School of Social Work Fall Magazine 2011

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Greetings Alumni, Colleagues and Friends!

I am delighted to share with you great news from the University of Georgia School of Social Work!

After a rigorous self-study that began in 2007, we received word in October that the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) reaffirmed our BSW and MSW programs for the next eight years. The CSWE determined that the School was in compliance with the new Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) with no questions or concerns. We are pleased to be one of the first schools accredited under these new standards. We recognized those faculty, staff, students, alumni, and friends who helped in our reaccreditation efforts at our Fall Celebration. I invite you to read more about the event on page 3.

It also is a pleasure to report that our School partnered with the College of Public Health to offer a new MSW/MPH dual degree program, which is a first in the state of Georgia. The interdisciplinary program will enhance our teaching, research, and public service endeavors to examine, prevent, and intervene in social and health problems that have devastating consequences on individuals, families, communities, and the larger society. I owe special thanks to Associate Professor Trisha Reeves for her leadership of the dual degree committee and colleagues in Social Work and Public Health for helping bring this program to fruition.

This fall, we welcomed Obie Clayton, Jr., as our inaugural Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professor of Social Justice and Civil Rights Studies. Clayton is the editor of the acclaimed book An American Dilemma Revisited: Race Relations in a Changing World and is known for his service and research in examining race relations, civil rights, demography and the family. Before joining the School of Social Work, Clayton served as the director of sponsored programs and director of the Morehouse Research Institute at Morehouse College. Prior to that, he was chair and professor of the Department of Sociology. He also served as the vice provost for research at Morehouse College and was editor of Challenge: A Journal of Research on African American Men. Over his career, Clayton has garnered over $10 million in grants.

The School also welcomed Joon Choi and Jennifer Elkins, as new assistant professors. Choi earned her Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University. Her dissertation surveyed Korean ministers in Virginia and Maryland to better understand their attitudes and responses to victims of domestic violence in their congregations. She plans to use the results to design prevention and intervention strategies to reduce domestic violence in the Korean immigrant community. Elkins, who earned her Ph.D. at Columbia University, brings a strong practice background as a therapist. Her practice and research expertise focus on interpersonal violence, child maltreatment and sexual abuse; and post-traumatic stress disorder. Her dissertation used nationally representative data to examine the role of risk and protective mechanisms on the behavioral, psychological and academic outcomes of sexually abused boys.

Harold Waters, Jr., our new alumni director, joined our staff in June and has been a great addition to the School of Social Work. You may have had the chance to meet him at one of our many events this fall. I encourage you to keep us informed of your accomplishments and how we can connect with you. Please send alumni updates to Harold.

We are looking forward to celebrating our 50th anniversary in 2014. We will be sending more specific information in the coming year about the celebration.

I encourage you to stay connected to the School. We love to hear from you and we want to inform you of accomplishments and events at your alma mater. You can find more news and events if you join us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Also, be on the lookout for School of Social Work news and events on iTunes and YouTube.

Sincerely,

Maurice C. Daniels, Dean The University of Georgia School of Social Work

Advocates for Positive Social Change

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C o n t e n t s Letter from the Dean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IFC

The Magazine of the School of Social Work at the University of Georgia

SSW Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Walter ’97 Receives Inaugural Jim Dodd Alumni Award . . . . . . . . . 14

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P U B L I S H E R

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Donor Honor Roll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

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Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Letter from the Alumni Development Director . . . . . . . . . . .

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Graduation 2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

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Alumni News & Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

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SSW Notebook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

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Caitlin Askins Michelle Mohr Carney Leslie Herskowitz Joel Izlar Harold Waters Emily Williams school of social work faculty and staff

Board of Visitors member Freeman Walker (MSW ’69) gave remarks at the School’s Fall Celebration in September.

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29 ©2011 The University of Georgia The University of Georgia is committed to principles of equal opportunity and affirmative action.

Find more content online: Facebook.com/UGASocialWork for more photos For audio, visit ssw.uga.edu and search “podcast” flickr.com/photos/ugasocialwork for slideshows fall

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School of Social Work Awarded Full Accreditation The School of Social Work has been fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), the sole accrediting body of schools of social work in the country. UGA is one of the first schools of social work in the nation to earn accreditation under new standards set by the CSWE, requiring compliance with 10 core competencies identified as common to all social work practice.

“There were a core group of faculty, staff, alumni and friends who rolled up their sleeves and did the work that contributed to our highly successful accreditation process,” said Maurice C. Daniels, dean of the School of Social Work. “It is a testament to the hard work, dedication and commitment of these colleagues that we were able to go through this process without any questions or concerns about our compliance with standards.”

The School embarked on the multi-step accreditation process in 2007 beginning with a rigorous self-study of the BSW and MSW programs. In Mar. 2011, a site visit team met with various School of Social Work constituencies as well as Provost Jere Morehead and reported 10 strengths of the School with no concerns or questions regarding the BSW and MSW programs.

“There appears to be a spirit of unity among the faculty of the School and the practice community with each reinforcing the other in efforts to provide the next generation of professional social workers,” the site visit report noted. “The themes of diversity

and social justice permeate syllabi, special events, and student organizations. Additionally, participation by students and faculty with other units of the University and the non-academic community in activities that promote social justice and enhance awareness about the value of diversity provides a platform for ongoing learning and social action.”

After a final review by the Commission on Accreditation, the CSWE determined UGA was in compliance with their Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS). The Commission voted to reaffirm the baccalaureate and master’s level social work programs for the next eight years, ending in October 2019.

“In order to be effective in the recruitment of talented and diverse social work students and faculty, accreditation is crucial,” Daniels said. “We have a strong school because we have an outstanding faculty and staff, a very talented and diverse student body, and we have great support from our alumni and Board of Visitors.”

Founded in 1964, the School of Social Work offers six degree programs including the BSW, MSW, MSW/J.D., MSW/ MPH, Ph.D., and M.A. in nonprofit organizations. The School has graduated over 5,000 leaders in the field of social work who are helping people throughout the nation and beyond using practice, research and policy.

School of Social Work and College of Public Health Partner to Offer MSW/MPH Dual Degree

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he University of Georgia School of Social Work and College of Public Health have partnered to offer a new dual degree program combining the master of social work (MSW) and master of public health (MPH) degrees, making UGA the first university in the state of Georgia to offer this unique program.

“Social work and public health share a commitment to social justice, and this dual degree unites the focus of social work intervention at the individual level with the public health focus of prevention at the population level,” said Trisha Reeves, associate professor in the School of Social Work and chair of the dual degree program task committee. “At the present time, there are only four universities in the Southeast with a dual degree program in social work and public health,” she added.

In a competitive job market, having this dual degree is expected to give recipients a leg up in gaining employment, according to Reeves. She pointed to a recent online edition of U.S. News & World Report, which identified medical and public health social work as one of the “50 Best Careers of 2011,” with medical and public health social work expected to rise more than 22 percent, a rate faster than most careers over the coming decade. The dual degree program will prepare graduates to address the psychosocial needs of individuals, families, and communities at local, state, national, and international levels, as well as prepare them to create, implement, and evaluate public health programs and interventions.

“Our dual degree program represents the culmination of a three-year effort to design what we believe will be an exemplary

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educational opportunity for social work and public health graduate students. We are deeply grateful to colleagues at universities with existing dual degree programs, including those at UGA’s 5 aspirational universities with these programs, whose experience and counsel shaped the design of our program,” said Reeves.

“The School of Social Work is proud to partner with the College of Public Health to offer this valuable joint degree program. We are excited to be the first university in Georgia to offer this program and to produce graduates who can take on more versatile roles in social work and public health in our state and beyond,” said Maurice C. Daniels, dean of the School of Social Work.

The School of Social Work and College of Public Health will work in partnership to implement the program, and applicants must meet the admissions requirements of both programs. Students who are admitted to both programs can complete the degrees in seven consecutive semesters. For more information contact Reeves at reevesp@uga.edu or call 706-542-5451.

School of Social Work Hosts Fall Celebration to Honor Numerous Achievements ver 100 faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends joined Dean Maurice C. Daniels at the Taylor-Grady House Sept.

9 for the School’s Fall Celebration to welcome new faculty and staff and to recognize numerous accomplishments from the past year.

Among the signature achievements of the year were the School’s completion of a self-study and a site visit for reaccreditation by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), the sole accrediting body of schools of social work in the country; and a new partnership with the College of Public Health to offer a joint degree program combining the master of social work and master of public health degrees. The School also welcomed three new faculty members, including the inaugural Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professor of Social Justice and Civil Rights Studies and two new staff members at the celebration.

Provost Jere Morehead, who spoke at the event, said he was impressed after his meeting with the CSWE site visit team, noting there were no concerns with the School’s accredited programs. But, he said, the site visit team suggested an improved facility for the School.

Morehead lauded other milestones of the School’s highly successful year including the approval of the MSW/MPH dual degree program by the University Council and the appointment of the Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professor. He congratulated the dean, faculty, students and other estates of the School.

Associate Professor Brian Bride highlighted the fact that the School was one of the first to go through new accreditation standards set by the CSWE. “It’s an even more remarkable achievement that we had no concerns coming out of this process given that we were really feeling our way through it,” Bride said. “A large part of our success really had to do with Dean Daniels leadership, vision and persistence in ushering us through that process.”

Dean Daniels recognized Associate Dean Jerome Schiele for his leadership in the reaccreditation self-study process; and, Daniels and Schiele honored Associate Professor Donna Leigh Bliss, Associate Professor Brian Bride, Associate Professor Schnavia Hatcher, Professor Thomas P. Holland, Parham Professor June Gary Hopps, former Field Education Director Bernice Liddie-Hamilton and Professor Betsy Vonk for their leadership in the self-study process and assembling the self-study document.

Mary Frances Early, UGA’s first African American graduate, thanked Dean Daniels for highlighting Donald L. Hollowell’s role in the civil rights movement and for moving forward with the School’s newest distinguished professorship, the Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professorship of Social Justice and Civil Rights Studies, which was filled this year by Obie Clayton, Jr.

Find more online:

Faculty, staff and friends of the School surprised Daniels with a champagne toast.

“Good things don’t happen overnight,” Hopps said. “It comes from outstanding leadership, good vision and good foresight; someone with a steady hand to guide us through. Dean Daniels had to carefully move us through many stages. He did it with grace.”

Board of Visitors member Freeman Walker echoed Morehead’s observations regarding a new building and vowed to assist in sending a message to UGA administrators that a new facility is crucial to the continued success of the School.

“Dean Daniels has a world class faculty, this is a world class school of social work and we need a world class building,” Walker said.

Phil Williams, dean of the College of Public Health, expressed his enthusiasm in forging a new partnership with the School of Social Work. “ [The partnership] is going to lead to us being able to do many more things together not only in terms of the educational side, but I think it’s going to lead to a number of research opportunities, so we are very excited about it,” he said.

Dean Daniels recognized Associate Professor Trisha Reeves, the School of Social Work’s chief liaison with the College of Public Health, in developing the dual degree program.

Dean Daniels welcomed new assistant professors Joon Choi, who earned her Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University and Jennifer Elkins, who received her Ph.D. from Columbia University. He also welcomed new staff members, Emily Williams, communications director and Harold Waters, Jr., alumni development director.

Provost Jere Morehead lauded milestones of the School’s highly successful year including the approval of the MSW/MPH dual degree program by the University Council and the appointment of the Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professor. fall

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Clayton Named Inaugural Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professor The University of Georgia School of Social Work has selected Obie Clayton, Jr. as the inaugural holder of the Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professorship of Social Justice and Civil Rights Studies.

Editor of the acclaimed book An American Dilemma Revisited: Race Relations in a Changing World, Clayton is best known for his service and research in examining race relations, urban inequality, and demography and the family.

The professorship is named in honor of Donald L. Hollowell, a legendary civil rights attorney and lead counsel in Holmes v. Danner, the landmark case that secured admission to UGA for Hamilton Holmes and Charlayne Hunter, the first African American students to register for classes in 1961.

Clayton grew up in Mississippi during the civil rights movement and followed Hollowell’s career.

“I’m really honored, and I’m humbled,” Clayton said. “It’s a lot to live up to in the sense of the work that Hollowell did.

Hollowell did not go out and solicit attention. He was never in the limelight. He was a person who was in the trenches for most of his career, and that’s what I like—you let your work speak for itself.”

“This is an historic moment for the School of Social Work and the University of Georgia,” said Maurice C. Daniels, dean of the School of Social Work. “It was an honor to work with our faculty and staff, university leaders and our donor community to endow the Hollowell Distinguished Professorship, the first distinguished professorship named for an African American at UGA. We are thrilled that Dr. Obie Clayton has joined our faculty as the inaugural Hollowell Professor. Dr. Clayton has a strong commitment to the cause of social justice and an outstanding scholarly background related to social reform, civil rights and policy related issues,” he said.

Before joining the School of Social Work, Clayton served as the director of sponsored programs and director of the Morehouse Research Institute at Morehouse College. Prior to that, he was chair and professor of the department of sociology and executive director of the Morehouse Research Institute. He also served as the vice provost for research at Morehouse College and was editor of Challenge: A Journal of Research on African American Men. Throughout his career, Clayton has garnered more than $10 million in grants. All of his work is centered on individuals who

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have been disenfranchised. Some of his recent work has dealt with those in the prison systems and those who find themselves victims of substance abuse or homelessness. “When we think of social justice and civil rights studies, these are populations at risk, and their liberties must be supported, regardless of color of skin or economic status,” he said.

