, and economic environment.Gareth Morgan (http://www.imaginiz.com/provocative/concept/find.html) points out an apparent paradox in public education, generated in part by the changing demands placed on all organizations and institutions in the new global economy. Many school systems are being overwhelmed by the demands of a constantly changing and highly unpredictable environment. School staffs are feeling stressed and overwhelmed and academic performance in some schools continues to decline. At the same time, educational organizations at all levels have never faced greater opportunities. As we moved into the new information economy, knowledge became a critical resource and schools are uniquely positioned to take advantage of this fact.According to Morgan, the problems facing the education sector are largely self-imposed. They are created by traditional management philosophies, planning models, and control mechanisms that produce high levels of stress and contradiction for those working in the system. As educational institutions, and other institutions in the community, struggle to cope with the demands of a rapidly changing environment, they are faced with the limitations of their traditional beliefs about how large complex systems function. The Ineffectiveness of Bureaucratic SchoolsBureaucratic organizational structures that have dominated human service organizations in general, and schools in particular, are being increasingly challenged by the dynamic forces generated by the global economy and are being compelled to adapt to the demands of an uncertain and constantly changing environment. Traditionally, these systems operate as rigid andinflexible systems with a great deal of top down control. Centralized decision making requires that information flows to the top of the system where decisions are made and policies are written.These policies are then communicated down to line staff who are responsible for implementation. Feedback systems are rare and, when they do exist, are usually indirect, with several levels of management mediating the feedback between front line staff and top management.1It is assumed that the system is directed by a singular mission and goals that are officially