Apply on Employer Site

State of Iowa - Executive Branch · 19 hours ago

Summer 2026 Unpaid Social Work Internship (Allison)

Allison, IA

Internship

Onsite

Intern

Start in 2026 Summer

The State of Iowa - Executive Branch is seeking a Social Work Intern to join their Family Well-Being and Protection Division. This internship will involve working alongside Case Managers and Child Protective Workers to assist families in navigating challenges and building safer futures.

AssociationConsultingNon Profit

Responsibilities

Manage a diverse caseload of children and families that require ongoing service provision to ensure safety (These cases may have children placed in foster care and/or oversight by juvenile court)

Address the needs of children and families including safety, basic needs such as food, hygiene, education, health, and mental health

Evaluate the on-going safety and risk of children by conducting home visits with the children and parents, foster parents, relatives, and others involved while providing timely professional documentation of these contacts and report

Upload/e-file timely, accurate and detailed documentation for court involved cases and manage your schedule to accommodate your caseload

Respond to situations decisively and effectively (within policy) as family needs change which would include supervisory consultation as needed

Engage the family in creating a family-centered plan in accordance to policy that analyze and assess the strengths and needs of the child and family and address on-going danger and risk concerns

Assess the ongoing risk to the children, while developing safety plans and make recommendations to various county attorneys and courts

Collaborate with medical/mental health community partners, schools, legal partners, law enforcement, local community resources and others based on case needs

Professional and timely documentation of referred and provided services

Attend court hearings

Attend and participate in various training sessions offered by HHS and other partner agencies

Understand and use multiple computer programs and data systems

Assess the ongoing risk to children, develop safety plans, assess the strengths, and needs of the child and family, and make recommendations to various county attorneys and courts

Frequent interaction with law enforcement, medical/mental health community partners, schools, etc

Apply Iowa Code, agency policy, and sound professional judgment to highly complex situations involving crises and or chronic abuse or neglect

Home visits, detailed interviews, and thorough narrative documentation

Confront crisis situations and high stress situations in a calm and orderly manner

Maintain confidential information as required by the agency and assuring safety is a top priority for all in the office

Obtain information from a wide variety of sources, including written materials, telephone conversations and through computer databases and to be able to read and interpret the data

Interact in a team environment to manage group processes, facilitates, and encourages cooperation, pride, trust, and group identity, fosters commitment and team spirit; works with others to achieve goals

Interact with employees and customers in a positive customer service manner to resolve problems and answer customer inquiries

Qualification

Analytical skillsCritical thinkingOral communicationWritten communicationCustomer serviceMulti-taskingTeamworkLanguage proficiencyIntegrityWork ethicCollaboration

Required

Currently enrolled as a student at a college or university

Ability to work in the United States

A valid driver's license is required

Pass a level 1 background check (Criminal History, Child and Adult Abuse Registry, Sex Offender Registry and National Criminal History)

Applicants for positions in this class must be currently enrolled students in a degree program at an accredited educational institution, as determined by the Iowa Department of Administrative Services – Human Resources Enterprise

Preferred

Critical thinking skills and plan development

Strong observational and analytical skills

Exceptional customer service including de-escalation of conflictual or adversarial situations

Ability to respectfully engage families as partners in planning for safety and establish a working relationship with families

Excellent oral and written communication and report composition

Teamwork, collaboration, and consultation

Integrity

Strong work ethic

Ability to multi-task

Ability to manage multiple deadlines

Preference is often given for the ability to speak more than one language. Please list any additional languages you speak in your application

Benefits

Mileage is paid at $0.50/mile travelled according to the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) State Accounting Enterprise Procedures.

Company

State of Iowa - Executive Branch

If you’re looking for a work life of accomplishment, reward, and opportunity, you’ll discover Iowa State Government is just the place where there’s a rich and diverse population; where community, culture and differences matter; where exceptional work ethic, values and peace of mind all come together! The more you know about the State of Iowa, the more you’ll know it’s the right fit for you! There are 16 agencies in state government providing services to Iowans requiring specialized talent in agriculture, corrections, economic development, education, human services, natural resources, public health, public safety, revenue, transportation, veterans’ services and more.

Founded in 1965