For the past six years, Clayton has used a grant to teach relationship skills and financial literacy to the underserved and atrisk populations. He currently is seeking funding to research the effects of the recession on the economic position of middle-class African Americans.

Clayton has served on the boards of the Supreme Court of Georgia’s Commission on Children, Marriage and Law and the Atlanta Crime Commission. He currently serves on the board of the Atlanta-based Disability Resource Group and holds membership in the American Sociological Association, Georgia Sociological Society, American Society of Criminology and the Mid-South Sociological Association, in which he served as president in 2002.

In his new role at UGA, Clayton is designing a “Hollowell Symposium” that annually will invite nationally and internationally known presenters who have conducted work in the civil rights and peace movement arenas. He also is working on designing courses in social work to introduce students to justice studies and other contemporary issues that social workers may face. This spring, he plans to teach a course on civil rights.

“My course on the Civil Rights Movement and the Practice of Social work will expose students to the civil rights struggle and how this and other movements shape intergenerational attitudes and behaviors,” Clayton said. “This knowledge will enable practitioners to be more empathetic when dealing with clients from diverse backgrounds.”

Clayton looks forward to meeting the students. “One of the things that keeps you teaching for 30 years and keeps you young is meeting young people who have a bright future ahead of them,” he said.

Through the president’s hiring initiative, UGA President Michael Adams and Provost Jere Morehead approved a new faculty line for the distinguished professorship. The professorship was endowed in April 2010 and was announced by Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., chair of the Hollowell endowment committee, at the world premiere of the documentary Donald L. Hollowell: Foot Soldier for Equal Justice at the Woodruff Fine Arts Center in Atlanta. The documentary was produced by the Foot Soldier Project for Civil Rights Studies.

Hollowell Documentary Inspires New Generation at Campus Premiere

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tudents, faculty, staff and community members gathered Feb. 22 to celebrate the life of Donald L. Hollowell, the civil rights attorney who fought to desegregate UGA, at the premiere campus screening of Donald L. Hollowell: Foot Soldier for Equal Justice at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center and Hotel.

The documentary chronicles Hollowell’s achievements through his service as lead counsel in Holmes v. Danner, the landmark case that secured admission to UGA for Charlayne Hunter (now Hunter-Gault) and Hamilton Holmes, the first African Americans to register for classes at the university; his legal victory that won the release of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., from the Reidsville State Prison; and his effective defense of Preston Cobb, a 15-year-old black youth who was sentenced to die in Georgia’s electric chair. Several students in the School of Social Work discussed the impact the film had on them.

“I have a tremendous amount of reverence for Donald Hollowell who helped lay the foundation for social work practice today,” said second-year MSW student Abigail Shrader. “When the law was unjust he worked to change it and he did so with tireless eloquence, determination, courage and conviction. This film is a beautiful picture of what working for social change looks like.”

“What struck me the most about this documentary was how well he was respected at such a young age,” said Christopher Stokes, a dual degree MSW/J.D. student. “In his 40s, he was already arguing cases that would have a lasting impact on American society.”

Stokes recalled a point in the film that left an impression on him as an aspiring attorney.

“I can’t imagine getting my law degree and having to try a case in the balcony like Mr. Hollowell was asked to,” he said. “Mr. Hollowell not only blazed trails in regards to the law, but he also blazed trails in regards to legal representation here in the South and in the nation and for that I thank him.”

Maurice C. Daniels, dean of the School of Social Work and director of the Foot Soldier Project for Civil Rights Studies welcomed those gathered for event, and Derrick P. Alridge, director of the Institute for African American Studies and a professor in the College of Education introduced the film. Daniels and Alridge developed the film in partnership with UGA’s Center for Teaching and Learning and the Russell Library for Political Research and Studies.

“It is very rewarding and fulfilling to bring Hollowell’s activism and civil rights work in the 1950s and 1960s to a new generation,” Daniels said.

Alridge described Hollowell in his introduction of the film as an “enduring icon of the civil rights movement” for his work integrating the South, registering black voters across the nation and combating racial discrimination.

“The FSP did not have to travel far at all to discover Donald Hollowell, who was one of the most important and pivotal, yet uncelebrated foot soldiers of the civil rights movement,” he said.

Andrew Mayo, a first-year MSW student, gave closing remarks for the event.

“I feel truly indebted to all that Hollowell has contributed as a foot soldier for social justice,” he said. “The only way I can begin to make payment of such a debt, is to continue the work of Hollowell and fight for social justice as a student and soon to be social work professional.”

Foot Soldier Project Documentary Receives Telly Award Donald L. Hollowell: Foot Soldier for Equal Justice, a production of the University of Georgia Foot Soldier Project for Civil Rights Studies, has received a bronze Telly Award.

The annual awards program honors excellence in local, regional and cable television programs and commercials, as well as video, film and multimedia productions by some of the most respected advertising agencies, production companies, television stations, cable operators and corporate video departments. In its 32nd year, the competition receives more than 11,000 entries from all over the world. Other 2011 winners included Booz Allen Hamilton, Nickelodeon and Turner Studios, to name a few.

Watch the trailer on YouTube: www.youtube.com/v/IajuQeDuM-k

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Three Faculty Members Among 100 Most Influential Social Work Journal Authors

By Mickey Y. Montevideo The British Journal of Social Work recently published a study “Influential Publications in Social Work Discourse: The 100 Most Highly Cited Articles in Disciplinary Journals: 2000-09,” which includes three University of Georgia School of Social Work faculty members. The study surveyed 79 international social work journals published during the past decade and identified the 100 most cited articles and their authors.

According to the article, the study’s results “…suggest that evidence-based practice/social work research plays a particularly important role in professional discourse.”

The list of UGA faculty members, their rankings, the article cited and their area of expertise include:

#6 Brian Bride – associate professor, director of Ph.D. program Bride, B. E. (2007) “Prevalence of secondary traumatic stress among social workers,” Social Work, 52(1), pp. 63–70.

Bride’s teaching and research interests focus on mental health and substance abuse services for special populations, including women, older adults, persons living with HIV/AIDS, persons with co-occurring disorders and traumatized populations. He has a particular interest in studying secondary traumatic stress/ compassion fatigue in human services professionals and is the developer of the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale. Bride is a consulting editor for Health & Social Work and serves as the editor of Traumatology.

#48 Betsy Vonk – professor, director of M.S.W. program Vonk, M. E. (2001) “Cultural competence for transracial adoptive parents,” Social Work, 46(3), pp. 246–55.

Vonk brings practical experience to her teaching and research in the School of Social Work. As a clinical social worker, she worked with children, adolescents and young adults for 16 years. Her current research interests in practice evaluation and transracial adoption grew out of her clinical practice experience, and she has published numerous articles in these areas. She teaches primarily in the area of clinical practice for the M.S.W. program.

#59 Margaret Robinson – associate professor and Brian Bride (Also contributing to the article was Bonnie Yegidis, former dean of the school.)

Bride, B. E., Robinson, M. M., Yegidis, B. and Figley, C. R. (2004) “Development and validation of the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale,” Research on Social Work Practice, 14(1), pp. 27–35.

Robinson focuses her teaching on social work practice/research, evaluation, family dynamics/practice and women’s issues. In addition, she concentrates her research on grandparent caregivers, intergenerational families and women’s issues.

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School of Social Work Hires Two New Assistant Professors The School of Social Work recently hired two new assistant professors, Joon Choi and Jennifer Elkins, who joined the faculty in Tucker Hall this Fall.

“The School of Social Work is delighted to have 2 new assistant professors on board,” said Maurice C. Daniels, dean of the School Choi of Social Work. “Dr. Choi’s research interests and expertise will be a great asset to the school’s instructional programs, research, and community outreach priorities. And, the School will greatly benefit from the direct practice background and research interests of Dr. Elkins. We look forward to her contributions to our clinical concentration as well as research and public service.”

Choi grew up in Seoul, South Korea, and was stirred by the turmoil she witnessed as a college student at Ewha Womans University in the 1980s and early 90s, especially after a high profile case involving the gruesome murders of several prostitutes by American service men.

Elkins “It became a turning point in my life as well as my professional life because it was the first time I started paying attention to women’s issues,” she said.

After moving to the U.S. to pursue a M.A. degree in international relations at City College of the City University of New York, Choi began working at an Asian women’s shelter and soon realized she wanted to get her MSW to make a bigger impact for Asian women in the U.S. After graduating from the University of Michigan, Choi spearheaded a community organizing effort focusing on the prevention of domestic violence in Asian communities. The organization she founded and worked for received a grant from the CDC. The grant required an element of evaluation, which inspired Choi to pursue a doctoral degree in social work at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Her dissertation surveyed Korean ministers in Virginia and Maryland to better understand their attitudes and responses to victims of domestic violence in their congregations, which she believes is an important step in better understanding access to services for Korean battered women. She plans to use the results to design prevention and intervention strategies to reduce domestic violence in the Korean immigrant community.

“Atlanta has witnessed a pretty big increase in Asian immigration,” Choi said. “I thought it would be a great place for me to work with the Korean population and other Asian populations to really address domestic violence issues in the community.”

Choi will teach Theory and Practice with Organizations and Communities and Foundation Research in her first year.

Elkins, who earned her Ph.D. at Columbia University, brings a strong practice background as a therapist. Her practice and research expertise focus on interpersonal violence, child maltreatment and sexual abuse, and post-traumatic stress disorder. After earning her MSW from the University of Wisconsin, Elkins began working in an intensive clinical setting where she counseled severely traumatized children and adults experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault and child maltreatment. Many of the children she saw had a level of complexity and severity in their mental health diagnoses that didn’t fit neatly into any categories, making it difficult for professionals to intervene.

“Part of the reason I wanted to go back and get my doctorate was to better understand how these kids experience interpersonal abuse and violence via applied research, but also to have the opportunity to help train the next generation of social workers and scholars so that they can be more effective working with these populations,” Elkins said.

Elkins’ dissertation used nationally representative data to examine the role of risk and protective mechanisms on the behavioral, psychological and academic outcomes of sexually abused boys. “The findings were very complex,” she said. “Much of our perceptions and our knowledge base about sexual abuse is based on research and practice experience with females. The findings from my study really point to a need to better ascertain the extent to which this applies for males.”

Elkins’ long-term goal is to use this research to help further advance social workers’ ability to understand, prevent and intervene with diverse populations who have experienced chronic and severe interpersonal violence and child maltreatment.

Elkins will teach Social Work Practice with Groups and Human Behavior in the Social Environment this year.

Carney Creates Virtual Community to Aid Decision Making in Local Counties Michelle Mohr Carney, professor and director of the Institute for Nonprofit Organizations, was awarded UGA’s Public Service and Outreach Fellowship this semester.

Through the fellowship, Carney plans to develop a model for local counties to map their assets on top of census data, creating a virtual community for county leaders to use to make decisions and identify resources and services for citizens in their communities.

“You can lay maps side by side, but seeing them layered on top of one another is entirely different,” Carney said. “Assets are in every community, but you have to understand what the needs are to determine if the assets are sufficient. I came up with the idea of mapping the assets on top of selected census data, and I think it is going to be a very, very good tool for communities.”

The Public Service and Outreach (PSO) Fellowship Program provides support for tenure-track and tenured professors to engage in the work of a PSO unit for one semester. The program allows the Fellow to enhance their courses, conduct research and participate in outreach initiatives at their PSO unit. Carney has paired up with the Archway Partnership.

Building off of the work of one of her former graduate students, James Graves, who mapped asset data for his graduate assistantship, Carney will continue to collect an assortment of data in Hart, Sumter, and Washington counties to build the interactive maps.

“These are rural communities with lots of assets and potential. Just gathering all the asset information is so powerful because communities can then make decisions on how to maximize all those resources,” she explained.

Working with the Archway Partnership, Carney will implement the program in those counties by the end of the semester. Carney is working with two Master of Arts in Nonprofit Organizations graduate assistants, Hillary DeJarnett and Natalie Okeson, who are funded by the Archway Partnership.

“They are working on a project that could be imbedded in a county for the rest of its existence,” Carney noted. “I think it will be very valuable. The hope is the process will be replicated in other communities across the state.”

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Interdisciplinary Study Abroad in Ghana Program Makes Eleventh Voyage

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nder the leadership of new director, Tony B. Lowe, associate professor in the School of Social Work, 13 students from across the University convened in the West African nation of Ghana for the eleventh consecutive Interdisciplinary Study Abroad in Ghana program. The program, housed in the School of Social Work, partners with universities, social service agencies and communities in Ghana to provide participants a three-week immersion into Ghanaian life, culture, history and interdisciplinary education.

“My trip to Ghana was a very powerful experience for me— much more powerful than I had anticipated,” said Caitlin Askins, a graduate student in the College of Education and geography teacher at Loganville Middle School. “The most difficult thing for me to see was all the children who are not in school. It broke my heart every time we passed a child who was out working and not in school,” she said.

Askins and fellow students and faculty participated in the Ghanaian School Uniform and Resource Project, raising $2,600 to purchase school supplies and over 200 school uniforms for Ghanaian children in a traditional West African village in the Volta region. The Ghanaian School Uniform and Resource Project, started by Lowe

seven years ago, has purchased over 800 uniforms and other supplies over the years.

“I had an advantage in fundraising, as many of my friends and relatives are also teachers and they too understand how vital education is,” Askins said.

