Thomas Farrell, Child Welfare Expert, Speaks to Students in Social Work Policy and Practice Class  

Students in Child Welfare Policy and Practice class (SOWK2311) with speaker, Thomas Farrell.

On October 29, Thomas Farrell, Assistant Administrator and Casework Supervisor for the Central Registry at the Division of Child Protection and Permanency (DCP&P), shared his expertise with students in the Child Welfare Policy and Practice Class (SOWK 2311). Thomas Farrell began his career with the Department of Children and Families in 2001 as an adoption caseworker finding permanent homes for children in the States' foster care system. He then spent five years with the Institutional Abuse Investigation Unit (IAIU) serving in multiple capacities including screener, field investigator, and administrative analyst. Currently, Thomas currently works at the New Jersey Child Abuse Hotline where he has served as Assistant Administrator/Casework Supervisor for the last 12 years. He is responsible for the training and development of all incoming staff at the hotline and has been instrumental in revamping policy and procedure centered around the screening of abuse and neglect referrals. Thomas is considered an expert in mandatory reporting of child abuse and neglect in New Jersey and has conducted over 100 presentations on the reporting guidelines to dozens of agencies at the local, county and state levels, as well as private and non-profit organizations. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Delaware, and a Master's degree in Social Work (MSW) from Stockton University.

Child Welfare Policy and Practice (SOWK2311) is an elective in the BSW program, but also meets the state requirement for a mandatory child welfare course for those senior BSW students applying for the Baccalaureate Child Welfare Education Program (BCWEP). BCWEP is a consortium of undergraduate social work programs in New Jersey who have a partnership with the New Jersey Department of Children and Families (DCF) on enhancing recruitment and retention for caseworkers in public child welfare.