NASW-NJ FOCUS - May 2020

HIGHLIGHTS 07 | Mental Health Month 08 | Social Work and Technology During COVID-19 09 | COVID-19 and Community Resources 10 | Conference Highlights 12 | 2020 Chapter Elections 13 | Free CEUs

VOL 29•5 | MAY 2020 COV I D -19 E D I T I O N

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Nkechi Okoli, President

CHAPTER OFFICE

Judyann McCarthy, 1st Vice President Jenny Conger, 2nd Vice President

NASW–NJ Chapter Office

Pat Spencer, Secretary

30 Silverline Drive, Suite 3 North Brunswick, NJ 08902 Ph:732.296.8070 www.naswnj.org

Frank Greenagel, Central Regional Rep

Jennifer Thompson, MSW Executive Director jthompson.naswnj@socialworkers.org

Dawn Konrady, Southern Regional Rep

Christina Mina, MSW

Sierra Spriggs, Northeast Regional Rep Paula Barber, Northwest Regional Rep Megan O’Brien, Graduate Student Rep Thomas Cadmus, Undergraduate Student Rep

Director of Member Services cmina.naswnj@socialworkers.org or ext. 117

Helen French Director of Development & Education hfrench.naswnj@socialworkers.org or ext. 122

Jeff Feldman, MSW, LSW Director of Advocacy & Communications jfeldman.naswnj@socialworkers.org or ext. 114 Annie Siegel, MSW Membership & Education Coordinator asiegel.naswnj@socialworkers.org or ext. 128 Willis Williams

Office Manager wwilliams.naswnj@socialworkers.org or ext. 110

Katherine Girgenti Graphic Designer kgirgenti.naswnj@socialworkers.org or ext. 129

Makyla Coulombe-Burke Special Projects Coordinator – NASW-DE mburke.naswde@socialworkers.org or ext. 127

2 May May2020 2020 | www.naswnj.org www.naswnj.org

UNIT LEADERS NASW-NJ has 12 units across the state of New Jersey.

Atlantic/Cape May/ Cumberland Tanoa Bettis, Chair Janelle Fleming, Co-Chair Bergen/Passaic Melissa Donahue, Chair Nancy Martinez, Co-Chair Camden/Gloucester/Salem Danica Rivello, Chair Danielle Cranmer, Co-Chair Essex Felicia Fdyfil-Horne, Chair Ruby Sekhon, Co-Chair

Hudson Lauren Snedeker, Chair Jillian Holguin, Co-Chair

Morris Cheryl Cohen, Chair Veronica Grysko-Sporer, Co-Chair

Mercer/Burlington Mary Beth Kohler, Chair Miguel Williams, Co-Chair

Somerset/Hunterdon Margaret Ryan, Chair

Middlesex Joshua Collins, Chair

Sussex/Warren Dina Morley, Chair Afifa Ansari, Co-Chair

Monmouth/Ocean Jeanne Koller, Chair Denise Gaetano, Co-Chair

Union Chair & Co-Chair, Open

To learn more about Unit Leadership opportunities, contact asiegel.naswnj@socialworkers.org

C OV I D -19 E D I T I O N

NASW-NJ Resources As part of our commitment to our communities, NASW-NJ provides a number of resources that grow daily, to help inform, support and nurture our friends, families, neighbors and children during these challenging days.

Visit our Community Resources page to access these free assets.

Cover Image: Snapshot of 2020 NASW-NJ Virtual Conference presenters, attendees, and exhibitors.

The current COVID-19 pandemic presents social workers with a number of challenges to address. Visit our Covid-19 Resources page for FAQs and Quick Links to help you stay up-to-date on emergency orders, laws, and procedures that are being implemented.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE President’s Message

|04

Conference Highlights |10

Executive Director’s Message

|05

Sponsor Thank You

|11

Mental Health Month |07

2020 Chapter Elections

|12

Social Work and Technology During

Free CEU program

|13

Covid-19

|08

Covid-19 Community Resources

|09

Classifieds |14 NASW Swag |16

May 2020 | www.naswnj.org 3

NASW-NJ Board of Directors'

MESSAGE

Members, The past several months have been remarkably challenging as we navigate this uncertain time together. As a profession, we have seen you rise, despite all that you are facing personally, and continue to serve the community. You have done what social workers have done for generations—assess changing situations, find solutions and march forward, carrying the torch of hope for so many.

