What a wonderful article about an obviously talented, creative, dedicated advocate for children and their families (“What I Do: Michelle Perez, bilingual school social worker,” June 18 issue.) I was a school social worker for many years (school-based and related services). I had special training in trauma, which was often misdiagnosed, and creative arts therapy. I loved going into classes and doing crisis work as well as prevention work. I even used comic book characters in my work — like Superman, Batman and Robin, who were orphans. My favorite part of my job was validating a child over and over. What a joy it is to see that the torch has been passed to such a talented person who realized that connecting is the most important part of the job. It’s been a long time since I thought of an IEP and how difficult it often is. The children and families who come in contact with Ms. Perez are very fortunate. Thank you, Ms. Perez, for the pride I felt in my occupation reading about you.
Stew Frimer, retired
Michelle Pérez
Michelle Pérez, a bilingual school social worker, discusses the challenges and rewards of her work in New York City schools connecting families with school-based and community resources and providing crisis intervention and at-risk counseling for students.