Askins was this year’s recipient of the study abroad program’s Horn Blower Award. The award, which was started four years ago, recognizes a student who demonstrates a commitment to raising awareness about the educational needs of children around the world.

Askins plans to incorporate her experiences from the trip into her lesson plans this year.

“Ghana is a wonderful place. People are so welcoming and giving,” she said. “The art and culture are beautiful and I very much enjoyed the opportunity to experience their culture and to support artists by bringing home some of their items. I often think about the people I met in Ghana, and the strong impact that nation made on me.

My hope is that when I teach my students about Ghana, they too can understand just a little of what I saw and felt,” she said.

In each destination from Accra to Kumasi to the Cape Coast, students attended lectures from faculty at other institutions,

Students pose with children and workers at the Kumasi Children’s Home.

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worked on service projects in communities, toured historical sites, participated in cultural demonstrations and made site visits to various Ghanaian agencies.

Joining Lowe for the first time this year were new faculty members, David Okech, an assistant professor in the School of Social Work and Emily Blalock, an instructor in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences. Also joining the faculty this year was College of Education Professor Bettye P. Smith, a returning veteran of the program. Lowe marked his eighth trip.

“This year we had a couple of changes,” Lowe said. In addition to having a new director and two new faculty members, the group did not visit the northern city of Tamale as they had in past years, Lowe explained. “It gave us more time to delve into deeper relationships at different agencies,” he said.

One thing that didn’t change was the signature servicelearning project at the Kumasi Children’s Home, an orphanage for children age 3 months through 17 years. Students worked with the director and staff at the home to develop an instructional mural on a playground wall for the children. The students came up with and painted the alphabet with illustrations for each letter.

Lowe is always thrilled to see the transformative, life changing experience the students go through in Ghana. “The highlight of the trip for me is always as we come toward the end,” he said. “Toward the last week you see the students really open up. They really take on part of the culture.”

The program ran May 17–June 8 during UGA’s Maymester.

Social Work Students Learn About Transgenerational Impact of “The Troubles” in Northern Ireland Students in Professor Michelle Mohr Carney’s “Social Issues in Northern Ireland” class traveled to Northern Ireland over the 2011 Maymester to get firsthand exposure to the transgenerational impact of the violence from the four-decade long conflict in Northern Ireland known as “The Troubles.” Economic injustice, oppression and discrimination are among the hallmarks of the divide between the Protestants and Catholics of Northern Ireland.

“The students were great,” said Carney, who led the study abroad for the first time this year. “You just can’t wrap your mind around the conflict until you get there.”

Because the conflict is political and religion-based, it is difficult to determine which group individuals identify with until you talk to them, Carney explained. She set up meetings with various factions who played a part in “The Troubles,” from those who were involved in the violence to some of the peacekeeping organizations striving to resolve conflicts that still arise over a decade after the “Good Friday” peace agreement.

“Northern Ireland was a phenomenal area to see that the issues of social justice/injustice are not just color biased or race biased, but can be political and religiously motivated,” said MSW student Tejanae Caldwell.

“It was remarkable in some communities how they have to live so close together proximity-wise and how they even paint the street curbs to differentiate the red, white and blue versus the green, orange and white,” Carney added.

Left to Right: Tejanae Caldwell, Kelly McDowell, Cathy Sutton, Alison Sutton, Holly Thompson, Ann Gray, Professor Michelle Mohr Carney, Melanie Carlson and Joel Izlar.

Nine social work students traveled around the country with Carney with stops in Belfast, Ballycastle and Londonderry. They toured cultural and historical sites and met with academics and individuals who were involved in “The Troubles.” Students had the opportunity to get perspectives of former Catholic and Protestant paramilitaries who had been imprisoned for violence and murder and later released as political prisoners. They also met with a social worker who explained the transgenerational effects of the violence, alluding to teenagers who are not old enough to remember the violence but have been engrained with division.

“There was so much energy around the desire for peace, but you could also feel the tenseness in the conflict particularly in Belfast where they have huge walls, which they call ‘Peace Walls,’” she said.

The group also spent several days in Ballycastle, a village on the North Sea, at the Corrymeela retreat center, a non-denominational Christian community devoted to peace and reconciliation.

“Part of what was so astounding to me is you have these two factions that can’t come together in probably one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been in my life,” Carney said. “I was standing on a cliff surrounded by beautiful green space feeling more at peace than I’ve ever felt and yet it is fraught with conflict.”

In Londonderry, the site of “Bloody Sunday”—the 1972 massacre that left 13 dead—the grouped toured the city with survivor John McCourt. “He walked us through the whole thing with pictures, so it was like reliving it and it was really painful,” Carney said.

“It was incredible,” said Ann Gray, an MSW student. “One day we’re on a beach at Corrymeela overlooking a beautiful sunset and visiting castle ruins and the next we’re taking a walking tour in Derry with a survivor of ‘Bloody Sunday’ recounting the horrors he faced during ‘The Troubles.’ I learned so much about the politics and history of the country all the while awestruck by the beautifully quilted green countryside.”

“Things are not always what they appear to be,” Carney asserted. “As social workers we have to look deeper and sometimes we have to look way far back. We talked a lot about how you can’t look at a person separate from history, religion and politics. You really have to dig deeper whether it’s in Northern Ireland or in Albany.” fall

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Granddaughter of New Deal Architect Keynotes Policy Day 2010

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une Hopkins, Ph.D., granddaughter of Harry Hopkins—the principal architect of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal and emissary to Joseph Stalin and Winston Churchill in World War II, gave the keynote remarks at the annual Parham Policy Day at the School of Social Work on October 26, 2010.

Hopkins, chair of the history department at Armstrong State and author of Harry Hopkins: Sudden Hero Brash Reformer, recounted her book on her grandfather’s catapult from a poor Iowa farm kid to one of America’s most influential policy makers in history.

“How did he get to that position? Scholars have been scratching their head about that for decades,” Hopkins began. “He wasn’t particularly political. He wasn’t particularly brilliant. He wasn’t steeped in an ideology. He didn’t dress very well. He didn’t come from an important family. He was sick most of the time. He didn’t have a diplomatic personality but yet, he reached the height of power during the Roosevelt administration. What made him so influential? He asked himself that many times.”

When Hopkins started her investigation into her grandfather’s life, she never knew him since he died when she was four and a half years old. She read documents and heard stories about him through her grandmother and other relatives. She was intrigued with his life story and decided to tell it in a book.

To understand Harry Hopkins’ rise to power, one must understand his history, Hopkins explained. He was was the fourth of five children and grew up poor in Iowa, but his parents instilled in him a sense of responsibility to help others, which was further ingrained during his university years at Grinnell College. He was influenced by his professors who advocated for social justice and one’s responsibility for public service.

His first job after graduating in 1912 was at Christa Dora House, a settlement house in New York City that provided food, recreation, child care, English and civic lessons, as well as help finding a job. “Hopkins graduated in [political science], went to work in Christa Dora House and boom he was a professional social worker,” Hopkins said. This is where Harry Hopkins fell in love with and married fellow worker, Ethel Gross—June’s grandmother, who plugged Harry Hopkins into the social work community in New York City. In 1913, Harry Hopkins went on to work for the New York branch of the national organization of the Association for Improving the Condition of the Poor.

“It was here that he began to develop some of his convictions concerning poverty and unemployment,” Hopkins said. “Principals that he would later draw on in the 1930s for the able bodied who wanted to work and for whatever reason could not find employment, the government would provide jobs. For those unable to work, the government would provide assistance.”

When America entered WWI, Harry Hopkins was ineligible for the draft because he had poor eyesight. He then went to work for the American Red Cross in New Orleans, where he headed up the

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Civilian Relief Division or Home Service, which provided services for soldiers and sailors and their families. Harry Hopkins found no agencies to help him and no network of social workers, much less a framework for training them. He called on some of his Grinnell classmates and started a training program, which became the School of Social Work at Tulane University.

Although Harry Hopkins wasn’t formally trained as a social worker, he recognized a need for training workers in this challenging profession. In 1920, he joined other social workers to draft a charter for the American Association of Social Workers.

His career took him to Atlanta in 1921, where he took over the Southwest division of the American Red Cross. He returned to New York City in 1923 and directed his attention toward public health, becoming the general director of the New York Tuberculosis Association. For Harry Hopkins, illness was a preventable cause of poverty.

Historians believe Harry Hopkins and Roosevelt met sometime in 1928 when Roosevelt was campaigning for governor of New York, Hopkins asserted. Roosevelt assumed the governorship in 1929 and was reelected in 1930—just after the stock market crashed. Roosevelt tapped Harry Hopkins in 1931 to run the Temporary Emergency Relief Administration, which would be one of the agencies replicated in the New Deal package.

“Both Governor Roosevelt and Hopkins felt it was extremely important that workers have the dignity of a job,” Hopkins said. “Not just taking money, a dole, this they thought was humiliating and did not serve the purposes of the United States, much less, New York State.”

In 1932 Roosevelt was elected president of the United States. Harry Hopkins watched the first 100 days intently and wanted to get involved. He wasn’t able to get an appointment with the new president, so he contacted his friend Francis Perkins, who was now Roosevelt’s Secretary of Labor and pitched a plan for a federal emergency relief program, which came to be known as the New Deal. Perkins loved the idea and took it to the president, who promptly appointed Harry Hopkins Relief Administrator. He now was responsible for putting Americans to work.

“The president and Hopkins didn’t really know each other that well at this point,” Hopkins said. “But their relationship was going to build slowly during the New Deal years, peak during the war years when Hopkins would become indispensible to the president.”

Harry Hopkins ran the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), the Civil Works Administration (CWA) and the Works Progress Administration (WPA). He was committed to putting people to work for their own well-being and to stimulate the economy, rather than giving direct relief or doles.

In 1934 to 1935 he wrote the legislation that would become known as the Social Security Act, which became the foundation for the American welfare system.

Hopkins spoke informally after lunch about her grandfather’s role as emissary to Joseph Stalin and Winston Churchill in World War II and answered questions about Harry Hopkins and her book.

Parham Policy Day is an annual, daylong event coordinated by Parham Professor June Gary Hopps and policy students in the School of Social Work. Attendees were served Depression-era inspired meals including a breakfast of grits and biscuits with gravy and lunch of macaroni with hotdogs and tomatoes. Policy students kicked-off the event by singing and dancing to “What’s Policy Got to Do with It?” their take-off of Tina Turner’s “What’s Love Got to Do with It.” Throughout the day there were presentations on the U.S. health care system, trauma centers in the state and how students can get more involved in the local community and School of Social Work. Student posters based on specific social policy issues, such as homelessness, childhood obesity and the Dream Act, were on display in Tucker Hall throughout the day. Policy Day was started in 2003 by Hopps to highlight the lasting positive impacts of wellcrafted social policy.

Roosevelt’s granddaughter, Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, spoke to students at the 2008 Parham Policy Day. Harry Hopkins was friends with Eleanor Roosevelt and worked with her to advance the cause of the poor and oppressed in America.

Find more online:

Hurst Named One of 15 National Winners of Inaugural Doris Duke Fellowship

by Leslie Herskowitz ABJ ’11 Tamara Hurst, a Ph.D. student in the School of Social Work, recently was awarded the inaugural Doris Duke Fellowship for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, along with 14 other doctoral students from across the country. Beginning in September, Hurst will participate in a two-year learning experience designed to encourage researchers to seek ways to prevent child abuse.

She also will receive an annual $25,000 stipend.

“The Doris Duke Fellowship is really going to provide me with a huge boost to my research-a big stepping stone professionally,” Hurst said.

“Already, it has provided me with a lot of support for what I need to do, without having to stress out about funding.”

Launched by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago, the program continues the legacy of Duke, the tobacco heiress and philanthropist, who took a special interest in the needs of children.

The program, which challenges doctoral students to examine the many factors that contribute to a child’s risk for abuse or neglect, is intended to stimulate a long-term interest in child welfare.

Hurst will be paired with a mentor and will participate in a collegial network for fellows, attend annual knowledge sharing meetings and take part in presentation and training opportunities. Fellows come from a range of fields, including social work, public health, medicine, public policy, education and economics.

“Since it is a multidisciplinary fellowship, I will be able to branch outside of social work and pull from other disciplines,” Hurst said. “I am really looking forward to meeting a lot of people who work in my same area, but not necessarily in social work, so I can help them be informed about what social work is all about, and they can tell me what they are doing.”

For her research, Hurst will develop a primary prevention program in the commercial sexual exploitation of children. She will work with her mentor, Michael Holosko, the Pauline M. Berger Memorial Professor of Family and Child Welfare at UGA’s School of Social Work. Upon completion of her Ph.D., she plans to keep her options open as to whether she will pursue academia or the policy arena.

“This award has completely changed what I am able to do, where I can go, people I can talk to, participants I can get,” Hurst said. “I want to be able to travel to some of the agencies that are working in the area I am interested in, and the Doris Duke Fellowship allows me to do that.” fall

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MSW Student Takes Fulton County High School Students to Brazil

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hen advanced standing MSW student Jeoson Johnthomas accepted his field placement at the Fulton County Global Youth Leadership Program, he didn’t know what to expect. Having never worked with high school students, Johnthomas was apprehensive about the prospect, until he actually started the internship.

“They challenged me,” he said. “These are the kind of kids who are on the debate team, so whenever I say something they say something right back. They are outstanding students—the best in their schools.”