We have also seen you draw closer to the Association during these unprecedented times and invite your friends and colleagues to join you. Since COVID-19 began, our Chapter has connected with over 12,000 new social workers who need support, encouragement, resources, respite, and a home. We are humbled by your engagement and grateful that during a time of crisis, you have found the Chapter to continue to be relevant.

We are grateful that you continue to connect and engage—as we have seen that now, perhaps more than ever, our community needs a place that is our own—to dialogue, vent, find support and collaboration among all fields of practice.

We know these are uncertain times though and we understand the financial impacts on many in our profession are insurmountable. We want you to know that ensuring you are able to remain a part of our Association is of paramount importance to us—and that if you are facing financial struggles, there are options available to you through our National office for support. You can learn more about the options available to you by calling 1-800-742-4089.

As your elected representatives here in New Jersey, we want to collectively acknowledge the work you are doing—and as your Association, we will continue to advocate for your needs.

On behalf of all the communities and clients you continue to serve, we see you. Thank you for your tireless work to help us all through this global crisis.

In solidarity, The NASW-NJ Board of Directors

4 May 2020 || www.naswnj.org www.naswnj.org

DESK OF

NASW- NJ’s Executive Director

Friends & Colleagues:

The last nine weeks have been incredibly challenging and many of our friends and social work family have been personally impacted by COVID-19. We have lost members of our community; many have lost family and friends. Daily, you are all in my prayers and I continue to be in awe of your strength, perseverance, and grace as you continue to be of service despite the personal loss and uncertainty we all feel. You reaffirm what I have always known to be true—social workers are the most phenomenal group of individuals.

COVID-19 has impacted us personally, but it has also impacted our work and the Association significantly, as well. Just a few short weeks ago, over 1000 of you joined us in our first virtual conference—a journey that was quite remarkable! We are so grateful you continued to place your trust in us to re-envision this hallmark event, to bring you speakers and create a space that was meaningful.

We know it was different, however you made it your own—with chats and messages, networking and more. While admittedly, our sights were trained on transitioning conference to a virtual space, we are now focused on what the immediate future holds for the Association.

Jennifer Thompson, MSW

As our members, I want you have a sense of our current thinking as a response to this crisis so that you can continue to connect, engage, and find the support you need.

The Chapter continues to respond to your needs in real time. Our team is 100% remote, but our operations have not been impacted or diminished. You can still call the main office number and reach our team directly. You can still receive licensing support, legal and ethical consultations, and purchase merchandise/etc. You can continue to call—even if its just to say “hi.”

Our Shared Interest Groups have expanded. In addition to our Shared Interest Groups for those in private practice, we have started and host groups for health care social workers, school social workers, and macro social workers. These are virtual meetings and we invite you to connect with us here.

All Continuing Education programs are online. We will continue to develop programs online as we have always done and expand this programming. We do not plan to host any in-person events until the fall, at the earliest. We are anxious to see you too, but your health is of paramount importance to us.

May 2020 | www.naswnj.org 5

Our advocacy is virtual. We continue to work with government, elected officials, and the licensing board on issues that impact you and the communities we serve. We are advocates at heart and distancing does not stop us. We are putting a new spin on keyboard warriors!

Our Board and committees are meeting. Virtually, and keep the wheels turning. If anything, some of our committees are busier than ever!

Test Prep, Clinical Supervision, and Certificate Programs are being scheduled. We know these are critical. They took us a little time to move virtually, but we are on it. Please keep an eye on the schedule for June forward. We have not lost sight of these, we promise!

Social & respite events continue online. We continue to host virtual paint & sip events, lunchtime brown bags, and more. We are working to find ways to connect and see you. We hope you are joining these and finding some fun. We currently do not anticipate holding our annual celebration in September, but will continue to monitor the situation. If/when we feel this event can be held safely, we will re-visit it.

We know this is different. Our profession, our Association, is built on connecting with people, laughs and hugs.

We, too, are struggling with a desire to get back to our office and in-person events. Our purpose, ultimately, is to support you. You are essential. You are on the front lines of this pandemic and will continue to be daily. Our role is to make certain that when we are able to come back together, we do so safely so you can continue in your critical roles—both as a professional and as a member of your family.

