Rosalva Osorio Cooksy’s and Julie Ribaudo’s Expertise Included in CSWE’s New Guide for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health

Field Faculty Rosalva Osorio Cooksy and Clinical Professor Julie Ribaudo were part of the national task force that developed the Specialized Practice Curricular Guide for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health, which was released in early April. The guide is part of the Council on Social Work Education’s (CSWE) Curricular Guide Resource Series.

Osorio Cooksy was part of the team developing Competency 5: Engage in Policy Practice. Ribaudo serves on CSWE’s National Task Force Steering Committee and led the team developing Competency 8: Intervention with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities. 
 
“The aim of the guide and the institute is to close the gap in social work education related to infants, young children and their caregivers. Despite a growing need for infant and early childhood mental health-informed professionals, very few MSW programs currently include related content in their curriculum,” said Ribaudo. “The guide offers materials, activities, and assignments that can be woven into almost any course related to work with children and families, especially in the field of mental health, school social work, medical social work, and child welfare.”
 
“My hope is that more social work programs implement infant and early childhood mental health content as there is a high need to build infant and early childhood workforce,” said Osorio Cooksy.  “Our infants, young children and families need support to build strong relationships.”