Social workers Crystal Smith and Anita Stewart talk to students. Photo courtesy of WBEZ radio.

In the last year 29 current and former students from Harper High School in Chicago’s gritty southside have been shot. Twenty-one were wounded and eight died.

WBEZ radio’s “This American Life” program visited the high school for five months to do a multi-part series on how gangs and gun violence have gripped the neighborhood and had a traumatic effect on the lives of young people there.

The second part of the series, “A Tiny Office on the Second Floor,” looks at how school social workers Crystal Smith and Anita Steward are trying to help students overcome the tragedies.

One who they reach out to is a junior named Devonte who accidentally shot and killed his brother a year before.

Devonte suffers from a variety of issues, including intense guilt, trouble sleeping, and dealing with a sister who refuses to talk to him.

Reporter Alex Kotlowitz shows the sensitive work social workers must do to break through Devonte’s emotional walls and also help Devonte’s family learn to cope with such a tragic accident.

Here’s’ part of a conversation Smith had with Devonte’s mother, Ms. Grant:

Crystal Smith: I want to tell you just how, first, impressed I am with Devonte’s academic and social, emotional growth since the accident happened.

Ms. Grant: He did come a long way.
Crystal Smith: He has really, really, mother, come a long way. He is so much more open with me now. And I just want you to know what we’re going to continue to work on, which is the guilt that he feels about the accident.

Ms. Grant: Mm-hmm.The “This American Life” radio series comes as President Obama presses Congress to enact gun reform laws in response to the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary. It covers some disturbing issues but several social workers have alerted SocialWorkersSpeak.org that it a series worth listening to.
To learn more about how social workers help young people overcome life’s hurdles visit the National Association of Social Workers’ “Helps Starts Here” Kids and Families website.