Until we can do so, let’s stay connected. Let’s Zoom. Let’s chat. Let’s laugh and continue to support one another in the best way we can possibly do so—virtually.

In health, Jennifer Thompson, MSW

6 May 2020 | www.naswnj.org

"Our profession, our Association, is built on connecting with people, laughs and hugs. We, too, are struggling with a desire to get back to our office and in-person events. Our purpose, ultimately, is to support you. You are essential."

Mental Health Month M AY

2020

M

ay is Mental Health Month and during these difficult times, recognizing and honoring our mental health needs is more important than ever.

• Concerns about the health of friends and family • Financial stress • Lack of connection and interpersonal interaction • Supply shortages

The strain caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on our mental health and emotional resources is very real. Mental Health America suggests some common reasons why the COVID-19 pandemic has created so much stress on our mental health, including: • Fear of getting sick • Fear of making others sick • Adjusting to a new reality for an uncertain amount of time • Taking care of and supporting family

Throughout the pandemic, NASW-NJ staff have worked tirelessly to ensure resources and supports are available to the social work community to help you navigate this difficult period. We’ve held community discussions with Licensed Clinical Social Workers to help people with meaning-making during the pandemic, parenting children and adolescents during COVID-19, and dealing with grief and loss in our current situation.

During the month of May, NASW-NJ will continue to offer free webinars to help community members and professionals navigate these difficult times. This will include additional installments in our Community Conversations series, as well as bi-weekly convenings of our social work Shared

Interest Groups to provide a space for social workers to network with each other, share resources, and discuss strategies for self-care, practice tips, and business advice during the COVID-19 crisis. Check out our events calendar for more information.

We also launched our online New Jersey Licensed Clinical Social Worker Directory to help connect community members with much needed mental health services. Visitors to our website, www.naswnj.org, can easily access a growing list of nearly 450 LCSWs, fully searchable by name and area of expertise, by clicking on the “Find a Therapist” link.

NASW-NJ members with an active LCSW license in New Jersey may request a voluntary listing in the directory at www. naswnj.org/Professional-Development/ Clinical-Resources.

May 2020 | www.naswnj.org 7

Social Work and Technology During COVID-19

S

ocial Work and technology have not always seemed a natural match. Our profession’s roots are in organizing, case work, and home visitation, which valued interpersonal connection over technological solutions.

As the use of personal computers and the internet grew exponentially in the late 20th and early 21st century, social workers were often late adapters to the use of these tools.

Couple that with the realities of non-profit and government work which frequently relied on older systems rather than investing in cutting edge solutions, which often left social workers behind the technological curve.

NASW-NJ has been leading the way in the rapid adoption of technology on both the state and national levels. Some of this work began many months ago—including our all online editions of FOCUS and our modernized website—but we’ve significantly ramped up our efforts to marry social work with technology since March.

Now in 2020, the coronavirus pandemic has required a full embrace of technology by social workers. Telemedicine has become the primary mode of connecting with clients.

Continuing education is provided entirely online. Consultations and team meetings occur on Zoom and other videoconference platforms. Social workers have been forced to rapidly integrate technology into practices in new and sometimes unexpected ways.

And at the Conference, we brought you our Keynote address on the importance of social work to technology—raising important questions about the ethical and moral implications of advanced technologies and the need for social workers to be in the room during the development stages of these tools.

8 May 2020 | www.naswnj.org

The most obvious of these efforts has been our Virtual Conference, which required the use and incorporation of multiple platforms and programs to deliver the event to you— Workcast, Conexsys, RingCentral, Constant Contact, Facebook, and Zoom, to name just a few.

NASW-NJ was also the first Chapter in the country to bring you webinars about COVID-19 and telemedicine—our first

free webinar was held March 19, less than a week after NJ’s Stay-at-Home order was enacted. We have held multiple, free community-facing webinars to help connect the public with licensed clinical social workers who can offer advice and guidance during the pandemic. And we’ve used webinar technology to reinvigorate our Shared Interest Groups, bringing together social workers from across the state for mutual support and to discuss how COVID-19 has impacted their practices.

We’re also excited to announce our upcoming Practice in a Box package, to offer tailored technological solutions to private practitioners, including HIPPA-compliant videoconference programs, secure and encrypted email and file storage, and more.

