Cynthia Franklin, Ph.D., LCSW-S, LMFT, the Stiernberg/Spencer Family Professor in Mental Health at UT Social Work, has published a new practitioner’s guide to solution-focused brief therapy in schools.
The book, “Solution-Focused Brief Therapy Toolkit for Schools: Creative and Group Strategies,” co-authored with Joy Blythe and Matt J. Riley, is from Oxford University Press. It gives school social workers ready-to-use tools, group activities and creative interventions grounded in real school settings.
“This book puts practical tools directly in the hands of school social workers — whether they’re just starting out with solution-focused work or looking to go deeper. We’ve grounded everything in real school settings, because that’s where it has to work,” said Franklin.
Blythe is a solution-focused educator at Garza Independence High School in Austin. Riley is a research author and crisis co-responder therapist in Loudoun County, Virginia.
Franklin is widely recognized as a leading SFBT researcher, most recently named the field’s top scholar by the American Journal of Family Therapy in 2025.