The two-year program prepares children and youth of Fulton County for global competition and cultural competency through scholarship, community service and international travel. Applicants are put through a rigorous screening process, which includes having a minimum GPA of 3.2, foreign language classes and a formal interview.

The 22 students who were accepted into the program this year, called “global youth ambassadors,” began preparing in the Fall for a 10-day trip to Brazil in June.

With a diverse international background, international travel experience and a focus on community empowerment and program development in the MSW program, Johnthomas brought the ideal skill set to internship. “Travel makes our lives much more colorful,” Johnthomas said. “Travel is one of the best ways we learn about others and other cultures and get to know others in their own settings. One of the things l love about this program is that these students got to travel and experience a different part of the world and their lives are not the same because of that,” he said.

Johnthomas served as a co-facilitator of the program and helped develop the five-part curriculum, which is based on the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals to eradicate poverty, public speaking, foreign language, community service and international travel. Johnthomas, who was born in India, has traveled to many parts of the world including remote villages in the Amazon and India to do humanitarian work. He also 12

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has lived in Qatar, Germany and Peru where he learned that every culture has something great to teach about life.

When they arrived in Brazil, Johnthomas co-led the group to planned activities such as meetings with various community leaders, sightseeing and cultural demonstrations in Rio de Janeiro and Salvador.

“Every single one of them said, ‘this changed my life’,” Johnthomas said. It was life changing for many of them because they have never been outside of the State of Georgia or seen the ocean or been on a plane, he explained. “To see a different country and also at the same time a lot of issues such as racial inequalities and the income disparities and different injustice like that, it gave them a real world view of how life is in other countries. A lot of times we get really isolated and sheltered in our own world view and we sometimes forget how the rest of the world works.”

One of the activities over their 10 day journey was serving food at a homeless care facility. Many students were moved to tears and vowed to get involved in community service efforts back home.

“We can only imagine based on our point of reference. For many of these students who have never been anywhere outside of South Atlanta, now they have a point of reference. They can imagine big and dream bigger,” he said.

The Fulton County Global Youth Leadership Program was created

by Chairman John H. Eaves and supported by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners in 2008 as a new component of the Fulton County Youth Commission. The program is jointly sponsored by the Fulton County Government and the Georgia Council for International Visitors.

For more on Fulton County Global Youth Leadership Program: http://sites.google.com/site/fcglobalyouth/home

Voices for Recovery: Students Promote Addiction Recovery through Website A group of students in the School of Social Work is making a difference in the lives of those who have been affected by addiction.

Under the direction of Donna Leigh Bliss, an associate professor, 14 student volunteers from her Clinical Practice with Addictive disorders course launched a website for the Augusta community. The site compiles all available resources related to addiction into a one-stop source for information seekers. RecoveryAugusta.org went live on Tuesday, Sept.

13 as part of National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month.

“Addictions weave their way into a large majority of American lives,” said Maggie Hughes, an MSW student who worked on the project.

“I am so excited to offer these resources to the Augusta community.”

Addiction is the nation’s number one health problem, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and millions of Americans are affected by it, including children and families.

RecoveryAugusta.org is the fifth in a series of websites that have been developed by Bliss’s students. Each year, Bliss and her students select a city in Georgia and work together to compile information, photos and resources for each community. Bliss initiated the idea five years ago as one of five inaugural Service Learning Fellows at UGA. The first website, RecoveryAthens.org, was targeted to the UGA and Athens community. The class also has developed sites for Atlanta (RecoveryAtlanta.org), Savannah (RecoverySavannah.org) and Macon (RecoveryMacon.org).

“This is about students taking a leadership role, which I think is very important,” Bliss said. “Some of the students utilize the websites in their practices, which I think is a very good thing to do.”

“I think this is a fantastic initiative put forth by the University of Georgia,” said MSW student Alexandra Thompson. “I am so proud to be a part of it.”

National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month is an annual observance that takes place during the month of September to promote the awareness of addiction in the U.S. The initiative encourages citizens to take part in the observance through an activity that will help improve addiction awareness in their communities. The National Recovery Month initiative is supported through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Center for Substance Abuse Treatment within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Patterson Awarded Tisha Abolt Graduate Assistantship

by Leslie Herskowitz, ABJ ’11 First-year MSW student Catherine Patterson received the Tisha Abolt Graduate Assistantship this year. She is the first recipient of the assistantship since the completion of its endowment. The award, intended for an individual who plans to return to the Savannah region to work with children and families, will cover tuition and a monthly stipend for two years in exchange for 13 hours of research per week.

“I was really taken aback just by learning about Tisha and her legacy and how much the professors loved her,” said Patterson. “My dream and passion in the social work arena mirrors hers, and this is a huge honor for me to receive this award.”

Patterson will be doing her research with Michael Holosko, Ph.D., Pauline M. Berger Professor of Family and Child Welfare. She and Holosko are working on a book review as well as conceptualizing a Facebook page honoring Abolt’s family with specific links to child welfare, children and family information for people working in the field.

This summer, Patterson will be doing her practicum seminar in Savannah at St. Joseph’s/Candler Hospital.

Upon finishing her masters degree, she aspires to own and operate a private practice that will service a multi-county region within the Coastal Empire.

“My practice will primarily focus on children and families, but will also service other population groups within the social work spectrum,” Patterson said.

The Tisha Abolt Graduate Assistantship was established to celebrate the life of Tisha Abolt, an MSW student at UGA who grew up in Savannah. She planned to return to the area to work with family and children upon graduating. On April 8, 2000, just weeks short of graduation, Abolt died in an automobile accident.

Her family, in conjunction with the School of Social Work and the Clinical Social Work Association of Savannah, established the assistantship to honor her memory.

“It has been a delight to work with Catherine,” Holosko said. “She is extremely capable—a very good student. She writes well and is very diligent about upholding the legacy of the family.”

Four students have previously benefited from the assistantship.

For more information, see www.RecoveryMonth.gov. fall

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Walter ’97 Receives Inaugural Jim Dodd Alumni Award

By Harold Waters, Jr. Donna Walter, a 1997 MSW graduate, was honored as the inaugural recipient of the Jim Dodd Alumni Award at the School’s annual awards banquet in April. The award was established in honor of James Lee Dodd, Ph.D., a 1970 MSW graduate and founding member of the School’s Board of Visitors who died in March 2010. The award will be presented annually to an alumnus who embodies meritorious leadership, initiative, dedication and loyalty to the University of Georgia School of Social Work. Walter was chosen among a diverse group of active alumni of the School of Social Work.

“Donna has been a great asset to the School of Social Work,” said Dean Maurice C. Daniels. “She is a very supportive alumna and she served the School with distinction. Her leadership and outreach to our alumni helped make the world premiere of Donald Hollowell: Foot Soldier for Equal Justice a resounding success. She embodies Jim Dodd’s legacy in so many ways. We are thankful for her outstanding service to our School. She is very deserving of this highest recognition we give to our alumni.”

Walter served on the planning committee for the world premiere of the documentary film, Donald Hollowell: Foot Soldier for Equal Justice. The committee organized and marketed the world premiere of the documentary film, which was released in 2010. Walter was instrumental in organizing alumni support for the film and the premiere event. The film, co-directed by Daniels, went on to win a 2011 Bronze Telly Award. In 2010, the endowment for the Donald L. Hollowell Professorship was completed and Obie Clayton, Ph.D., was named the inaugural professor.

Walter earned her B.S. degree from the University of Miami, majoring in biology, with minors in chemistry and English. While pursuing her degree, Walter began volunteering with mental health agencies, which ignited a passion for community organizing. She followed her passion and later enrolled in the Master of Social Work program at the University of Georgia. She achieved great success with her studies and earned a Patricia Roberts Harris Fellowship, a national grant which funded historically underrepresented graduate students. She later joined the Department of Health and Human Services, working on a variety of issues including HIV/AIDS, substance abuse research and mental health issues.

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Mitchell Awarded Inaugural Pauline M. Berger Assistantship

by Leslie Herskowitz ABJ ’11

She currently is the principal associate and chief executive officer of Live Full Leave Empty (LFLE), Inc. LFLE Inc. is a minority owned company specializing in consultative and training services for organizations. Using gender and culturally sensitive strategies, LFLE Inc., promotes organizational success by enhancing the ability of an organization to achieve its mission, goals and objectives. In addition to operating her own private consulting firm, Walter is currently enrolled in the University of Georgia’s Ph.D. program for adult education. She is scheduled to receive her Ed.D. in educational leadership in 2013. She plans to become a “change agent” in the corporate arena, by developing specialized training to hold environmental organizations accountable for their international, political and economic impact.

Dodd was a champion of mental health issues and extremely active in the field of social work, serving on a host of mental health boards and committees in West Central Georgia. He retired after many years from the mental health unit of the West Central Georgia Regional Hospital in Columbus, GA. He was deeply devoted to the University of Georgia. Dodd was a founding member and chair of the School of Social Work’s Board of Visitors, a group of faithful supporters and leaders whose mission is to advise the School on trends and issues in the state that impact the School’s programs, activities and services.

As devoted as Dodd was to UGA and mental health causes, he was best known for his devotion to his wife, Jacquelyn and their three children. Dodd also served as pastor of the Dallas Presbyterian Church in LaGrange, GA for 42 years.

“Jim was one of our most active alumni and staunch supporters. The School of Social Work wanted to honor his memory and legacy perpetually. His commitment and service played a pivotal role in the many achievements of our School,” Daniels said.

First-year MSW student Joanna Mitchell has been awarded the inaugural Pauline M. Berger assistantship in the School of Social Work, which will allow her to conduct research and outreach under Michael Holosko, the Pauline M. Berger Professor of Family and Child Welfare.

“This is a great opportunity not only for my career but for me personally,” Mitchell said. “It’s an honor to have [this assistantship]. It’s very exciting, because it is exactly what I want to do with my life. I want to work to advocate for families and children.”

Mitchell, a Columbus, Ohio native, was selected for the assistantship based on her interest in working in child welfare, her academic merit and her demonstrated leadership. The assistantship will grant Mitchell a stipend as well as cover Mitchell’s tuition.

“I didn’t really know what I wanted to do when I graduated,” said Mitchell, who majored in psychology at John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. Her father had been diagnosed with lung cancer that spring and her family asked her to move back home to help care for him.

“That’s when I was really introduced to social work in general,” she said.

“Meeting people in the hospital, therapy settings and people telling me about social work-that’s when I started looking into it-it kind of fit perfectly with my ideals.”

Mitchell’s first task this semester was to create a website for child welfare resources. Holosko and Mitchell also plan to create a Facebook page honoring Berger and the research that has been supported by the generosity of her husband, Dr. Israel Berger, who provided the financial resources for the assistantship and Holosko’s endowed research chair.

Mitchell would like to one day work with military families. “A lot of people see only the military personnel and don’t recognize the impact the families go through. I want to work with those families and their readjustment with the war.” She will be working 13 hours a week under Holosko while also pursuing a certificate in marriage and family therapy.

The Pauline M. Berger assistantship was established to provide two graduate assistantships in the School of Social Work in honor of Berger, who taught at the university from 1956 to 1976. As professor of human behavior and director of admissions in the School of Social Work, Berger had an exceptionally warm demeanor and was a direct practitioner who taught counseling with individuals, small groups and families, according to Holosko. After her death in 2006, her husband bequeathed an endowed research chair in her name, the largest donation the school has ever received, and later, the two assistantships.

Holosko accepted the Pauline M. Berger Memorial Professorship in Family and Child Welfare in 2006. “It’s a really privileged position. It honors her and the area of child and family welfare,” he said.

“We hope to keep alive the well-being of the fellowship,” Holosko said. “Dr. Berger has been a very generous donor to this school and we will do anything to keep Pauline’s legacy alive.”

