The job of a family service worker is to act as a liaison between at-risk or high-need families and the schools and public agencies that may be able to assist them.
Sara Cavin, a family service worker with the Aberdeen School District in Washington State, does a few home visits per year, in addition to regularly working with students in the classroom.
Since the needs of each family are different, family service workers must be able to handle a variety of situations.
"I've been a mediator when there is a problem with school and parents are unhappy with the way a school is treating a child," Cavin says. "And I've had to help families that are getting kicked out of a home or are about to have their energy turned off."
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Most family service workers don't earn high incomes to go with their high-stress job. The median pay for experienced family service workers is just $38,700.
Regardless of the pay, Cavin loves her role, and she enjoys knowing that she is having a positive impact on people's lives.
"I have families that I worked with 20 years ago that still visit with me and give big hugs when I see them in the community," she says. "They sometimes still have the artwork up that we made together on a home visit when their child was in preschool."