We’re fast-tracking this program to get the technology you need to help your clients and succeed in your practice during COVID-19 and beyond. More information should be available in the coming weeks. You can sign up to receive notification on the Practice in a Box solution when it is available by completing this form.

COVID-19 COMMUNITY RESOURCES

D



uring this COVID-19 pandemic, NASW-NJ has created a series of community-facing resources and webinars designed to connect the public with licensed social workers who can offer support and tools to those who are struggling.

The hallmark of these efforts are our free Community Conversation webinars, where a Licensed Clinical Social Work leads an online public discussion related to some aspect of coping with COVID-19. To date, four such Community Conversations have been held, with nearly 4,000 people participating live nationwide. Archived recordings of each Community Conversation are available on YouTube and on the NASW-NJ website. These programs include:



Parents, Kids, and Mental Health During COVID-19 Routine is an important part of family functioning.

Lack of routine often creates stress and anxiety for the family. Pat Spencer, LCSW explores how the COVID-19 crisis has impacted family routines and structures and how parents and children can alleviate stress and regain a sense of normalcy amidst the crisis.

Adolescents and Young Adults: Parenting During COVID-19 COVID-19 has caused a rise in symptoms of depression and anxiety in our society, including feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, and loss. Dr. Widian Nicola, LCSW offers a set of strategies for adolescents and young adults to manage their emotional response to the crisis and a separate set of strategies for parents to help their children in the process of coping.

Practice of Mattering in the Time of  The Social Distancing Mattering—the need to feel valued and to add value to others—is crucial to the human experience. Social distancing can impact our understanding of mattering and our sense of esteem and value. In this webinar, Dr. Tawanda Hubbard, LCSW discusses how we can continue to feel a sense of value, of mattering, during the COVID-19 crisis.



How to Navigate Grief, Loss, and a New Normal During COVID-19 COVID-19 has created a sense of grief and loss across our nation, not just due to death and illness of loved ones, but to loss of connection, physical contact, work, normalcy, and important rituals like birthday celebrations, proms, graduations, weddings, and more. Crystal Zelman, LCSW

explores how we are all impacted by grief during this crisis and ways to help cope with the experience of grief and loss.

 Tools for Parents During COVID-19

Parenting can be stressful to navigate even in the best of times, but with COVID-19, the challenges are even greater. Juan Rios, LCSW, CSOTS and Jennifer Thompson, MSW have an informal discussion with social workers about parenting during COVID-19. Together they provide advice and helpful tips to make parenting during a pandemic a little easier.

Upcoming Community Conversations, scheduled and planned, include: • Treating Individuals with Co-Occurring Conditions During COVID-19 (June 3) • Mental Health and COVID-19 (TBD) • The Impact of COVID-19 on Caregivers (TBD) “Do you have an idea for a future Community Conversation? Interested in leading an online discussion? ” Email us at jfeldman.naswnj@socialworkers.org to share your idea and explore how we can bring it to the community.

May 2020 | www.naswnj.org 9

2020 NASW-NJ Virtual Conference H I G H L I G H T S

“

Every presentation, every thought given to the user experience, every detail was considered with us in mind.

This conference showed remarkable innovation and leadership, I have never been more proud to be a member of NASW-NJ!

E

”

ach year hundreds of social workers from across the world join the New Jersey community for our Annual Meeting of the Profession in Atlantic City. For three days, the community comes together to learn, grow, network and support one another—an event so many look forward to.

COVID-19 presented the social work community with a unique challenge—to reimagine what this hallmark event could be.

In true social work fashion, our community rose to the challenge, embraced change, and rallied behind our first entirely virtual conference.

Over 1100 social workers, agency representatives, community leaders,

10 May 2020 | www.naswnj.org

exhibitors and sponsors were welcomed by messages of gratitude and support from local, state, and federal representatives including Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman. Attendees were able to network in the virtual networking lounge, sharing support, resources, cheerleading and exchanging information on how to best respond to community needs during COVID-19. The exhibit hall was packed with sponsors and exhibitors who brought resources, and support to the community— connecting in real time with our attendees.

Among the highlights were our two keynote presentations, grappling with different aspects of the challenges we face today: technology and grief/loss during COVID-19.

“

This year’s presentations were the best I have ever experienced at conference, timely, relevant and informative. The speakers were incredibly engaging!