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donor honor roll $10,000 and Up Ms. Leigh Elizabeth Engen Dr. Laura Myers Dr. Bruce Thyer

$1,000 to $9,999 Ms. Jennifer Abbott Dean Maurice C. Daniels Mr. Dexter L. Fisher Dr. Karen A. Holbrook and Dr. James R. Holbrook Mr. Kenneth Whiddon Dr. Bonnie L. Yegidis

$500 to $999 Mrs. Loveanne Bowles Addison and Mr. John Aurelius Addison Jr. Mr. James Robert Bacon and Mrs. Lisa Bacon Ms. Carol Jarvis and Dr. Douglas Jarvis Mr. William Theodore Lynch and Mrs. Gail T. Lynch

$100 to $499 Mr. Larry Daniel Aaron and Mrs. Gail Roberts Aaron Mr. David Arispe Dr. David Paschal Boyle Mrs. Elizabeth Harris Brandes Dr. Brian Edward Bride Dr. Elizabeth Everett Brown and Mr. J. David Brown Mrs. Kathleen Mason Bryan Ms. Marjorie Pearson Bush Miss Sandra Lillian Bush Dr. Carol Sargent Collard Mr. Thomas Bomar Edmonds Jr. Mr. William Allen Elgee Mr. George Michael Fain Ms. Kathryn Farlowe Dr. Leslie Renea Ford and Mr. James P. Ford Mr. Billy Vernon Galliher and Mrs. Patsy M. Galliher Mrs. Nina Garlington Gant and Mr. David Eric Gant Ms. Johnna Lee Gardner Dr. David Hayne Haigler and Mrs. Mary M. Haigler 16

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Mr. Thomas Alvin Herndon and Ms. Rita Rogers Herndon Dr. John H. Hopps Jr. and Dr. June Gary Hopps Mr. Jerry Lee Hughes and Mrs. Barbara B. Hughes Dr. Jody D. Iodice Mr. Arthur Johnson and Mrs. T’Leatha R. Suitt-Johnson Dr. Allie Callaway Kilpatrick Ms. Barbara Jane Kleckner and Mr. Edward T. Forte Ms. Mary Lynn E. Lambert and Mr. Raymond Paul Lambert Jr. Ms. Barbara Larsen Mrs. Judith Friedlander Ledford and Mr. Andrew Cole Ledford Mrs. Margaret Williams McBrayer and Mr. Thomas C. McBrayer Jr. Mr. Steven Brent McRae and Dr. Elizabeth Gillespie McRae Ms. Ward T. Milner Ms. Mary Rabon Moore Dr. Deana Frances Morrow and Ms. Frances E. Tack Jeanell M Muckle Mr. Bill Neugroschel and Dr. Cynthia G. Tudor Ms. Frezalia Levester Oliver and Mr. Roy S. Oliver Jr. Ms. Dorothy B. Pelote Mrs. Louisa Hoffmeier Ramey and Mr. Robert Leroy Ramey Jr. Dr. Margaret M. Robinson Ms. Jean Jones Rowe Ms. Ilze Linda Ruditis Ms. Sharron Rose Sable and Mr. Leo M. Sable Mrs. Ola Lumpkin Simmons Ms. Sara Stauffer and Mr. Larry L. Gordley Ms. Susan Marylynn Stephenson Mr. Daniel Steven Sweitzer and Ms. Denise Carol Powers Mr. Ricky Wilson Ussery Sr. and Mrs. Marsha M. Ussery Mrs. Sharon Smith Watson and Mr. Michael P. Watson Mr. Saul Watzman and Ms. Kyle Watzman Mr. McDonald Williams and Dr. Jamye C. Williams Ms. Leda Loshak Zbar

$99 and Under Mr. Daniel P. Ahonen and Mrs. Rosemary Ahonen Mr. Franklin Edwin Ard Ms. Susan Lezah Arney and Mr. Kenneth David Arney Ms. Audra Leigh Wages Arnold and Mr. Erik Christopher Arnold Dr. June Averyt Ms. Katherine Bachman Ms. Martha Watson Barkdoll and Mr. Anthony Phillip Barkdoll Mr. James Barrow Jr. and Mrs. Sallyanne Crawford Barrow Ms. Melinda Susan Bates Mrs. Alicia Dawn Bellezza-Watts Mrs. Barbara Sacks Bohn and Mr. Jerry L. Bohn Ms. Elizabeth Kendall Bosserman Ms. Rosemarie Lesch Boyd and Dr. Lynn Howard Boyd Mrs. Marjorie Gilley Boynton Ms. Beverly Amber Boze Mr. Gregory Robert Brown Mrs. Gabriela Elvira Brucker and Dr. Mark Christian Brucker Ms. Ruth Hayes Bruner and Dr. Robert R. Bruner Dr. Tracy Carpenter-Aeby and Dr. Victor George Aeby Jr. Ms. Betty A. Clark Mrs. Lucie Majoros Coffie Ms. Rebecca Ashley Crenshaw Mr. Nick Danna Ms. Kasandra Dodd Mrs. Josephine Thornton Dye and Mr. Allen J. Dye Ms. Elizabeth Ann Farragh Mr. William Thomas Ferriss and Mrs. Adrienne H. Z. Ferriss Dr. Susan Lynn Fowler Ms. Abigail Dawn Fuhlendorf Mr. Willis Ralph Glidden and Mrs. Barbara S. Glidden Ms. Kerrie Angela Gnann Mr. Andrew Godfrey-Kittle Mrs. Peggy Liotta Golden and Mr. Vince Eugene Golden Mr. Larry Neal Goodwin and Mrs. Linda Willis Goodwin

Ms. Rachel Lea Green Mrs. Linda May Grobman and Mr. Gary Grobman Ms. Rebecca Ethel Hair Ms. Sandra Tatum Haisten Ms. Patricia Monique Hardin Ms. Susan Salomon Hargett Ms. Amber Lorraine Harris and Mr. Tyler Edgerton Ms. Karen Hancock Haworth Ms. Mary Edith Herrin Ms. Hilda Cook Hilliard Ms. Kathleen Stelling Hodgson and Mr. Mac Hodgson Mrs. Carole A. Holen-Cash Mr. Yul Dion Holloway Ms. Sonyanna Stone Hudson Mrs. Cheryl Averett Johnson Mrs. Cynthia Olson Jones and MAJ (Ret) Thomas D. Jones Mr. Paul Bentley Jones Ms. Gabrielle Joseph Ms. Ruth Elayne Keith Mr. Dwight Mason Kelley Ms. Maureen Ann Kelly and Mr. Michael J. Kelly Ms. Jane Marie Kerner-Mendoza Mrs. Jennifer Karesh Knudson and Mr. Mark P. Knudson Ms. Shirley Anne Lambert Ms. Brooke Dean Lampe Mr. Glenn Carlisle Lane Ms. Rebecca Allison Lavender Mrs. Annie Mildred Sims Lyle and Mr. Hubert Lyle, Jr. Mrs. Marilyn Gardner Mann and Mr. James A. Mann Mrs. Jacqueline Michele Marcinko and Mr. John Michael Marcinko Dr. Mary Emma McConaughey and Mr. Dan McConaughey Mr. Lyle Webster McCormick Mrs. Camille Dudley McNutt and Mr. Ronald Wallace McNutt Mrs. Sandra McKie Milhollin Ms. Diana Frost Miller and Mr. Cecil Ray Delcher Ms. Helen Tyber Morton Dr. Sandra Ruthven Murphy Mr. Brad W. Neathery Ms. Mary Ann Vollink Payne

Mrs. Susan Peterson-Hazan Mrs. Nancy Dill Phipps and Mr. Donald Leroy Phipps II Ms. Jane Phillips Piper Mrs. Martha Dee Pollack and Dr. Robert H. Pollack Ms. Nancy Kay Porteous and Mr. David Stephen Godfrey Ms. Karen Mitchell Rainer and Mr. Jackson P. Rainer Ms. JoAlice Ray Mr. Peter Terrell Ray Ms. Caitlin King Reilly Ms. Julie Wilson Ribaudo Ms. Susan Cadillac Russell Ms. Kristin Elise Hitt Ryan Mr. Alton Lowe Scott III and Mrs. Melanie T. Scott Dr. Roger Lamar Scott and Ms. Marianne Olson Scott Mr. Larry Michael Shackelford and Ms. Gail Shackelford Mrs. Kathleen Metzger Shuford and Mr. Carlton Lamont Shuford Ms. Amanda Brown Sissem and Mr. Howard J. Sissem III Ms. Marylynne Rukert Solomon Ms. Karen A. Speer Mrs. Mary Dukes Stapleton Mrs. Andrea Mills Suarez and Mr. Gustavo Antonio Suarez Mrs. Karen Elaine Selman Teems and Mr. Grady Teems Jr. Ms. Abigail Jo Thomas Mr. Kenneth Duane Tomlin and Mrs. Marlene Goldstein Tomlin Ms. Elizebeth Tucker Mr. John Phillip Tucker Dr. Sarah Elizabeth Twill Mrs. Nancy Bearse Vanderlan and Mr. John H. Vanderlan Mrs. Janice Callaway Vernon and Mr. Andrew A. Vernon Dr. M. Elizabeth Vonk Mrs. Sheila Anne Banks Wakeley and Mr. Melvin Wakeley Mrs. Patricia Garin White and Dr. David R. White Mrs. Leigh Ann Morris Wicinski and Mr. Thomas Mark Wicinski

Mrs. Patricia Becton Wilker and Mr. Willie Ed Wilker Ms. Catherine Chinnis Williams Ms. Timeka Retosh Williams Ms. Candace T. Witherspoon and Mr. William A. Witherspoon Dr. Janie Hills Wolf-Smith and Mr. Richard D. Smith Ms. Leslie Grace Wuest

Corporations and Foundations AmericanWork, Inc. AT&T Foundation McKesson Foundation Inc. National Endowment for Financial Education St. Joseph’s/Candler Twenty-Seven Foundation Wide Range of Resources, Inc.

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Sandra Lorean

Melanie Carlson

Amanda Chenault

Chandra Dunn

Amanda Turner

Margaret Hughes

Rebecca Ciatto

Danielle Barth

Catherine Patterson

Joanna Mitchell

Sandra Lorean Pauline D. Lide Scholarship Award

Rebecca Ciatto Joe and Diane Perno Scholarship Award

This scholarship was established in memory of Dr. Pauline Lide, professor emerita in the School of Social Work. Preference is given to students pursuing the MSW degree.

Established in memory of Joe Perno, an alumnus of the School of Social Work, and his wife, Diane, this scholarship provides financial assistance to students pursuing the MSW degree.

Melanie Carlson, Amanda Chenault James D. Horne Scholarship Award

Danielle Barth Mary Jane Coberth Memorial Scholarship Award

Established in memory of Mr. Horne, a philanthropist and friend of the school, this scholarship provides financial assistance to BSW or MSW students with a preference given to students interested in working with the homeless.

Established in memory of Mary Jane Coberth, mother of MSW program advisor Katherine Adams, the purpose of this award is to provide funding to a first-year MSW student with preference given to a student with an interest in suicide awareness and prevention.

Chanda Dunn Wilbur P. Jones Scholarship Award Established in memory of respected community activist Wilbur Jones, this scholarship promotes excellence, diversity and equity in the profession of social work by diversifying the student population within the School of Social Work. The scholarship is awarded to a graduate student from a historically underrepresented group within the field of social work.

Amanda Turner (Undergraduate) Margaret Hughes (Graduate) Heather Christina Wright Memorial Scholarship Award Established in memory of Heather Christina Wright, a former student who died of cancer in her final year of study, these scholarships provide financial assistance to BSW and MSW students who have demonstrated a financial need and the desire to work with cancer patients and their families.

Catherine Patterson Tisha Abolt Graduate Assistantship Established in memory of Tisha Abolt, a student who died in a car accident just weeks before she was to graduate with her MSW degree. The assistantship provides a tuition waiver and a stipend to a MSW student from the Georgia Coastal area.

Joanna Mitchell The Pauline Berger Graduate Assistantship The Pauline M. Berger assistantship was established to provide two graduate assistantships in the School of Social Work in honor of Berger, who taught at the University from 1956 to 1976. As professor of human behavior and director of admissions in the School of Social Work, Berger had an exceptionally warm demeanor and was a direct practitioner who taught counseling with individuals, small groups and families. In 2006 after she died, her husband bequeathed an endowed research chair in her name, the largest donation the school has ever received, and later, the two assistantships.

The School of Social Work is so proud of this year’s scholarship recipients and we appreciate our donors.

Gifts to the SSW scholarship fund help produce outstanding social workers. Your gift can really make a difference in the lives of our students and individuals in need. Thank you for your support.

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School of Social Work Annual Awards Luncheon 2010-2011 BSW Teacher of the Year: Shari E. Miller BSW Advisor of the Year: Trelle Baker MSW Teacher of the Year – Athens Campus: Stephanie K. Swann MSW Teacher of the Year – Gwinnett Campus: Sandra R. Murphy Ph.D. Teacher of the Year: Michelle Mohr Carney MNPO Teacher of the Year: Donna Leigh Bliss Outstanding BSW Student: Regina Roth-Goldman Outstanding MSW Concentration Student: Abigail Shrader Outstanding MSW Foundation Student: Aline Talmage Outstanding MSW Foundation Student – Gwinnett Campus: Amanda Brown Outstanding MSW Concentration Student – Gwinnett Campus: Anne Sanders Outstanding MNPO Student: Kate Pavich Outstanding Ph.D. Student: John Barner & Sarah Himmelheber Outstanding BSW Field Instructor: Jennifer Justice, Ben Willis, Shannon Derrick & Stephanie Byrd Outstanding MSW Field Instructor – Athens: Stephanne Thornton Outstanding MSW Field Instuctor – Gwinnett/Atlanta: Rachelle S. Hutchinson Outstanding Staff Member: Emily Williams Jim Dodd Alumni Award: Donna Walter Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant: Jacquelyn Lee Blue Key National Honor Society Initiate: Melinda Moore

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et me start by saying that 2011 has been a wonderful year! I officially joined the staff of the School of Social Work as the alumni development director in June and I have enjoyed every minute! As a UGA grad (ABJ ’98), it was especially rewarding to come back to Georgia and serve such a dynamic group of alumni.

Join us in celebrating 50 years in 2014!

Briefly, I’ll share a little bit about my background. First, I am a die-hard Bulldog fan. I attended the University of Georgia and graduated in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communication from the Grady College. I have spent the majority of my career in media marketing/media management, including stops at The Greenville News (Greenville, SC), The Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY), The Athens BannerHerald, Timothy Baptist Church (Athens, GA) and most recently my own marketing firm, Greaterwerks Marketing.

Since joining the staff this summer, I have had the opportunity to experience the masters in nonprofit management colloquium, the School of Social Work’s graduation ceremony and our fall celebration at the historic Taylor-Grady House in Athens, the Georgia Chapter meeting of the National Association of Social Workers and the Council on Social Work Education Annual Program meeting. It was awesome to meet so many of our illustrious alumni at these events!

We are excited to use social media tools such as Facebook (UGASSWAlumni), Twitter (@ugasswalumni), LinkedIn and our alumni blog at ugasswalumni.blogspot.com. Join us to find the latest updates, alumni and faculty spotlights, photos, videos, podcasts and more.

As we move in to 2012, we have several exciting projects planned. Most notably, we are organizing regional alumni groups around the Southeast as well as developing a multi-disciplinary continuing education series. Our goal is to connect with alumni on a more personal basis as well as provide ongoing value through affordable and engaging continuing education opportunities.

I am sincerely excited about what lies ahead for the School of Social Work and its alumni. Our dean, Maurice Daniels, is committed to staying connected to you and is dedicating resources to ensure that our relationships are second to none. Our goal is to be an invaluable link between you, UGA, your peers and to ultimately bring added value to your degree. Let’s talk soon!

Go Dawgs!!

Harold Waters, Jr. University of Georgia School of Social Work Alumni Development Director hwaters@uga.edu 706-542-5450

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Harold Waters, Jr. Alumni Development Director

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Annual dessert reception at CSWE APM

Alumni Sightings 1

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1. (l to r): Jennifer Abbott, Howard Guest, Elizabeth Linthicum, Johnie Tucker (UGA Vs UT Alumni Football Watching Party) 2. Kathryn “Kat” Farlowe & Jeffrey Yarvis (Ph.D ‘04) (2011 CSWE Annual Program Meeting Dessert Reception)

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3. (l to r): Glenn Thomas, Harold Waters, Tonia Thomas (MSW ‘10) (UGA Vs UT Alumni Football Watching Party) 4. Katie Hooks (MSW ‘07) & Melissa Patrick (MSW ‘07) (2011 NASW-GA Conference in Atlanta) 5. Vanessa Walker-Wilfong (MSW ‘94) & Autum Shelton (MSW ‘07) (2011 NASW-GA Conference in Atlanta)

Faculty, staff, alumni and friends gathered

6. Dr. Schavia Smith Hatcher & Dr. Terry Lewinson (Ph. D ‘07) (2011 CSWE Annual Program Meeting Dessert Reception)

for the School of Social Work’s annual dessert reception at the CSWE APM. Guests enjoyed peach suzette and reconnecting with each other in Atlanta.

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7. Rocio D. Woody (MSW ‘96) (2011 NASW-GA Conference in Atlanta) 8. Stephen McGarity (MSW ‘11) & Lauren Ricciardelli (MSW ‘11) (After a meeting outside Jittery Joe’s on Athens’ Eastside) fall

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Your Learning is Just Beginning, Says Commencement Speaker Swann MSW ’94

By Emily Williams

Stephanie K. Swann (MSW ’94)

Summer Commencement 2011

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ocial workers are needed more than ever to provide professional services to those in need. But shrinking budgets and program cuts make it difficult to reach the most vulnerable members of society. Social workers will face many obstacles in making a positive difference in the lives of those they serve, but they are equipped to take on the challenge, said commencement speaker Stephanie K. Swann, Ph.D. Swann, a ’94 graduate of the MSW program and part-time instructor, urged graduates to use the tools in their tool box to make a difference in the lives of those they serve and to keep adding tools throughout their careers.

“As all of you know, the United States of America remains one of the wealthiest nations in our world and yet we continue to struggle to provide the bare necessities for many of our citizens,” Swann said.

Swann offered several examples of how social workers are needed in Georgia by reading headlines pulled from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution related to child abuse, post-traumatic stress after a tornado, Georgia’s new mental health court system, violence against a gay high school student, and senior citizens in need of prescription drugs.

“Georgia and our country definitely need you,” she said. “It’s not the psychologists; it’s not the psychiatrists who are on the front lines. It’s you, the social workers of our state. We have so much to do,” she said.

Social workers have the training and expertise to understand behavior and human development in a socio-cultural context and can understand the consequences of oppression and discrimination on a person’s sense of self on individual and collective behavior and on community vitality, Swann pointed out.

“As social workers, you have responsibility to challenge issues of social injustice, to advocate for clients and to effect change in systems that are often resistant to your efforts. This is no small task,” she said. “You have agreed to embark on a career that can be rewarding, frustrating, satisfying, discouraging, stressful and most of all deeply challenging.”

She challenged the class of 2011 to question whether or not they are curious enough to be social workers each day and to be open to their client’s world because clients can be the best teachers in life.

“Curiosity is so important in your self-care and in the care you will give your clients,” she said. “When you believe you have all the answers and the person with whom you are meeting is just another person wanting something from you, it is time to stop, take a deep breath and ask the question, ‘Am I curious enough to be a good social worker today?’”

Swann also encouraged graduates to seek out new ideas, challenge old ideas, read new books and articles and attend conferences. “Keep expanding your knowledge base. You will never know it all, but you really can keep searching and you and your clients will benefit and reap the rewards. So in many ways, your learning is just beginning,” she said.

She concluded her talk with a poem often read in Synagogues during the Jewish New Year, “Birth is a beginning and death a destination and life is a journey from ignorance to knowing, from foolishness to discretion and then perhaps to wisdom.”

Swann divides her time in her busy private practice in Atlanta, where she works with adolescents, adults, couples and individuals, teaching at UGA, and providing clinical consultation to CHRIS Kids, Inc., which serves youth from the juvenile justice system, all while supervising graduate level social work interns and masters level social workers.

Swann has participated on the executive board of the Georgia Society of Clinical Social Work, including as president. She serves on the national advisory network of the Child Welfare League of America to support lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth and adults involved with the child welfare system. Additionally she was a founding member of a residential living program for gay, lesbian, and bisexual adolescents for CHRIS Homes. She also founded YouthPride, Incorporated, a social service organization serving the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth ages 13-24.

Swann has written and presented extensively in the area of gay and lesbian identity development with a focus on adolescent and young adulthood.

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Spring Commencement 2011

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alumni news & notes l 1960–1969

l 2000+

Janeil Jarrett, MSW ’67 – is currently retired after years of practice in social services in Lenoir, NC. Jarrett was in the second graduating class of the School of Social Work. She frequently travels to Athens to visit her son (a UGA alumnus) and his family.

Kiki Ramsey, MSW ’04 – is currently a life coach and motivational speaker, residing in suburban Washington, D. C. She is a frequent speaker at conferences and a licensed clinical social worker. She routinely counsels clients on job loss, marital or relationship problems, problems with children and teens, and death and grief.

She operates an inspirational blog at kikiramsey.com.

l 1970–1979

Jeff Yarvis, Ph.D. ’04 – is a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army, stationed at Fort Belvoir in Virginia. He is currently the Deputy Commander of the Army’s Behavioral Health Department. Lt. Col. Yarvis has previously taught Clinical Social Work Practice as an adjunct professor at Virginia Commonwealth University at the Alexandria, VA campus and Challenges in Human Development as an instructor at the University of Windsor in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

Pamela Haynes, MSW ’71 – is an adjunct professor at the University of Texas, teaching Theories and Methods of Family Intervention. She also is currently working in private practice, specializing in the areas of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression disorders, marital and parenting issues and bereavement issues.

l 1990–1999

Carla Smith, MSW ’05 – was recognized by the City of Atlanta as one of the “Power 30 Under 30,” for her work as a leader, speaker and trainer in the social services and human services arena. Smith is the CEO and co-owner of Georgia Counseling and Social Services Consultants (GCSSC), LLC, a social services consulting, program development and leadership training firm. Three University of Georgia School of Social Work alumni started the firm in 2010.

Lisa Wright Nash, MSW ’92 - is currently doing consulting work. She was recently promoted to social services coordinator with a community program under Georgia Regional Hospital at Savannah called Mobile Crisis Response Services. The program has up to 4 clinicians and two LCSW’s—the director and Wright Nash.

They complete mental health assessments on individuals ranging from 5 years-old to 90+. They go into the homes, communities, streets, schools, and one medical hospital to provide these assessments and link the individuals with the most appropriate care in the least restrictive environment. The consulting work involves training and developing treatment plans with children and adolescents in the community.

Tammy Grier, MSW ’95 – is a property manager for the Athens Housing Authority in Athens, GA. She currently manages six properties within the Authority.

She previously worked as a staff social worker.

David Myers, MSW ’96 - is the director of EMBRACE, a three-way partnership between Georgia Department of Family and Children’s Service (DFCS), the Foster Family Foundation of Georgia, Inc. and the University of Georgia’s Fanning Institute for Public Service and Outreach.

Edwina Knox-Betty, MSW ’97 - is a licensed clinical social worker with M & E Consulting, based in Metro Atlanta. Her practice focuses on gender and mental health issues. She has served as an adjunct professor with the MSW program at the University of Georgia’s Gwinnett Campus. She also is a state-qualified LCSW supervisor.

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Connect with us! www.facebook.com/UGASocialWork

www.twitter.com/UGASocialWork

Join our group on

We need your e-mail address!

Please update your contact information at www.ssw.uga.edu or e-mail us at sswalum@uga.edu.

Ghana Program Celebrates 10 Years

The Interdisciplinary Study Abroad in Ghana Program celebrated its 10th anniversary on UGA’s campus Sept. 20 in the Tate Student Center’s Grand Hall. The 10th anniversary also was marked at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi, Ghana during the May 2010 voyage. Several alumni shared what the trip meant to them.

LaTera Davis, MSW ’07 – is the external affairs coordinator in the Office of Communications for the DeKalb County Department of Juvenile Justice. She also is an instructor at Phoenix University, teaching courses on advocacy and mediation.

Elizabeth Linthicum, MNPO ’09 – is the assistant director of annual and special giving at University of Georgia. She previously worked as a campaign assistant at Coxe Curry & Associates, an Atlanta-area non-profit fundraising firm.

Maggie Fenwood, MSW ’11 – was selected by the Peace Corps to serve as a youth development volunteer in Honduras.

Brad Neathery, MSW ’11 – has recently been named annual fund officer at Truman State University in Kirksville, Missouri. Neathery previously served as assistant director of annual and special giving at the University of Georgia.

Lauren Ricciardelli, MSW ’11/Stephen McGarity, MSW ’11 – along with several fellow UGA grads and social work alumni, recently started Georgia C.L.A.Y. (Community-Based Learning for At-Risk Youth). This new agency works with local juvenile justice systems to find alternatives to incarceration. Its goal is to empower at-risk youth who are engaged in the mental health and correctional settings to become active members of their community through service-based learning initiatives and inhome clinical case management.

Katie Vesser, MSW ’11 – is the associate editor at VOX Teen Newspaper, in Atlanta, GA. Her primary responsibility is to coach teens through the writing process, dealing with the issues that they write about, and helping them to publish their work in a helping and therapeutic way.

Deidre Carmichael, MSW ’97 (Ph.D ’13) – is the curriculum coordinator at the School of Social Work at Georgia State University in Atlanta. She is responsible for educational programming, planning, instructional design, staff development and training for employees working in public child welfare. She is scheduled to complete her Ph.D. in adult education from the University of Georgia in 2013.

SSW Career Panel Five School of Social Work alumnae discussed what they do, how they got there, a typical day, rewards and challenges, and top advice for people considering social work as a career. Panelists: Kimberly Stennent (BSW ’10), LMSW, Atlanta Vista Care Hospice; Jennifer E. Cantwell (MSW ’04), Action, Inc.; Audrey Brannen (MSW ’06), LCSW, Department of Family and Children Services, Region V Permanency Expediter; Paige Tidwell (MSW ’08), Program Director, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, Athens Community Council on Aging; Dana Dillard (MSW ’01), LCSW, Programs Director, Georgia Firefighters Burn Foundation. The event was sponsored by the Career Center and Audio online: School of Social Work.

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Faculty News Brian Bride was named Spring 2011 Distinguished Scholar at Buffalo Center for Social Research. A widely recognized expert on secondary traumatic stress, Bride received the award during a colloquium at the Buffalo Center for Social Research at the State University of New York-Buffalo. The bi-annual colloquium is an outlet for recognized scholars to present research findings.

Maurice Daniels received the Love of Learning Award, Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society’s highest honor, December 8, 2010 at their fall induction ceremony at the Tate Student Center’s Grand Hall. He also delivered the keynote address.

Daniels will be honored with a Pioneer Award at the 22nd Annual Emancipation Proclamation Observance and Pioneer Awards, which recognizes deserving citizens and organizations whose contributions have made a difference in the lives of others.

Michael Holosko and Jeff Skinner were selected by CSWE to participate in a “think tank” to design the implicit curriculum, based on a model they developed and field tested previously in the BSW program.

June Gary Hopps was recognized at the 75th Anniversary of the Boston College Graduate School of Social Work for her 24 years of service as dean. The School recognized her numerous accomplishments while dean. At the close of her career at Boston, the School was ranked 14th in the U.S. News World Report rankings and her faculty was ranked among the most productive faculty in professional social work education. She also was awarded a Harvard Silver Bowl and was recognized at Tufts University for her efforts in developing a diverse student body in higher education by recruiting and expanding the number of young minorities who go into the science, technology, engineering and mathematics as a field of study.

Michelle Mohr Carney was promoted to the rank of full professor.

Denise Davison was appointed as a member of the CSWE Council on the Role and Status of Women in Social Work Education for a 3-year term effective July 1, 2011. The Council is responsible for the development of educational resources relevant to women’s issues within social work education. The Council works to eliminate all procedures within academia that hinder the full participation of women, makes recommendations to the board of directors on matters of policy, and initiates and coordinates programs and activities related to women in social work education. Davison also joined UGA’s Institute for Women’s Studies as an affiliate faculty member.

Cheryl Davenport Dozier was named interim president at Savannah State University. She also was named president of the Georgia Association of Women in Higher Education at its annual meeting on February 25, 2011. Dozier was promoted to the rank of full professor.

Bert Ellett continued to serve as the peer elected chair for the CSWE Child Welfare Symposium Track that she originated in 1997. She arranged four special meetings with approximately 150 individuals attending each session in 2011. She also continued to serve as the coelected co-chair of the Child Welfare Research Interest Group for the Society for Social Work and Research, which she initiated in 2003.

Trisha Reeves was invited to do a series of presentations at four universities in New Zealand over the summer. Three of the presentations focused on her “Healthy Teens” study, which is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. She presented to

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Participants in the Maternal and Child Health Post-Graduate Leadership Academy convened at the University of Georgia in July for their second immersion retreat in the yearlong program. The academy, a collaboration between University of Maryland and University of Georgia Schools of Social Work, trains leaders in maternal and child health settings who want to take on more leadership roles in their careers. The Leadership Academy is led by Associate Professor Donna Leigh Bliss.

various departments including faculty from medicine and behavioral sciences. Reeves worked with Professor Pamela Orpinas from the College of Public Health and Dean Andy Horne from the College of Education, in addition to many students on this study since 2005.

Ed Risler was promoted to the rank of full professor.

Burn Camp was a featured program in UGA’s recognition by the Carnegie Foundation for its institutional commitment to community engagement through teaching, research, and public service with the Community Engagement Classification. Nancy Rothenberg started the service learning course in 2000.

Jerome Schiele released Social Welfare Policy: Regulation and Resistance Among People of Color in January. The book, edited by Schiele, is a collection of manuscripts by various authors who frame social welfare policy in the United States from a racism-centered viewpoint and discuss how people of color have organized to resist those policies.

Betsy Vonk was promoted to the rank of full professor.

Bride Receives Creative Research Medal from UGA Research Foundation Brian Bride received the Creative Research Medal from the University of Georgia Research Foundation.

The medals are awarded for outstanding research or creative activity within the past five years that focuses on a single theme identified with UGA.

Ellett Named Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Public Child Welfare In a national search, Associate Professor Alberta J. “Bert” Ellett was selected by Taylor and Francis Group as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Public Child Welfare. Ellett served as co-editor from 2007-2010.

“It has been exciting to have some input about the direction that the research in the field is going,” Ellett said.

“It’s a lot of work, but it has helped me meet up-and-coming researchers and scholars in academia.”

The Journal of Public Child Welfare was established in 2004 to address a shortage in publication outlets for researchers in child welfare.

The journal has grown over the years, but Ellett plans to grow it even more.

“My goal is to continue to improve the quality of the articles that are submitted and published as well as to help move the journal to become a top tier journal. I also plan to increase circulation and readership. We are trying to get the attention of child welfare administrators to use the journal,” she said.

Ellett’s strategy to attain these goals includes restructuring the editorial board and pursuing innovative measures such engaging public child welfare administrators as well as international researchers in the journal’s readership as well as becoming contributors and members of the editorial board.

Ellett’s main area of research focuses on professionalizing the child welfare workforce, which has become an emerging field in social work research. She is a nationally recognized expert in child welfare and recently received the 2010 Council on Social Work Education’s Distinguished Recent Contributions in Social Work Education Award and was re-elected secretary of the Society for Social Work Research.

Bride Named Editor of Traumatology School of Social Work Associate Professor Brian Bride has been named editor of Traumatology, the official publication of the Green Cross Academy of Traumatology.

“Many of the leading researchers in trauma are now publishing in Traumatology,” said Bride. “So to be asked to serve at the helm of an emerging leader in the field of traumatology is truly exciting.”

Bride will develop a new vision for the journal to keep pace with the emerging and evolving field. The international, interdisciplinary journal attracts submissions from social work, psychology, psychiatry, economics, nursing and other humanitarian focused fields. Bride has served on the editorial board of Traumatology for more than 10 years.

“Brian Bride was selected because of his extraordinary breadth and depth as a scholar who effectively balances being a scholar and being a practitioner, while conceptualizing issues as a social work educator,” said Charles Figley, founder of the journal. “If ever we need someone like Professor Bride to provide leadership during these tumultuous times, it is now.”

Bride was a research assistant for Figley at Florida State University while working on his masters degree. Bride and Figley coedited a book, Death and Trauma: The Traumatology of Grieving.

Figley founded the journal in 1995 to showcase work in the expanding field of traumatology. The web-based format was the first of its kind, and the articles cover numerous branches of the field, including psychosocial, systemic and behavioral trauma. The journal also circulates cutting-edge special issues related to current events, such as the Virginia Tech shootings, the Tulane University faculty experiences with Hurricane Katrina and the levee system failures, military deployment, and international conceptualization of trauma.

Future issues will feature culture and trauma and the trauma of sexual orientation minorities.

“It’s pretty humbling,” Bride said. “Charles was a mentor of mine, he’s been a mentor to many people, and he’s one of the founders of the field. He could have selected anyone.”

Risler Elected Chair of Board of Juvenile Justice School of Social Work Professor Ed Risler was elected by unanimous vote to serve as chair of the board for the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice. Risler served on the board for the last eight years and most recently held the position of vice chair.

“My emphasis has really been on education,” said Risler.

“Education is the one constant of rehabilitation.”

In his years of service on the Juvenile Justice board, Risler has been instrumental in petitioning for accreditation for the department’s educational programs by two national organizations, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and the Correctional Education Association.

“I know of no other state in the country that has had its correctional educational programs for youth accredited not by one, but two national organizations,” Risler wrote in a Nov. op-ed piece published in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

The board, comprised of 15 governor-appointed members, is responsible for establishing the general policy for the Department of Juvenile Justice, including developing programs to rehabilitate youth who are committed to state custody. The board also is responsible for providing educational programs to as many as 3,000 youth held in one of the 28 correctional facilities throughout the state.

The Department of Juvenile Justice is recognized as the 181st largest school district in Georgia. “The department’s school system complies with all state and federal IDEA [Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act] standards and meets all of the ‘No Child Left Behind’ standards for highly qualified teachers,” noted Risler in the op-ed.

Risler has more than 20 years of experience working in the juvenile justice system and working with families and troubled youth.

Holosko Releases Research Glossary with Smart Phone App Michael Holosko, the Pauline M. Berger Professor of Family and Child Welfare in the University of Georgia School of Social Work, released a glossary of more than 1,500 commonly used research terms. The glossary, titled “A Glossary of Commonly Used Research Terms for Social and Behavioral Sciences,” was the first research book published in the form of a smart phone application by Sage Publications. The glossary also was published as a handbook and a downloadable software application for personal computers.

Holosko coauthored the book with Bruce Thyer, a former UGA colleague who now is a professor at Florida State University in the School of Social Work. The pair worked with graduate students through the Pauline M. Berger Memorial Graduate Assistantship in Child and Family Welfare and the Tisha Abolt Graduate Assistantship to identify commonly used research terms. Approximately 60 percent of the terms in the glossary have been defined in one sentence, and there are no definitions exceeding three sentences, explained Holosko. fall

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Student Highlights MSW student Melanie Dupont was one of 15 students and one faculty member who were honored Nov. 11, 2010 at the Disability Resource Center’s ninth annual Student and Faculty Recognition Reception. Dupont earned the Choate Family Scholarship.

BSW students Shauna Taylor and Juliette Collins were selected to the Arch Society at UGA. The Arch Society is a unique and highly selective student organization for students in their third year or higher. Arch Society members act as official hosts and goodwill ambassadors for the University of Georgia.

BSW student Jamie Ayers received an award from the Rotaract Student Service Awards.

Students Attend Lobby Day at the Capitol

Lee Wins UGA’s Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award; Lands Spot in Future Faculty Program Jacquelyn Lee Hometown: Hattiesburg, MS Education: Ph.D.

2012 (expected), University of Georgia, School of Social Work

M.S.W.

2006 University of Southern Mississippi

B.S./B.A.

2004 University of Mississippi Social Work / Psychology, Minor: English

Q&A: Students from the School of Social Work joined more than 450 social work students and faculty from across the state for the 12th annual National Association of Social Workers Georgia Chapter Student Lobby Day recently held in Atlanta. The annual gathering provides attendees the opportunity to learn and practice the basics of legislative advocacy, while uniting social workers in Georgia to support a number of causes.

Open Mic with Dean Daniels

How does it feel to be honored with UGA’s Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award?

I am really grateful for such an acknowledgement. I truly enjoy teaching, so it’s feels great to be recognized for this valuable opportunity I have had to contribute to the School of Social Work.

What will you do with the knowledge you gain from the Future Faculty Program?

The knowledge and skills I gain from the Future Faculty Program will enhance my current and future teaching by helping me continue to shape my teaching philosophy, improve my teaching skills, and engage with a community of colleagues invested in teaching. I hope to be able to bring what I learn back to the School of Social Work to share with other teaching assistants.

Favorite place in Athens?

I’ve been known to enjoy a calzone from Transmet! And sometimes, the people at the Five Points Subway make my sandwich before I even order it…

Anything else to add?

Dean Daniels hosts an “open mic” session for students to ask questions of the dean and School of Social Work administrators.

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I feel privileged to have been able to work with and learn from such outstanding faculty and great students. So, thanks!

Talk of the Town: School of Social Work, Archway Partnership Collaborate to Help Preserve Oral History in Hart County

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tudents in the School of Social Work are collaborating with UGA’s Archway Partnership to help preserve the oral history of Hart County, while gaining valuable experience in working with older citizens.

For the last year and a half, students in Stacey Kolomer’s “Working with Older Adults” course have been traveling to Hart County to conduct interviews with elderly residents. Audio clips from the interviews are being used in various media to help preserve the oral history of the community.

“It’s been a really fabulous project,” said Kolomer, who is an associate professor in the School of Social Work. “I really like the idea that the students are getting what they need out of it and meeting the objectives of the course, but more importantly, it is contributing to the community and something that is community driven.”

Social work students were paired with older adults who live in Hart County. The students conducted life-review interviews with the older adults, asking questions about their upbringing and memories from their life in the community.

The students taped the conversation with a digital audio recorder and later shared the recording with interviewees and their family members. Additionally, students were required to write and audio record a narrative, telling the story of the person interviewed in their own words. Some of the audio clips from the interviews were used in a podcast of a walking tour of downtown Hartwell.

A mini-documentary on the history of the Hartwell Dam, currently in production, uses audio and video clips from the interviews.

“It’s a beautiful mixture,” Kolomer said.

“It gives the students some insight into aging and breaks down stereotypes.

“Many of the interviewees are from rural Georgia and have had a very different upbringing,” she added. “It gives our students the opportunity to connect with strangers, which is really important in social work. It helps develop their interview skills, while having the opportunity to not be a clinician.”

The project also benefits older adults and the community, according to Kolomer.

“It provides participants with the opportunity to share their wisdom, to tell their life story to someone, and it’s certainly allowing them to contribute to their

community,” she said. “They are providing feedback that’s going to help the historical society grow, which is one of the priorities of the community.”

Kolomer and her class have been working with Ilka McConnell, an Archway Partnership professional for Hart County. Currently in eight counties throughout Georgia, the Archway Partnership links communities in need of economic development with UGA resources.

Working with community leaders, the Archway Partnership identifies priority areas of a community and then works cooperatively to address those priorities.

The oral history project in Hart Count was the idea of a community member there, according to McConnell.

“A gentleman in the community, who was really active in the historical society and some of the different history-related nonprofits in town, passed away unexpectedly. Think about how much history was in his head and not written down,” she said. “As time goes on, we are going to lose a lot of these folks in the community who know so much just from experience and because they are really passionate about history.

Wouldn’t it be neat if we could capture some information about their lives?”

The oral history project has helped other community programs as well. Information from interviewees was incorporated into a tour of Hartwell, the county seat of Hart County. The tour, which originally only provided visitors with a paper brochure highlighting 32 landmarks of historic downtown, was expanded to include a downloadable podcast and video walking tour.

Interviewing Hartwell’s elderly residents was a very moving experience, according to Katie Crosby, an undergraduate majoring in social work.

“It was fascinating to hear stories regarding the Hartwell area as well as to receive such profound wisdom from men and women with much life experience,” Crosby said. “We have much to learn from older generations.”

Find more online:

Historic photos courtesy of the Georgia Archives, Nancy Clark personal archives and John Skeleton personal archives. fall

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Students Give Workshop to Probationers at Athens Day Reporting Center

Students in Associate Professor Schnavia Hatcher’s forensic social work class prepared a half-day workshop for Athensarea probationers last spring, providing information on how the probationers’ social environment impacts their lives in Athens and resources to help them make better decisions in the future.

“In this particular case, we were talking to people who had been in jail and discussed how the biological, the psychological and the social/community factors impact their decisions,” Hatcher said.

For the first half of the semester students learned about clinical techniques and interventions in working with those who have been incarcerated. The second part of the semester, they conducted a needs assessment at the Athens Day Reporting Center, which provides services such as substance abuse counseling, cognitive restructuring, adult basic education, employment enhancement, intensive supervision, and other treatment to individuals who have been sentenced by the courts in the State of Georgia.

“The students immediately said, ‘let’s do a workshop instead of doing a presentation.’ They wanted to have an interactive workshop with the clients there,” Hatcher explained.

Using their findings from the needs assessment, the students developed a workshop, which focused on the social environment and how it may impact an individual’s decisions or actions. The goal was to provide solutions to stop the cycle of recidivism. The students developed tips, facts, games and role play scenarios to help participants think about their social environment, such as their friends, family or coworkers and places they frequent, such as housing, work environment and recreational facilities, and how it can impact their decisions and actions in positive and negative ways.

“We were not expecting as much participation as we got,” Hatcher said. “They really got into it.”

Participants played Jeopardy for community service points and acted out several social environment situations from their own lives to demonstrate familiar negative activities that might occur and how these activities can influence criminal behavior.

“They asked when we were coming back,” Hatcher quipped.

“They were surprised to see that other people were concerned about them and wanted to come and help them. In a sense it helped them feel like a citizen and feel that people actually did want to see them be successful.”

Not only was it beneficial for the probationers, the students also got a lot out of it, Hatcher explained. The students were able to apply the skills they discussed in the first part of the semester all while making a positive impact on the community. “It was quite a significant experience for them,” she said.

Hatcher enjoys teaching the class because it gives social workers another practice option once they enter the work force.

“As social workers we’re trained and we are prepared to provide services for those in need,” she said. “We as professionals don’t automatically think, ‘let’s go provide services for those who are incarcerated or those who are affiliated with the judicial system’.”

The Athens Day Reporting Center is one of 13 centers throughout the state of Georgia. Offenders who are assigned to the program must be employed after their initial orientation and assessment.

Find more online:

In addition to working and pursing her MSW degree part-time, Alexandra Pajak is a composer. She recently released an album of music based on the genetic code of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Pajak created the music for the album by assigning musical pitches to every segment of the virus’s genetic code. “Sounds of HIV: Music Transcribed from DNA” was released October 26, 2010 by Azica Records.

What does HIV sound like? Listen to a sample on Amazon.com.

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Photo courtesy of James K. Holder II

MSW Student Composes CD Based on HIV Genome

Returning Volunteers Enhance Burn Camp with Social Work Skills, Continuity

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chool of Social Work volunteers have made their mark at Camp Oo-U-La over the last 12 summers, not only in sheer numbers—a quarter of all of the volunteers at the camp are social work students or alumni—but they also bring an exceptional skill set to camp. They come equipped to help in various staff positions, as well as assist with the psychosocial needs of the campers and other volunteers. Many also bring a unique continuity as they return year after year. “Talk time” and camper/parent evaluations are just a few things social workers have influenced and formally introduced at camp.

This year, four students who volunteered as BSW students returned as advanced standing MSW students. “Mckenzie Bailey, Jessica Bates, Jason Simpson and Caroline Lozen were able to do very specialized projects for the camp that volunteers don’t normally get to do because they are not familiar with the camp,” said Associate Professor Stacey Kolomer, who leads students who take her Social Work with Burn Survivors service-learning course during the Maymester “Burn Camp.”

“You can see over time how social work has influenced the camp to go in a direction that’s not all about fun. It is ok to have some time that focuses on kids’ burns,” she said.

Last year Dana Dillard, MSW ’01 and programs director for the Georgia Firefighter’s Burn Foundation (GFBF), along with Dennis Gardin, the executive director of the GFBF and a burn survivor, and a camp counselor implemented “talk time,” formal time set aside to talk about campers’ burn injuries. It became evident after reviewing camper evaluations from last year that “talk time” was really important to the kids, Kolomer explained.

Bailey and Simpson developed a resource to guide support groups for the camp with the intention of building on activities each year. The resource included activities the camp can use with children of all ages to help facilitate support groups and emotional healing. Lozen conducted special evaluations with every kid in the camp to see what camp meant

to them, what new things they would like to do and ideas for the future.

Bates directed evaluations asking parents how camp influences their child during the year, what camp means to their child and ideas for new activities to help their child during the week of camp.

Kolomer, along with Dillard, plan to use the data collected from the evaluations in a research paper on the burn camp experience.

Dillard was instrumental in starting DAWGs (Dynamic Assessors and Wellness Girls) several years ago as a resource provided by social work volunteers to ensure the emotional, physical and psychological wellbeing of all campers and staff at camp. The group was established after the camp director identified the need and recognized the skill set social workers brought to camp.

Camp Oo-U-La is a weeklong summer camp for Georgia children between the ages of 7 and 17 who have spent at least four days in the burn unit of a hospital. Nearly 100 campers attend the camp each summer. “Burn Camp” is sponsored by the Georgia Firefighters Burn Foundation who partners with Camp Twin Lakes to host the camp at their Will-A-Way location inside Ft. Yargo State Park.

Funding for Camp Oo-U-La is provided by GFBF’s annual Boot Drive and a new fundraiser, Spin for Kids, raises money through mountain and road bike rides on Oct. 22-23. The GFBF offers programming year-round on prevention and education as well as support and recovery for burn survivors in the state of Georgia. For more information on the GFBF, visit www.gfbf.org.

Kolomer’s course, Social Work with Burn Survivors or Burn Camp, is a three-credit intensive learning experience. Students learn about the process of burn recovery, gain understanding of the systems impact of a burn injury on the individual, family and community, acquire knowledge of the experience of critical care personnel, and actively participate as volunteers. Students stay on-site at the camp and participate in a variety of capacities that support the camp community.

First row seated (L-R): Dana Dillard, McKenzie Baily, Kadesha Charles Adelakun, Amy Lightsey, Sasha-Noel Udom and Associate Professor Stacey Kolomer. Second row seated: Nasim Pasha, Dee Dee Street, Melanie Thorton, Linda Ladaga, Jessica Knowles, Chanda Dunn and Caroline Lozen.

Third Row: Katie Adams, Corey Stillwell, Jamie Hooper, Mallory Parson, Jessica Bates, Beth McTiernan, Candace Shepard and Jason Simpson.

Back row: Helen Nichols, Sarah Himmelheber, Emily Giattina, Christina Ramey, Sara Hall and Danielle Barth. fall

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MSW Student Advocates for Digital Justice because unlike commercial software which requires paid upgrades, Joel Izlar, a second-year MSW student focusing on community free software can be upgraded for free for years to come, allowing empowerment and program development, has carved out an people to continue to use their computers longer. interesting niche for himself—taking on the cause of digital justice in Izlar recently presented on digital justice at the Southeast the Athens community and beyond. A graduate of history and English LinuxFest, bringing the issue to the forefront at a major gathering of from Georgia Southern University, Izlar is a self-taught computer advocates for free and open source software. He submitted his idea whiz. Now vice president of FreeIT Athens, Izlar helps citizens in to conference organizers and they selected him to lead a session on the community gain access to computers and the training necessary digital justice. to use the new technology. He also advocates for digital justice—the “My intention was to get them thinking about people who right for people to have access to computers, technology and the don’t have access to computers,” Izlar explained. “I’m taking what I internet. learned in terms of macro and community social work theories and “It’s the 21st century, it’s part of our extended selves and it is a practices and perspectives on social justice and discussing how we necessity for everyday life,” Izlar said. “People not having computers can take these ideas into their communities and try to make an impact or access to technology is a social justice issue and people that even if they aren’t social workers. If they have computer skills then are good with computers or tech savvy are socially obligated to they can help other people with that and not just clock into a 9-5 job. contribute to society by helping people who don’t know anything There is a social aspect to it.” about computers.”

Izlar also talked about how a free and open source framework At FreeIT Athens, Izlar helps get low-cost computers to people and community maintained wireless networks can help communities. in the community. But, many in the community who can’t afford a He integrated the basics of social justice and society’s obligation computer also can’t afford internet access. to help through volunteering and respecting the environment by “That’s a big problem in Athens,” he said. It also is a problem responsibly recycling technology. the United Nations (U.N.) has noticed. Izlar pointed to a report “Those that don’t have access to technology are being left out released this summer by the U.N., which discusses internet access as and I think that is socially unjust.” a human right.

FreeIT Athens celebrated its sixth anniversary and has served FreeIT Athens is a nonprofit organization that serves the nearly 900 individuals, recycled 17,800 pounds of unusable Athens-Clarke County community by providing low-cost computer equipment, and had over 280 volunteers contribute 2,500 hours of equipment and computer-related services to people and organizations. community service so far this year.

The organization also recycles unusable computer equipment and accessories. Izlar began volunteering there in 2009 when he moved to Athens.

“That’s what pushed me into getting my MSW. Volunteering with them and volunteering with other nonprofits in the Athens area, I realized there were some things I could learn from a macro social work perspective,” he said.

“Seeing people get a computer for the first time is a very humbling and exciting experience. Just seeing the look on their face and how excited they are. They are going to have the opportunity to get online and see this completely different world,” he added.

Free IT Athens volunteers teach new computer owners how to use their computer once they receive it.

Volunteers also train other participants so they can go out into the community and teach community members and organizations to use their new technology.

“I had one individual who came in and could hardly use a mouse. We put him through our refurbishing program where he learned how to build a computer from all the parts to fixing it and getting it working and now he’s over in his community applying the skills he learned. It’s definitely something that can empower individuals. It builds skills and confidence.”

Izlar and his colleagues at FreeIT Athens stress the importance of using free or open source software Joel Izlar leads a training for high school students at FreeIT Athens.

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The School of Social Work Remembers...

Kevin DeWeaver 1950–2011 Kevin DeWeaver, professor and Ph.D. program director at the School of Social Work, died April 21, 2011 after a yearlong struggle with cancer. He was 60.

DeWeaver, who hails from Rochester, NY, graduated from the State University of New York at Geneseo in 1972. He earned his MSW from West Virginia University in 1975 and doctorate in social work from Florida State University in 1980.

DeWeaver joined the School of Social Work as an assistant professor in 1985 and over his 26 year tenure, served on over 40 doctoral committees—the most of any professor in the school. He was passionate about the Ph.D. program and worked tirelessly to enhance the quality of the program.

He served as director since 2006. Previously, he was BSW program director and taught courses to undergraduate social work students.

DeWeaver’s research focused primarily on mental retardation and other developmental disabilities.

He also examined social work in rural communities, case management and social work education. He adored working with doctoral students and loved teaching policy and research courses.

“Dr. DeWeaver had a distinguished career in social work and made outstanding contributions in teaching, research and service,” said Maurice Daniels, dean of the School of Social Work. “Notably, he provided good leadership of the School’s Ph.D. program and enjoyed an outstanding reputation among students and alums.”

DeWeaver and his wife, Mary, enjoyed traveling. His other love was music. He played the rhythm guitar and loved to talk about music, especially from the 60s, 70s and 80s. DeWeaver also was known for his dry sense of humor and slick one-liners.

A memorial mass was held for DeWeaver May 3 at 11:30 a.m. at the Catholic Center at UGA.

David L. Levine 1920–2011 At the age of 91, David L. Levine, emeritus faculty member and aging and mental health advocate, died on June 14, 2011 in Athens.

“Dr. Levine is one of the professors who welcomed me to the School of Social Work as an assistant professor and supported me through the promotion process,” reflected Maurice C. Daniels, dean of the School of Social Work. “He was a towering intellectual, but I remember him most for his down-to-earth and kind manner. Early in my tenure in the School, I succeeded Dr. Levine as educational liaison for several hospitals in Augusta, Georgia. Instead of just providing me with his agency files, Dr. Levine insisted on driving me to Augusta to orient me to the hospitals and introduce me to key personnel and field instructors. Parenthetically, Dr. Levine was renowned, even then, for his multi-tasking, motor speedway driving. After our first trip to Augusta, I did the driving,” he quipped.

One of the founding members of the Athens Community Council on Aging, Levine had a distinct passion for aging and mental health. He was on the board for the council from 1987 to his death.

Levine also acted as a member of the board of directors for mental health facilities in both Athens and Florida.

A native of New York, Levine was a graduate of DeWitt Clinton High School in Brooklyn. He later graduated from the City College of New York in 1941. Levine earned his Masters of Social Work in 1943 from the University of Pennsylvania, as well as his Doctorate of Social Work from University of Minnesota in 1953.

Soon after his doctorate degree, he worked at Florida State University from 1953 to 1967. Later, he served as the associate dean of the University of Syracuse’s School of Social Work. Finally, he acted as professor at the University of Georgia’s School of Social Work from 1969 to 1994.

During his time at the University of Georgia, The David Levine Legislative Award was established by the Georgia Gerontology Society. The award is bestowed annually to the state legislator who best advocates change in the aging community.

In 2009, Levine was granted the Distinguished Older Georgian award by the Georgia General Assembly and Georgia State Senate.

A year later, he was named Georgia Champion for Aging by the Southeastern Association of Area Agencies on Aging.

In addition to his committed community work in Athens, Levine was also involved in the White House Conference on Aging for over thirty years. A member of the National Association of Social Workers and the Georgia NASW Ethics Committee, Levine continually worked towards bringing about social change for others, especially in improving the lifestyle of the elderly.

“Dr. Levine was a highly esteemed social work scholar, teacher, and public servant. I was humbled and honored to award Dr. Levine the Dean’s Award for Social Justice for his transformative work for the cause of social justice including his pioneering work in gerontology, at the 2009 School of Social Work Annual Awards Program,” Daniels said.

Levine is survived by his 3 daughters, Deborah Davis, Elizabeth Levine and Helen Levine, and son Edwin. His wife Laura died in 2006.

A funeral service was held on June 26, 2011 at the Congregation Children of Israel in Athens.

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