”

Thousands of participants joined these two livestreamed events on Facebook, bringing

the conversations of today to people in their homes in real-time. The conversation on technology focused on the forward thinking, future of the profession and how social workers both engage with technology and lead the development of it—giving us a glimpse of the future of our profession and challenging us to consider “what is possible?”

Bringing us back from the realm of futuristic thinking, the second presentation included a live clinical intervention—engaging a fellow clinician who was generous to share his own story of loss due to COVID-19—and demonstration of practical tools for clinicians.

“

I was not sure what to expect of a virtual conference, but this was the best I have been to in 30 years!

”

While coming together in a physical space was missed, the virtual conference gave the connection and learning opportunities our community so greatly needed during this time. Many of the presentations will be made available for on-demand learning on NASW’s Social Work Online CE Institute, accessible at www.naswnj.org.

Generations Family Guidance

Center for Wellness

Genpsych

Hackensack Meridian Health

Hampton Behavioral Health Center

Kutztown University of PA/Dept. of Social Work

Life Force

Penn Medicine Princeton House Behavioral Health

Lyons & Associates

Seabrook

Mass Mutual

May 2020 | www.naswnj.org 11

 NASW-NJ Members: VOTE in the 2020 Chapter Elections!  Voting is critical, to our nation and our organization. Each year, our membership votes on a group of individuals to serve as the programmatic volunteer leadership of the state Chapter. This group of elected representatives is charged with working in collaboration with the Chapter staff and in unison with the National Board to meet the mission of our Association. Our elected representatives bring their experience, passion, and ideas to the table to help grow our Chapter, make us stronger and build our community.

Voting will occur online. While the election information is public, you will be asked for your NASW membership number to vote, and you can only vote once.

The voting deadline is May 30, 2020. Here’s the bottom line: NASW-NJ need you to choose tomorrow’s leaders today!

Voting is available online, with brief videos from our candidates at www.naswnj.org/Events/2020-NASW-NJ-Elections The next step is yours. Please vote!

2020 NASW-NJ ELECTIONS SLATE PRESIDENT ELECT Widian Nicola Lisa Lawson

SOUTHERN REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVE Miriam Stern

SECRETARY

VP FINANCE

Ralph Cuseglio Hania Schwar tz

Dawn Konrady Priscilla Carmona

BSW REPRESENTATIVE

MSW REPRESENTATIVE

Jamie Terrone

Jennifer Sorensen Jessica Hecht

CENTRAL REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVE

CCNLI

Caelin McCallum Vimmi Kaumil 12 May 2020 | www.naswnj.org

Jenny Conger Sarah Miller

To access go to: w w w.naswnj.org/membership/nj-member-freebies

May 2020 | www.naswnj.org 13

CLASSIFIEDS CLINICAL SUPERVISION CBT Supervision & Training. Congenial group meets every other Friday morning in Cranford. Clinical discussion and suggested readings explore the newest CBT approaches.

For further information, contact: Lynn Mollick at LynnMollick@gmail.com or (908) 276-3888.

Dr. Mollick is the Co-Founder and Co-Leader of the NJ Association of Cognitive Behavior Therapists.

SPACE AVAILABLE DUNELLEN, NJ - Share counseling offices.

Convenient to train and bus. Great referral area for new or established practice. Call: 732-563-4777 (LM).

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YOUR AD HERE 14 May 2020 | www.naswnj.org

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May 2020 | www.naswnj.org 15

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16 May 2020 | www.naswnj.org

NEW JERSEY CONTINUING EDUCATION APROVAL COLLABORATIVE Do you offer professional development courses for social workers? Are you looking to reach more people and increase your revenue?

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The New Jersey Social Work Continuing Education Approval Collaborative (CE Approval Collaborative) is recognized by the New Jersey State Board of Social Work Examiners as an approving entity for social work CEUs in the State of New Jersey.

www.naswnj.org/Events

To learn more & apply visit: www.naswnj.org/ProfessionalDevelopment/CE-Course-Approval May 2020 | www.naswnj.org 17

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THE JUNE WEBINAR BUNDLE

NASW-NJ 30 Silverline Drive, Suite 3 North Brunswick, NJ 08902

SOCIAL WORKERS ARE ESSENTIAL WORKERS THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO!