UGA SSW Connect Magazine - Spring 2021

Connect Spring 2021

SERVICE

ADVOCACY

SOCIAL JUSTICE

DIGNITY & HUMAN WORTH

SOCIAL WORK VALUES IN ACTION Social work students, faculty respond to a pandemic, protests, and economic uncertainty

DIVERSITY

INTEGRITY

COMPETENCE

RELATIONSHIP

CONNECT MAGAZINE

SPRING 2021

School of Social Work Dean

Anna Scheyett Associate Dean

Shari Miller

Director of Research

Orion Mowbray

PhD Program Director

Y. Joon Choi

MSW Program Director

Javier Boyas

BSW Program Director

Leon Banks

Director of MA MNL Program and Institute for Nonprofit Organizations

Tony Mallon

Director of the Center for Social Justice, Human and Civil Rights

Llewellyn Cornelius

Director of Field Education

Zoe Johnson

Director of Global Engagement

Jane McPherson

Connect Magazine Staff Editor

Anna Scheyett Writers

Jennifer Abbott, Laurie Anderson, Leigh Beeson, Danielle Breidung, Allison Dunnigan, Kat Farlowe, Allyson Hester, Wanda Jackson, Ria Brazil Jones, Orion Mowbray, Nnenne OnyiohaClayton, James Preston, Lynn Sanders-Bustle, Anna Scheyett, SSW Board of Advisors, Sharon Smith, David Terraso, Rebecca Wells, Annie Wilson Copy Editor

Ellen Pauloski Graphic Design and Layout

Kat Farlowe, School of Social Work Griffin McNamara, School of Social Work Photography

Laurie Anderson, Asoumane Bangoura, Stephen Bridges, Center for Civic Innovation, Cindy M. Brown for C. Brown Photography, Melissa Bugg, Dash Photography, Wingate Downs, Fair Fight Action, FDFI, Regina Fitzpatrick, Umaru Fofanah, Peter Frey, Claire Jordan, Dorothy Kozlowski, Robert Newcomb, Chad Osburn, Nicole Fernandes, Richard Skoonberg, Andrew Davis Tucker, Anne Watkins, Yuchang Wu, submitted photos Connect Magazine is published annually for students, alumni, friends, and supporters of the University of Georgia School of Social Work. For reprint permissions, address changes, or additional copies, email sswpr@uga.edu.

Cover design by Kat Farlowe.

NICOLE FERNANDES

Copyright © 2021 by the University of Georgia.

No part of this publication may be reproduced in any way without permission from the editor. The University of Georgia is committed to principles of equal opportunity and affirmative action.

"I am humbled to be among the healthcare heroes who are incessantly working to save lives."

Annie Wilson BSW '15 is an Emergency Room social worker. She shares her thoughts about being on the front lines during the pandemic in her essay "I Couldn't Do What You Do: ER Social Work in the Time of COVID-19" .

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Photo by Nicole Fernandes

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Athens-Clarke County community members wait in line for food distribution from volunteers of the East Athens Development Corporation (EADC). Photo by Laurie Anderson

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CON TENTS CONNECT

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The alumni magazine of the University of Georgia School of Social Work

Special Section SOCIAL WORK VALUES IN ACTION Reading, Writing, and Resilience

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Social work students and faculty respond to a pandemic, protests and economic uncertainty

Struggling Community Takes on COVID-19 Crisis

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Notes From Above Ground:

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I Couldn't Do What You Do: ER Social Work in the Time of COVID-19

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Voting in 2020, Documentary and Discussion Series

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East Athens Development Corporation volunteers distribute food in response to the pandemic

A Response to COVID-19 and the George Floyd murder A poem by MSW alum James Preston MSW ’92

Annie Wilson shares her thoughts on being an ER social worker during the pandemic

Joint Student Faculty Committees (SFC) host virtual series.

FEATURES 7

DEAN'S NOTES EVENTS

5th Annual Social Justice Symposium

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The Donald L. Hollowell Lecture

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Art + Education for Social Justice Symposium

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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CONTENTS

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continued

FEATURES RESEARCH

First National-Level Study Looks at Foster Care and Native Children

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APRIES 2020 Program Highlights, Future Plans

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Research in Action

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Research Briefs

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Allison Dunnigan and colleagues study native/indigenous children's entry into foster care.

APRIES builds stronger relationships in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Senegal.

Online colloquium provides platform for discussing findings and implications for change

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STUDENTS

MSW Student Awarded National Interdisciplinary Minority Fellowship

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Grad Student 'Brings' Pets to Group Homes

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Victoria Casey is selected for the APA Interdisciplinary Minority Fellowship Program

Pets Together project helps ease isolation during this time of quarantine PROGRAMS

UGA Master of Social Work Increases Reach and Engagement

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SSW Launches Substance Use Certificate Program

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New Social Work Minor Applicable to Many Fields

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In its first year, the UGA SSW's online MSW program has nearly doubled its expected enrollment

Global

Q&A with Laurie Reyman MSW '09

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Creative Space | Kūrybinė erdvė

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FACULTY KUDOS

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Co-founder of Colors of Connection is interviewed at the 2020 Art + Education Social Justice Symposium

Kristina Jaskyte Bahr uses Design Thinking to spark innovations in an online Lithuanian classroom

PASSAGES – Welcome and Farewell to Faculty and Staff

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CLASS NOTES – SSW alumni exemplify Social Work in Action!

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GIVING

Board of Advisors

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Donor Spotlight

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Gifts in Action

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Why we serve, why we give.

The Philip L. Smith Memorial Award in Macro Social Work

One commitment at a time, you are making the world a better place

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PETER FREY

D E A N 'S N O TE S

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s I think back on this past year I am amazed at how much we have experienced and done since spring 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has swept across the world; racial violence horrified us in the media; the economy soured and many lost their jobs. It has been a truly challenging, punishing year.

Yet despite it all, here at the School, the work continued. Faculty scrambled and adapted their classes to hybrid formats, students scrambled to juggle Zoom, home-schooled children, lost jobs—and the learning continued. Researchers retooled their data collection strategies and sometimes added questions about COVID-19 experiences--and the scholarship continued. Everyone volunteered or contributed to community-based efforts to address basic needs and work for social justice—and the service continued.

As you read this issue of Connect, I hope you are impressed and inspired by the stories of the indomitable spirits of our students, faculty, and staff. In so many ways, supported by colleagues’ generosity and grace, our community has continued to tackle social problems and fight for social justice.

We look forward to seeing you when we can once again be together. Until then, I hope you and yours stay safe and well.

ROBERT NEWCOMB

Two words come to mind when I think about the School this year. The first is “indomitable.” With commitment, courage, and resilience the faculty, staff, and students have not let the challenges of this year defeat them.

They have experienced loss and difficulties and they are exhausted, but their tenacity is amazing and they keep doing the good work of social work. The second word I have thought of and used nearly daily is “grace.” People at the School have given each other grace—flexibility, forgiveness, kindness, and support. It is something for which I am immensely grateful.

"People at the School have given each other grace— flexibility, forgiveness, kindness, and support. It is something for which I am immensely grateful."

Peace,

Anna Scheyett Dean and Professor

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SOCIAL WORK VALUES IN ACTION

READING, WRITING

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Social work students and faculty respond to a pandemic, protests and economic uncertainty

by Laurie Anderson

n March of 2020, the University of Georgia temporarily suspended instruction for two weeks. The action, taken to reduce the spread of the novel COVID-19 virus, changed lives and the learning environment.

As stores ran short of hand sanitizer and disinfectant, faculty scrambled to adapt teaching from in-person to online and hybrid models.

Administrators lowered classroom seating density, in keeping with recommended social distancing guidelines. Handshakes became hand waves and “elbow bumps.” Protective coverings over noses and mouths hid facial expressions.

By the time the university returned to instruction, classes had moved either entirely online or metamorphosed into hybrid in-person/ remote permutations involving small groups of students. Students became more dependent than ever on connecting to others through the internet, and more isolated.

The “new normal” put a huge strain on resources, both physical and mental.

Stress increased in late May when the nation viewed a horrific video of a police officer choking George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, to death.

Students and faculty took action to fight systemic racism. Some put their lives at risk in mass outdoor protests.

A contentious national election and job losses due to the pandemic added to personal and professional pressures.

Through it all, members of the School responded in ways that showed social work values in action.

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The School’s Center for Social Justice, Human and Civil Rights and the Institute for Nonprofit Organizations helped distribute food to families impacted by pandemic-related income loss.

Students created or anchored outreach projects to improve the health and well-being of vulnerable populations. They volunteered, raised voices about health disparities and racism, held panel discussions on voting issues, and offered each other encouragement.

Faculty conducted online meetings with student cohorts to hear concerns, discussed ways to make classes more inclusive and sensitive to student needs, found academically acceptable alternatives to in-person internships, and spent additional hours adapting courses to online formats.

“I spent a long, long amount of time restructuring the class and thinking it through,” said one instructor. “Although when you look at the syllabus it’s not obvious.”

In addition to ongoing research projects, faculty also added research on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, drafted a social justice advocacy statement regarding the university’s COVID response/plan, and gathered and shared information on teaching, learning and service opportunities.

Alumni stepped up as well with financial support for students.

If there were academic lessons learned from it all, faculty reminded students, it was that the hurdles they faced would help prepare them for their professional careers….and that hurdles are best faced in a supportive environment.

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LAURIE ANDERSON

“If nothing else,” Dean Anna Scheyett told students, “I think COVID has taught me three things: one is the tremendous importance of support. The other is the tremendous importance of flexibility, and finally the tremendous importance of giving each other grace.”

SOCIAL WORK VALUES IN ACTION

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SOCIAL WORK VALUES IN ACTION

Struggling Community Takes On COVID-19 Crisis

by Laurie Anderson

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n a recent morning outside the offices of the East Athens Development Corporation, a line of volunteers wearing protective face masks lifted heavy boxes of groceries from a truck to tables inside the building.

Even in the best of times, many residents of East Athens scramble to make ends meet. Prior to the COVID-19 crisis more than half of the roughly 9,000 residents lived below the federal poverty level, said Llewellyn Cornelius, director of the center.

They were answering a call from the EADC, a local enterprise that supports the economic wellbeing of people in Athens’ most impoverished area. The nonprofit had recently increased its food distribution program from once to twice a month in response to the COVID-19 crisis.

“Those staggering numbers will only worsen in East Athens as more people are laid off due to the pandemic,” said Cornelius, the Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professor of Social Justice and Civil Rights Studies at the School of Social Work.

The individuals – all volunteers – represented local organizations, including the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office, the Athens Neighborhood Leaders Program, the Athens Alliance Coalition, 3D Champs, the Evelyn C. Neely Leadership Program and People Living in Recovery, among others.

Prior to the pandemic, faculty and students at the school assisted the EADC during a restructuring process that reinvigorated the 28-year-old nonprofit. LaRoche and Cornelius strengthened partnerships with other community organizations, made suggestions for a website relaunch, and reestablished a working relationship with the local government. Anthony Mallon, director of UGA’s Institute for Nonprofit Organizations, advised on board development and capacity-building.

After sorting and re-boxing the food into equal mixes of staples, the volunteers carried the goods back outside to a line of waiting cars. Each vehicle received one or two boxes, depending on need.

Lemuel “Life” LaRoche, a member of the University of Georgia’s Center for Social Justice, Human and Civil Rights and an instructor at the UGA School of Social Work, helped to mobilize the effort, which addresses food insecurity for more than 150 households in the East Athens area.

“For some it’s like, OK, we got access to food, but for other families this thing is a necessity,” said LaRoche, who also founded and directs the nonprofit organization Chess and Community, which serves at-risk youth in Athens-Clarke County.

Left: Volunteers at East Athens Development Corporation help transport and distribute groceries. Photos by Laurie Anderson.

Grayson Harper, a senior, immersed himself in the community’s culture during an internship and gathered data in support of a grant proposal for a job training program. Natalie Morean, a graduate assistant working toward a master’s degree in nonprofit management and leadership, used the data and input from the EADC board and community to design programs and write proposals for community block grants. The proposals were recently greenlighted by the Athens-Clarke County government.

“The EADC is now in much better standing,” said Cornelius. Projects in the works or under

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SOCIAL WORK VALUES IN ACTION discussion include a job fair in East Athens and a virtual summer education program.

The school’s relationship with the EADC helped when businesses began closing due to the pandemic. After brainstorming with board members and Fred Smith, the EADC’s executive director, LaRoche helped to set up an emergency relief fund on the organization’s website and raised awareness of the fund’s existence.

LaRoche went on to connect the EADC with the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Athens Area Community Foundation. The latter brought in additional support from the Northeast Georgia Food Bank’s mobile pantry. Corporate sponsors such as Lowe’s added to the pot. Smith also reached out to Community Connection Neighborhood Leaders, which assisted with food distribution and in reaching the elderly and others who, with the closure of public libraries, lacked essential access to the internet.

“COVID-19 only exacerbated what we struggle with all the time, in dealing with people who are

often living on the edge,” said Dr. Diane Dunston, chair of the EADC board. “And of course with this pandemic it has been the most vulnerable who suffer the most.”

The assistance is critical, said Dunston, not just from a physical but also a psychological standpoint.

“Number one it gives people hope. It has been very meaningful for the community to see that people care,” she said.

For LaRoche, who sees social workers’ roles as that of facilitators, hope springs from the community itself.

“We identify ways to get more resources in time of crisis, and help coordinate. What I’m loving is that there are a lot more organizations coming together,” he said.

“The people you see here are the ones making a difference.”

Notes From Above Ground (A Response to COVID-19 and the George Floyd Murder) Breath is a gift.

Social justice is imperative.

Empathy is a key to our well-being.

Respect for differences is necessary.

Religious tolerance is essential.

History is important.

Learning from history is even more important.

The world is interconnected – the land, the water, the air, the plants, and every living creature.

If the world is to survive climate change, pandemics, and prejudices, all people of the world must work together to save our planet.

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by James Preston MSW ’92

I Couldn’t Do What You Do: ER Social Work in the Time of COVID-19

by Annie Wilson BSW ’15, LCSW

“I couldn’t do what you do”

is a phrase I hear multiple times a week. Often by the patients and families that I am serving. I work as an Emergency Room social worker in a suburb of San Francisco. Truth is, my job challenges me in ways that I could have never imagined. It causes me to question the social constructs of our society and stand up to foundational systems that have been in place for decades. It leads me to question my intelligence, my compassion, and my ability to advocate for what is right on a regular basis.

I sit with a husband as he says goodbye to his lifelong partner. I sit with domestic violence survivors after acute battering incidents and hear them justify their partner’s behavior. I sit with a homeless family with four children who haven’t bathed properly in weeks. I sit with a sexual assault victim, prepare her for the next legal steps, and work to make her feel safe in her body again. I sit with a parent after he receives news that his son’s drug overdose was fatal.

How fortunate am I to be in a position to sit with someone in their most vulnerable time and provide tangible assistance? I have joined dozens of patients and family members in their battles. The battle changes every day and I can never anticipate what my shift will bring. It isn’t a surprise that my work on the frontline has intensified since the COVID-19 pandemic. I feel stuck trying to instill hope and a sense of security in an unsettling social climate. The resources are stretched and changing weekly as the need for them magnifies.

I see an immigrant who lost his job and his health insurance, finding himself hungry and on the street.

I see concerned family members waiting in our parking lot for hours to hear any news, because they are unable to be present with their loved one at the bedside. I see an elderly woman unable to return to her assisted living facility because of the risk she

poses to the other residents. I see more suicidal and homicidal ideation, more domestic violence, and more substance abuse. I have seen a lot, but what I have felt is more powerful.

I feel a sense of belonging from an organization that checks my temperature and ensures I have a mask every day. I feel inspired by the resiliency of my ER team, cheering each other on despite the anxiety that accompanies bedside care. I feel a sense of mutual understanding from our community partners, who are doing their best to be available for support despite the present constraints. I feel loved by members of the community who are sending multiple catered meals to the hospital units daily.

I am humbled to be among the healthcare heroes who are incessantly working to save lives. We are collectively faced with the uncertainty of this pandemic, yet we continue tirelessly to change people’s lives for the better. How often can someone say that walking away from their day job? Now when I hear the phrase “I couldn’t do what you do,” I smile.

Annie Wilson graduated from the University of Georgia with a BSW in 2015 and from San Diego State University with an MSW in 2016. In addition to her work in the emergency department, she provides telehealth counseling to individuals with anxiety and trauma-related disorders. Submitted photo.

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SOCIAL WORK VALUES IN ACTION

VOTING IN 2020 DOCUMENTARY AND DISCUSSION SERIES Collaboration and innovation in a season of multiple pandemics

By Ria Brazil Jones and Danielle Breidung

V

oter engagement has been an important focus for social work across the country throughout 2020, a year in which the need for increased civic participation proved to be as important as mining solutions for the multiple pandemics of our time: COVID -19, systemic i n e q u i t y, a n d t h e weakened guardrails o f d e m o c r a c y. T h e School of Social Work’s Athens and Gwinnett campuses joint Student Faculty Committees (SFC) contributed to this conversation by collaboratively hosting a virtual Voting in 2020 Documentary and Discussion series.

While Ria Brazil Jones, Chair of the SFC in Gwinnett, and her fellow committee members were envisioning a discussion series geared toward political social work and voter engagement, Voices for Change Chair of the SFC in Athens, Danielle Breidung, was imagining a social justice documentary series accompanied by virtual discussions. When they learned of each other’s plans, Jones and Breidung decided to merge their ideas and leverage their collective insights and enthusiasm.

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These budding advocates quickly set out to organize virtual events that would not only engage SSW students, faculty, staff, and alumni, but also move the study of social work into action. Students, faculty, and staff donated their time, leveraged their relationships, and contributed their expertise to this series, which ultimately focused on the importance of political social work, voter participation (at the federal and local levels), sustained civic engagement, and the naming of inequities and systems of oppression which impact those endeavors. In total, more than 700 people screened three relevant documentaries and joined real-time, virtual discussions with experts from across the country.

The Voting in 2020 Documentary and Discussion series set the stage with a screening of Lillian Smith: Breaking the Silence on September 9, 2020. The screening was followed by a panel that included filmmaker Hal Jacobs and subject-matter experts Drs. Diane Roberts, Vicki Crawford, and Jane McPherson.

SOCIAL WORK VALUES IN ACTION On October 7, 2020, the series continued with Part I: Voter Suppression, featuring a discussion with Dr. June Gary Hopps and the documentary, Suppressed. Close behind was the launch of Part II: Parham Policy Day Lecture on October 21, 2020, which was a collaboration between students and Dr. June Gary Hopps, UGA’s Thomas M. “Jim” Parham Professor of Family and Children Studies, as part of her annual Parham Policy series. Part II keynote speaker, Dr. Andra Gillespie of Emory University, discussed the voting trends of women & people of color and participants were encouraged to view the documentary John Lewis: Get in the Way. Part III: A Post-Election Debrief involved collegial conversation and took place shortly after election day on November 11, 2020. Finally, Part IV: 2021 Social Work in Action was a post-inauguration workshop held on January 25, 2021. This culminating event showcased the experiences and wisdom of Dr. Mimi Abramovitz and Dr. Terry Mizrahi (Hunter College), and Tanya Smith, MSW (University of Connecticut) and facilitated conversations about ways social workers can advocate for sustained civic engagement.

Breidung, a combined-track student with experience consulting for nonprofit organizations, firmly believes in the power of technology to offer more convenient and equitable access to information as well as new opportunities for collaboration. “Even after the need for physical distancing subsides, I hope that the School of Social Work and future SFCs will continue to use virtual platforms to host at least some of their events,” she says. Jones, a micro-practice student with a passion for holding space, feels reinvigorated by the experience of organizing at the mezzo and macro levels. The series gave her the opportunity to co-curate space for conversation and offer social workers of diverse backgrounds a seat at the (virtual) table to imagine solutions together. She says, “My hope going forward is that students will continue to engage their communities in discussions [about the present moment], and that it mobilizes their social work into action.”

Left and right: Flyers announcing the Voting in 2020 Documentary and Discussion Series hosted by the Athens and Gwinnett Student Faculty Committees.

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E VEN T S

Events

• 5th Annual Social Justice Symposium • The Donald L. Hollowell Lecture • Art + Education for Social Justice Symposium

Uniting Communities - the 5th Annual Social Justice Symposium

by David Terraso F or five years, students in the School of Social Work at the University of Georgia have helped highlight issues affecting their local communities by gathering community members, service providers, fellow students, and academics at its Social Justice Symposium (SJS). The day-long student-run community event aspires to foster dialogue among those aiming to right injustices that people on the margins face.

On January 23, 2021, through the power of Zoom, the symposium reached beyond the Athens area to feature not only social justice organizations based around the flagship university, but to attract attendees in states beyond. In addition, students from the school’s Gwinnett campus joined to help organize and stage the conference.

“The SJS is one of the most important events of the year at the School of Social Work,” said Dean Anna Scheyett, who kicked-off the morning panels. “It is a time when students and the community work together to better understand and tackle some of the most pressing social justice issues we all face.”

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The concept of social justice - the idea that every human being is worthy of honor, respect, and deserves equal economic, social, and cultural rights - is central to social work. Showing students and the community how they can band together to bring hope and real change is just one of the reasons Llewellyn Cornelius, professor and director of the Center for Social Justice, Civil, and Human Rights, began the Symposium five years ago.

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Dr. Jasmine Clark Keynote

State Legislative Representative GA House District 108, Lilburn/Mtn. Park

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State Representative Dr. Jasmine Clark (District 108) delivered the keynote address in which she spoke about moving forward in hope. Lauren Groh-Wargo, CEO of the voter enfranchisement organization Fair Fight Action, accepted the June Gary Hopps Bridge Award on behalf of the nonprofit. The award, established in 2017, is given on behalf of its namesake, the School of Social Work’s illustrious professor and social justice

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SJS Chairs

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“Given the need to shift to a completely virtual format, I was deeply impressed with the SJS leadership team’s commitment to online safety and security,” said Rebecca Matthew, assistant professor and one-half of the advising team for the Symposium. “They implemented a detailed and extremely well-choreographed mitigation and response protocol, which is now being shared with other members of the UGA campus community.”

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Because of the pandemic, the symposium faced particular challenges this year.

O CI AL JUSTICE SY

With nearly 100 people from three states registered, the SJS featured 16 panels from social justice organizations stemming from the Athens and Atlanta areas. Some of the topics covered include educational equity, trauma response and awareness, and campaigns by communities of color to create just communities and start-up businesses.

Danielle Breidung Kellye Call Heather-Leigh Nies Baťsé Smart Dave Terraso

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crusader Dr. June Hopps, who spoke at the Symposium about the necessity of creating a just society.

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Lauren Groh-Wargo,

CEO of Fair Fight Action, accepted the June Gary Hopps Bridge Award on behalf of the nonprofit.

The virtual format allowed presenters from metro Atlanta, such as InterPlay Atlanta and Emory University’s Center for Contemplative Science and Compassion-Based Ethics, to take part in this community-bridging event. What’s more, the symposium’s technology became a way to unite students on both the Athens and Gwinnett campuses.

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“Planning and executing a virtual event was like nothing I have ever done before,” said Kellye Call, MSW/MPH candidate in Athens. We wanted to make sure everyone had an amazing experience connecting with like-minded community members while making attending the event as simple as possible. The day went smoothly with no major hiccups, which was a testament to our team’s hard work.”

TION

Adapting the live event to a virtual one required some creative thinking by the students behind the symposium.

“It was lovely to find the silver lining of connection between the two campuses and to our expanded communities working for social justice,” said Heather-Leigh Owens Nies, MSW candidate in Gwinnett. “My only regret was that I was not able to see all 16 sessions.

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EVENTS

The 2021 Donald L. Hollowell Lecture

History, Human Rights, and the Power of One 18

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“What will our great-great-great-grandchildren say about us 150 years from now?

Were we on the right side of history?”

by Anna Scheyett

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ith this question, Kenneth B. Morris, Jr. called his audience to action during the 2021 Donald L. Hollowell Lecture, held virtually on February 23, 2021.

Morris understands the importance of history and commitment to future generations—it is in his genes. Morris is the great-great-great-grandson of Frederick Douglass, the Great Abolitionist.

He is also the great-great-grandson of Booker T. Washington, the famed educator and founder of Tuskegee Institute. As co-founder of Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives (FDFI), Morris continues a family legacy in anti-slavery, education and anti-racism while helping to craft and implement innovative programming to address these persistent issues still facing communities today.

Portrait of Frederick Douglass (1818-1895). Engraved by J.C. Buttre from a daguerretotype, circa 1855.

UGA SSW

During his talk, Morris described the sense of responsibility he experienced as a descendant of two of the most influential men in American history. He shared pictures of his parents and grandparents, and smiled as he told the story of how his grandmother Nettie Hancock Washington met his grandfather Frederick Douglass, III. But his smile and gentle voice belie a steely commitment to change. With a legacy of abolitionists on one side, and a legacy of education on the other, Morris built a vision of abolition through education. He lives this vision through his work in the FDFI and his fight against human trafficking—modern-day slavery.

Inspiring his listeners, Morris talked about his One Million Abolitionists project, which has the goal of giving one million copies of the Narrative Kenneth B. Morris, Jr., great-great-great-grandson of Frederick Douglass and great-great-grandson of Booker T. Washington, delivers the Hollowell Lecture.

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E VE N T S of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave to children, along with a curriculum focused on empowerment and civic engagement. Morris described how his initiative developed, saying “We went into the schools with a program called ‘History, Human Rights, and the Power of One.’ I would just travel around from school to school, talking about history, talking about contemporary forms of slavery. And then people started to ask, teachers and parents and students … ‘How can we be modern day abolitionists like Frederick Douglass? How can we use our talent, our passion, our creativity, our intellect to spread the word about this in our communities?’ And so we developed service learning, civic engagement … curricula that we dispersed for free on our website and now we are in hundreds of schools all over the country.”

Dr. Llewellyn Cornelius, the Donald L. Hollowell professor and director of the Center for Social Justice, Human and Civil Rights hosted the event and asked Morris what young people should know about the work ahead in the fight for social justice.

In reply, Morris emphasized the importance of learning about the past, from the lives of civil rights leaders like Donald Hollowell. He talked about using voice, about voting and promoting just policy, and of staying passionate and committed to the future. His words reminded his audience that we each need to learn the stories of the past, and commit to acting for justice now.

“We all have greatness flowing through our veins.”

Morris said, as he ended the evening. “And history lives in each of us. But the future depends on how we carry that forth.”

FDFI President Kenneth B. Morris, Jr. and his mother, Chairperson Nettie Washington Douglass, hand out copies of the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave to local students from Rochester, NY in 2019. The One Million Abolitionists project is distributing one million hardcover editions of the Narrative to students across the country. https://fdfi.org/our-initiatives/#1million

Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) Photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston, circa 1895.

Donald L. Hollowell (1917-2004) was a civil rights attorney in Georgia during the Civil Rights Movement. He fought racial segregation, served as the first Black regional director of a major federal agency, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and worked to increase African American voters as president of the Voter Education Project. Hollowell is best remembered for his instrumental role in winning the desegregation of the University of Georgia in 1961.

Source: UGA School of Social Work

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When worlds come together

Art + Education

for Social Justice Symposium

by Lynn Sanders-Bustle and Anna Scheyett

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he fight for social justice takes many forms, and on Feb 21-23 of 2020, the University of Georgia explored non-traditional strategies in the tenth Art and Education for Social Justice Symposium (AESJ). A collaboration between the Lamar Dodd School of Art and the School of Social Work, in partnership with Florida State University and supported by the Office of the Provost, the symposium brought together over 140 attendees from across the country and internationally.

Participants included artists, art educators, art activists, social art practitioners, community activists, community members, social workers, and theorists.

Leading the planning from the School of Social Work were Assistant Professor and Global Engagement Director Jane McPherson, and Donald L. Hollowell Distinguished Professor and Center for Social Justice Director Llewellyn “Lee” Cornelius. The co-chair from the Lamar Dodd School of Art was Lynn Sanders-Bustle, chair and associate professor of Art Education. Avital Wulz, a Social Work graduate student, conducted podcasts featuring conversations with conference presenters as part of her work with the Center for Social Justice.

The AESJ was deeply committed to involving Athens’ community members and hosted nearly 50 community attendees at a Friday evening community night kick-off event at local theater Cine, which featured six talks and performances by Athens Artists/Activists. McPherson noted “The Friday night community presenters reminded us of how grassroots efforts put into practice much of what we hope for when considering the potential for the arts in the realm of social justice.”

Over the following two days, dozens of presentations illuminated a diverse range of

artistic and activist tactics from the field of social work that overlap with art education and higher education. Workshops explored topics from art and justice-involved persons to art murals as a way to heal communities. Presenting artists spoke of the implementation of community-based programs, resilience, the power of participatory collectives, and the healing power of the arts.

The unique format of the symposium, which was designed to foreground a broader conversation outside of academia, proved that a conference in and of itself can function as a site of deep cultural awareness and respect. It highlighted the role visual arts can play in response to local, regional, and transnational challenges, and ways that social work and the arts can work together to make change for social justice.

Four podcasts, featuring interviews with conference speakers, are archived on the Center for Social Justice, Human and Civil Rights Kaltura webpage.

Phillip Brankin – The Georgia Incarceration Performance Project http://bit.ly/PhillipBrankin Lori Power – Using Theater Strategies in the Academic Classroom http://bit.ly/LoriPower Laurie Reyman – Stories of Awakening through Art from Conflict Affected Youth http://bit.ly/LaurieReyman Tanjerine Vie – Artmaking and Tranformative Pedagogies http://bit.ly/TanjerineVie

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R E SE A R CH

First National-Level Study Looks at Foster Care and Native Children

by Allison Dunnigan, Associate Professor and Title IV-E Coordinator

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decades, social work researchers have worked to understand the risk factors for child maltreatment and identify promising ways to prevent child abuse and heal the harm it causes. While we know a great deal about individual clients, we know much less about how policies affect children and families in the child welfare system. We know even less about whether these impacts are differential based on race/ ethnicity, age, or other factors.

Dr. Allison Dunnigan has explored the impact of federal and state policies on child and family outcomes. Dr. Dunnigan has previously studied policies such as privatized foster care, looking at how it may be connected to increased time in foster care. Dr. Dunnigan has also examined how state and federal substance use laws enacted in response to the opioid epidemic may be associated with increased infant entry into foster care.

Most recently, Dunnigan has partnered with an Indigenous colleague, Dr. Claudette Grinnell-Davis at the University of Oklahoma, to investigate how implementation state legislation strengthening and clarifying state level commitments to the Federal Indian Child Welfare Act is connected to native/indigenous children’s entry in foster care.

The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) was passed in 1978, in part due to the abuses experienced by native and indigenous children and families at the hands of the child welfare system.

Eight states (as of 1/2021) have passed legislation that strengthens protections and practices of ICWA in state laws. These State ICWA statutes are the

subject of Dunnigan and Grinnell-Davis’ recent research. This is the first study to use national-level data to explore the impact of State ICWA statutes, and to study the differences between native and non-native youth in foster care.

Initial results indicate that there are differences between native/indigenous youth in foster care when compared to other racial/ethnic groups.

These differences include native/indigenous youth being younger on average (6.2 years vs. 7.2 years) and are less likely to have a permanency plan established (16.3% without a plan vs. 11.1%).

There are a number of contributing factors to these differences, including children in states with a State ICWA Statute may be awaiting decisions regarding jurisdiction, indicating that the state is complying with ICWA guidelines. Regardless, having a permanency plan identified is connected to many factors including length of time in foster care, number of placements, and ultimately achieving permanency.

Looking forward, Dunnigan plans to continue exploring how policies are driving outcomes for child welfare-involved families. But Dunnigan is the first to admit this is a big undertaking,. “The research team of MSW and PhD students at the School of Social Work are invaluable to these efforts” she said “as are the collaborations with Georgia Department of Family and Children Services through Title IV-E and National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (NCWWI) training programs.” Working together, Dunnigan and Grinnell-Davis hope to identify policies that work for child welfare-involved children and families.

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R E S E A R CH

APRIES 2020 Program Highlights, Future Plans

by Nnenne Onyioha-Clayton, APRIES program manager, and Laurie Anderson

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espite delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020 the African Programming and Research Initiative to End Slavery (APRIES) built stronger partnerships in Guinea (GN) and Sierra Leone (SL), and started new work in Senegal (SN). The APRIES’ research partners in Sierra Leone and Guinea began data collection. APRIES also held a global competition to select implementing partners for its anti-child trafficking work in those nations. World Hope International is now the partner in Sierra Leone while Sabou Guinea and International Organization for Migration are the partners in Guinea.

prevalence estimation methodologies on the same target population in a restricted geographic sector in Brazil, Costa Rica, Morocco, Pakistan, Tanzania and Tunisia.

Country coordinators Umaru Fofanah (SL) and Ansoumane Bangoura (GN) joined the APRIES team in July. They have made great strides in developing relationships with stakeholders in government, communities, and NGOs. In September, Aminata Diagne Barre joined APRIES as country coordinator for Senegal. Barre engaged with a wide spectrum of key stakeholders, and with them laid down strong foundations for collaboration on APRIES’s anti-trafficking work.

Finally, in collaboration with Columbia University/WZB Berlin Social Science Center, APRIES began working on a meta-analysis—the first of its kind—that will allow researchers to combine knowledge from the seven studies to understand the relative effectiveness of the different prevalence measurement strategies.

APRIES also launched the Prevalence Reduction Innovation Forum (PRIF). The project will test, compare, and document the robustness of various methodological approaches in human trafficking prevalence research, and build the capacity of research teams around the world. In May APRIES co-hosted the virtual PRIF with the Department of State’s Trafficking in Person (TIP) Office that drew more than 1,000 research and policy experts from around the world. APRIES selected seven research teams to implement at least two

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TIP awarded APRIES an additional $4 million in September to supplement research in the aforementioned countries and help expand efforts in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Senegal.

The APRIES office also created a document on statistical definitions of human trafficking to guide researchers seeking to measure the prevalence of human trafficking.

APRIES’ goals over the next few years include establishing the Center on Human Trafficking Research and Outreach (CenHTRO) at UGA in early 2021, as well as establishing small research hubs in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Senegal. The hubs will consist of three people with expertise in research, policy, and programming in the field of human trafficking.

“The smaller centers will provide information, resources and coordination for locally-based anti-trafficking personnel, who in turn will advise APRIES members and its implementing partners,” said David Okech, APRIES director.

R E SE A R CH

Left: APRIES and Guinea partners from SVI at a Training of Trainers. L-R: Bah Ousmane, Yumba Inabanza, Sankhon Fodé Naby, Dr. Barry Aliou, Bangoura Ansoumane, and Thierno Malick Diallo.

Photo by Ansoumane Bangoura (taken before March 2020).

Below: APRIES partners Conflict Management and Development Associates (CMDA) in Sierra Leone training enumerators and supervisors to collect data.

Photo by Umaru Fofanah.

Project enumerators journeying day and night to gather research data in Kono District, Sierra Leone.

Photo by Umaru Fofanah.

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R E S E A R CH

Research in Action Online colloquium provides platform for discussing findings and implications for change

by Orion Mowbray, Director of Research

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ow does social work research make a difference in the “real world”? The Office of Research, joint with the SSW Doctoral Program Committee, sets out to answer that question through a series of virtual colloquiums in 20202021. In the hour-long lunchtime events held via Zoom, a faculty member and a student or recent graduate present research that impacts community, public policy and professional practice.

“The colloquium provides faculty and students with space to discuss how research translates to policy and practice, and furthers the social justice mission of social work,” said Orion Mowbray, director of the School’s Office of Research.

Presenters have so far included faculty members Michael Robinson, on police killings of civilians across races, with recommendations for change grounded in his research, and Adrienne BaldwinWhite, on using technology to combat gender-based violence. Doctoral student Luis Alvarez-Hernandez

discussed the role that Spanish-speaking media has played in relation to intimate partner violence among Spanish-speaking communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Shena Brown, PhD, presented “The Lived Experiences of Black Social Workers” on confronting racialized experiences in professional life. For the first colloquium of 2021, Jane McPherson spoke on social work education and historical white supremacy, and doctoral candidate Tatiana Villarreal-Otaloro discussed her work on developing students as immigrant allies.

“These colloquiums are important because they demonstrate how our research is meaningful in the fight for social justice,” said Dean Anna Scheyett. “It helps people see that this work isn’t simply academic research, it is building tools for meaningful change.”

LAURIE ANDERSON

PhD candidate (ABD) Luis Alvarez-Hernandez presented his research on the relationship between Spanish-speaking media and intimate partner violence during the pandemic.

He was named a 2021 Giving Voice to the Voiceless grant recipient for his recent work.

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R E SE A R CH

Research Briefs

by Wanda Jackson Smith, Grants Specialist and Orion Mowbray, Director of Research Lydia Aletraris and Orion Mowbray received funding by the University of Georgia Office of the Vice President for Research for the Teaming for Interdisciplinary Research Pre-Seed Program. The funding will facilitate the formation of interdisciplinary faculty teams and collaboration on research to inform effective and sustainable prevention and treatment programs for opioid use disorder.

Kristina Jaskyte Bahr received a $5,000 award related to the Teaming for Interdisciplinary Research PreSeed Program from UGA OVPR. The team, titled “UGA Innovation, Creativity, and Design Thinking Research Community” will facilitate the formation of a research community focused on making innovation a standard in research and developing community solutions and leveraging this “Research Community” to identify and publish multiple research proposals developed for federal, foundation, and state funding. This team also includes social work faculty Adrienne Baldwin-White, Jenay Beer and multiple other faculty across campus.

Harold Briggs was awarded a grant from the William T Grant Foundation. This award will explore disproportionate outcomes involving youth of color within the child welfare system.

Rachel Fusco was awarded a subcontract through a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Expansion of Practitioner Education grant to assess the integration of substance use disorder content into the MSW curriculum.

June Gary Hopps was awarded funding from NASW to document and video record initiatives in the domain of Civil Rights and Human Rights where students have been directly engaged.

Anthony Mallon is a Co-PI on a project sponsored by U.S. Department of Health & Human Services titled, “Increasing ACE Protective Factors through Expanded Utilization of the EITC among Minority Households.”

This research investigates and gathers data to identify ways poverty is associated with increased stress, hopelessness, and housing instability among children in the greater Athens area.

Rebecca Matthew is a Co-PI on a contract with the Georgia Department of Public Health’s Chronic

Disease Prevention Section. This project involves the development of a standardized, core training manual for community health workers (CHWs) in Georgia (English and Spanish).

Jane McPherson is a Module Director for the US Department of State-funded project titled, “Virtual Civic Engagement to Strengthen Democracy in Africa - African Civic Engagement Academy (ACEA)”.

This project offers free online civic engagement and leadership training to selected mid-career NGO and public sector managers across sub-Saharan Africa.

Orion Mowbray was recently awarded a grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, in partnership with the Athens Clarke County Police Department, to implement a data dashboard for Clarke Ccounty that provides realtime information to police officers concerning calls that involve persons with known mental health problems.

David Okech and Lydia Aletraris were awarded a grant by the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking at the US Department of State to implement innovative methods in prevalence estimation of human trafficking in Brazil, Costa Rica, Morocco, Pakistan, Tanzania, and Tunisia. The funding also allows them to do implementation research in sex trafficking in Senegal and child trafficking in Sierra Leone.

Michael Robinson was recently awarded a 5-year grant in partnership with Advantage Behavioral Health Services from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) titled “Evaluation of Homeless Services for Substance Using Clients.” This award will evaluate rapid rehousing services delivered to homeless individuals in the Athens area with substance use related problems.

Anna Scheyett received a grant sponsored by American Farm Bureau Federation titled “Farmers' Mental Health Resources”. This research extends initiatives to provide resources dealing with farmer stress and mental health.

Tiffany Washington received an award from the Alzheimer’s Disease Association Inc. titled “A StudentDelivered In-Home Respite Program to Support Family Caregivers.” This award will examine The Houseguest program, which provides family caregivers with virtual respite visits.

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MSW Student Awarded National Interdisciplinary Minority Fellowship

by Laurie Anderson

“With my MSW, I hope to find ways of breaking cycles of residential instability, mental illness, poverty, and addiction among homeless clients.”

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ictoria Casey, an MSW student in the Substance Use Counseling Certificate Program, was selected for the American Psychological Association’s Interdisciplinary Minority Fellowship Program (IMFP).

Funded by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the nationally competitive program trains “graduate students who commit to significantly improving the quality of care provided to ethnic and racial minorities who have a mental or co-occurring mental and substance use disorder.”

As a Fellow, Casey will receive a one-year stipend, attend a summer institute for interdisciplinary training provided by APA in Washington DC, and will have opportunities to network with other Fellows from across the US. “With my MSW, I hope to find ways of breaking cycles of residential instability, mental illness, poverty, and addiction among homeless clients,” said Casey. “My long-term career goal is to provide scientifically informed clinical services to disadvantaged individuals, expand research knowledge and application of culturally responsive interventions, and provide evidence-based mental health and substance use prevention as a clinical psychologist.”

Casey, a housing case manager, is in her second year of the three year extended-time MSW program at the Gwinnett Campus.

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STUDE N TS

Grad Student 'Brings' Pets to Group Homes Pets Together project helps ease isolation during this time of quarantine

by Leigh Beeson

K

im Wolf had plans to visit her grandma at a nursing home in Maryland.

Then, the global pandemic hit.

While COVID-19 has ground much of the world to a stop, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus has hit group home settings particularly hard, especially those with frail or infirmed residents.

With her trip up north canceled, Wolf started thinking about ways she could still “visit” her grandmother—and maybe cheer up other residents in the process.

Wolf had been in the middle of a Zoom call with dementia patients and their caregivers for work when her dog, Rosalynn Carter, a pit bull with a sweet face, hopped into her lap and demanded attention.

Residents at a nursing home enjoy a virtual pet visit. Submitted photo.

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STUDE N TS “I felt bad because it totally distracted the conversation,” said Wolf, who is pursuing master’s degrees in social work and public health at the University of Georgia. “As soon as they saw her, other people started holding up their pets too. At one point, the screen was just a bunch of people holding up their pets.”

Pairing with Animal Farm Foundation, Wolf established Pets Together, with the goal of providing visits on a bigger scale. Using video chat services, Pets Together has held more than 100 virtual visits since its launch in March. At the time of writing, another 100 appointments were already scheduled for June.

The excitement gave her an idea: What about using Zoom for virtual pet visits? During her more than 15 years working with older adults and caregivers, Wolf had seen how residents lit up when she brought therapy dogs. So she decided to pilot the project with her grandmother’s facility, where residents were used to seeing in-house therapy pets weekly.

As of May, Pets Together only offered appointments to people living in group settings or working on the front lines of the pandemic, but Wolf anticipated expanding in the future to provide visits to people who are living in their own homes but unable to get out much due to health reasons.

Wolf recruited friends from the Animal Farm Foundation, a New York-based nonprofit dog rescue that trains shelter dogs to be free service dogs for people in need. With them came dogs, cats, horses, goats and cows.

“You could see the excitement in the eyes of our residents,” said Roya Najafali-Brooks, the activities director at Genesis Multi-Medical, where Wolf’s grandmother lives. “Pets seem to bring them much joy when in the building, so with the current situation, it is a great opportunity for them to be able to still have this pet interaction.”

The virtual visit was a success, and it got Wolf thinking that maybe this experience was something sorely needed in other group home or health care settings that are currently on lockdown.

“One of the residents was so excited that she was kissing the iPad because she wanted to kiss the dog.” At that moment, Wolf thought to herself, “I think we’re on to something!”

“There’s some really powerful research that shows that experiencing chronic social isolation and loneliness is just as bad for premature mortality as smoking 15 cigarettes,” Wolf said. “As a public health student, I’m always trying to think about new and innovative ways that we can reduce social isolation and loneliness, especially in older adults where consequences are more dire. This was a way to try and do that and buffer the effects of isolation.”

Wolf is also designing a research study to measure the effects of Pets Together and to see whether the program is something that could be replicated on a bigger scale.

In the meantime, she and her canine Rosalynn Carter will keep dropping in on the people who most need a pick-me-up.

“Being able to do something that helps other people is awesome, but I get as much out of this as they do,” Wolf said. “And I think Rosalynn enjoys it too.”

Kim Wolf with her dog Rosalynn Carter.

Submitted photo.

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PR OG R AMS

"I am proud to teach students every day that are the change they want to see in the world."

Zoe Johnson, PhD

UGA ONLINE

Director of Field Education and Online MSW Faculty Member

UGA MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK

INCREASES REACH AND ENGAGEMENT In its first year, the University of Georgia’s School of Social Work Online MSW program has nearly doubled its expected enrollment.

by Laurie Anderson

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he creators of the online program, launched in 2019, hoped to increase access to advanced degrees in social work practice and address service shortages in rural and medically underserved areas within the state of Georgia.

“We have seen a tremendous level of interest from prospective students throughout Georgia, particularly from rural areas,” said Javier Boyas, director of the master’s degree program at the UGA School of Social Work.

“People in rural areas often face significant challenges—not enough medical services, lack of broadband, the opioid epidemic, poverty and isolation—and rural social workers are needed,” said Anna Scheyett, dean and professor at the School of Social Work. Many urban areas also desperately need services, she said, which the online program will help supply.

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“The online MSW program can now reach people who are place-bound and can’t come to Athens or Gwinnett, but who have a deep commitment to helping their community,” said Boyas.

According to Boyas, the school aimed for an initial cohort of 25 students for the online degree.

However, as prospective students began applying from all corners of the state, the program director pushed to increase capacity.

“Preliminary data suggests that we are meeting an existing need throughout the state, as evidenced by the number of applications we received,” said Boyas.

Applicants have come from a wide variety of professions and experiences, with academically sound backgrounds, said the director. For the first semester in fall 2020, the program received more than twice the applications than it had seats,

PROGRAMS

as students applied from 32 different Georgia counties, including many from underserved rural counties.

“This is the type of richness we envisioned recruiting when we first began this journey,” said Boyas.

Interest in the school’s traditional classroom setting for the master’s degree also has jumped this year. Enrollment at the Athens and Gwinnett campuses contributed to an overall increase of 19% for the entire master’s degree program above the previous year.

The impact of COVID-19, the Black Lives Matter movement, and other recent events also may have influenced demand for social workers, believes Scheyett.

“Societal challenges have forced us to look at the terrible disparities in our country, and people want to be part of the solution,” she said. “The MSW is a way to gain the skills to do this.”

The increases in enrollment bode well for Georgia, where the need for social workers is particularly acute. In 2015, nearly a third of Georgia’s counties did not have a single licensed social worker practicing in the area, according to Voices for

Georgia’s Children. Of the state’s 159 counties, the Georgia Department of Community Health designated 141 as primary care health professional shortage areas and 131 as mental health professional shortage areas.

“These factors partially explain why the mental health needs of Georgians often go unmet and thus widen the mental health disparities gap experienced by people of color, people in poverty, and people in rural areas,” said Boyas.

Social workers also provide support in many fields besides health, such as education, economic stability, child and youth welfare and the justice system, to name a few. With such a wide range of specializations, no wonder the employment outlook for the profession is good. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projected that from 2016 to 2026 the number of social workers will increase by 16%— more than double the growth rate projected for all occupations.

“An MSW gives people the knowledge and skills to address these disparities across all levels—from direct practice with individuals to policy change and political action,” said Scheyett. “Social workers are making change across the spectrum.”

For more information, visit the UGA Online Website.

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PROG R AMS

SSW Launches Substance Use Certificate Program

by Laurie Anderson

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eople who struggle with drug or alcohol addiction can face difficulties in finding help. For many in Georgia, the severe shortage of counselors hampers recovery. To address the need, the School of Social Work has launched a Graduate Certificate in Substance Use Counseling.

The certificate program offers a fast track to professional substance use counseling in Georgia.

All classroom licensure requirements specific to the state are built into the program’s curriculum.

“Our program gives students everything they need for licensure in Georgia except the required direct work experience and supervision hours, but we make sure students are ready to begin them ASAP after completion,” said Orion Mowbray, an associate professor and Director of Research, who oversees the program. The coursework includes intensive training in current evidence-based treatment and interdisciplinary practices.

In its Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2019 edition, the U.S. Department of Labor noted that treatment demand continues to outpace treatment availability throughout the nation.

Employment of substance use, behavioral disorder and mental health counselors is projected to grow 23% from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services projects that, if trends continue, by the year 2030 Georgia will need an additional 1,430 addiction counselors to meet the demand.

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“We believe that the certificate program will attract students from many programs here at UGA, as well as those who already hold a master’s degree from any university, and are ready to return for specialized training in substance use counseling,” said Mowbray.

The program is open to both degree and nondegree students. Applicants must meet the minimum UGA Graduate School standards, and non-degree students are required to apply through the Graduate School. For more information, visit the Certificate in Substance Use Counseling web page.

Upon completion of the program, graduates will become immediately eligible for the CADC-T license (Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor – Trainee).

PROGRAMS

New Social Work Minor Applicable to Many Fields

by Laurie Anderson

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n fall 2020 the School of Social Work launched a new minor in social work, designed to prepare students with skills to enhance their success no matter what career path they choose.

The 18-credit undergraduate minor builds competence in areas crucial to today’s workplace.

Topics include diversity, equity and inclusion, verbal and non-verbal communication, critical thinking, policy analysis, advocacy and conflict resolution, among others.

“The minor was created to allow students across majors to benefit from the skills and competencies provided by social work education,” said Leon Banks, director of the undergraduate social work program. “The minor will also help students from across the university see social work as a viable career option.”

Now is the perfect time to take social work courses, whether or not one plans to be a social worker, believes Ellen Pauloski, the undergraduate program advisor who developed the proposal for the minor.

“Social work teaches valuable concepts and skills that complement many different programs of study,” she said.

Sophomore Maeve Breathnach said she added the social work minor due to her interest in human rights and a desire to promote an equitable, sustainable society. After earning her A.B. in economics and international affairs, and a minor in Spanish, she plans to attend law school in order to work in immigration law and policy.

“I love helping people from all walks of life,” said Cannady.

Reasons like these encourage Banks and Pauloski to continue broadening access to social work courses.

“We want to make components of the social work curriculum accessible to non-majors and a supplement to their chosen major,” Pauloski said, “as well as a potential gateway to interest in the Master of Social Work program.”

At least one student enrolled in the minor already has plans to continue toward a master’s in social work. Senior Kelly Guthrie plans to eventually become a licensed clinical social worker. For now, the human development and family science major in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences sees the social work minor as a way to learn more about mental illness, poverty and justice.

“I want to learn many perspectives on ways to help people.” she said.

Students from any major may enroll in the social work minor. The minor requires that students complete three lower-division courses – Introduction to Social Work, Communication as a Helping Professional, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – as well as nine hours of upper-division electives. Electives include Maymester study away opportunities in Ghana and Northern Ireland.

For more information about the social work minor, contact Ellen Pauloski at pauloski@uga.edu.

“Social work’s emphasis on culturally responsive work and its activism component will help me be a better advocate,” she said.

Freshman Jehlen Cannady, a UGA studentathlete, wants to become a kinesiotherapist. He believes social work courses will prepare him to provide support for injured athletes during their rehabilitation process, and potentially help him mentor adolescents with troubled childhoods.

Ellen Pauloski, BSW program advisor, developed the proposal for the minor in social work program.

Laurie Anderson

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G LOB A L

Q&A with Laurie Reyman MSW ’09 Certificate in NPML ’11 Interviewed by Laurie Anderson

Interviewer: How did you get started?

Laurie Reyman is the co-founder and organizational development director of Colors of Connection. The nonprofit engages marginalized and conflictaffected youth in sub-Saharan Africa in public mural-making and art projects that cultivate well-being and advocate for social justice. Since its establishment in 2011, Colors of Connection projects have directly benefited more than 200 young people and reached an estimated 200,000 residents in West and Central Africa. Projects have addressed gender equality, sexual violence, health promotion, peaceful cohabitation between ethnic groups, education for girls and human rights.

Reyman, who grew up in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, was interviewed in February 2020 at the Art and Education for Social Justice Symposium hosted by the Lamar Dodd School of Art and the School of Social Work.

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Reyman: As a student, I knew that I wanted to work internationally—specifically in Africa—so I sought out an internship that would put me in that realm. For my MSW, I interned at the Carter Center at Atlanta.

When I graduated, I got a two-year contract job with the Carter Center in Liberia, in West Africa.

Liberia was a post-conflict country, very devastated.

The area I was in, the southeast region, in a little town called Harper, was still very war-torn. Every third building was a burnt-out shell of what it had been, and there just wasn’t much development or energy happening there. I wondered if we could change these structures by painting murals of things that people wanted for the future. What would that do for the people who could see that instead of just a burnt-out shell?

So I contacted my friend Christina Mallie, who is an artist I met in South Africa. She was interested in working in Africa with youth. I proposed the idea to her, and she liked it, and so [in 2011] we developed the idea of the program.

Interviewer: What was the effect of the murals?

Reyman: It transformed the spaces. One of them was on the main market, this building with a sort of triangular top. We painted that, and it transformed the way the market felt, the way it looked. We painted

G LO B A L

on what had been an old cinema, we did a cultural mural bringing the positive aspects of the culture, promoting girls’ education. We painted on what had been the old electricity building, and painted the idea about bringing the energy back to Harper, both the electricity but also other forms of energy. And we painted on the wall around the hospital.

It gave the kids a lot of confidence and a lot of pride, and a lot of ownership of being seen differently by the community. They’d never had the opportunity to transform, to engage in their community in that way, to have such a powerful role in the community, or to develop the skills to do that.

Interviewer: Initially this was a one-time project in Harper. How did it become a nonprofit organization?

Reyman: Some more opportunities developed. One was murals in a refugee camp that had sprung up near Harper, Liberia with Ivorian refugees. We decided that we were on to something that was pretty amazing for these communities, so we wanted to make it a scalable model, and do more.

Interviewer: How would you say social justice is addressed through your work?

Reyman: We’re working to give these kids and the people in the community a chance to express their opinions in a platform that they may not have had

ABOVE: Colors of Connection co-founders, Laurie Reyman (L), organizational development director and Christina Mallie (R), executive director, in front of the Development Through Education Mural at the Goudoubo Refugee Camp, Burkina Faso, West Africa, June 2014. Read more about and watch a video of the inspiring Colors of Connection murals at https://colorsofconnection.org/murals/.

Photo by Colors of Connection

before, and a lot of the issues that they’re dealing with are related to social justice – most recently sexual and gender-based violence, which is related to gender inequality. Social justice is the foundation of our work.

Interviewer: What did you learn here at the School of Social Work that you use the most?

Reyman: The education I received gave me the groundwork to continue with a community focus.

That’s what drew me to social work. We’re very much based in social work—and the ideas of doing social work versus just doing art. It’s doing social work through art.

Since the interview, coronavirus has prevented visits to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Reyman and Mallie hope to launch Shujaa—a sustainable, longterm program in east Congo—in 2021. In the meantime Colors of Connection is supporting its Congolese partner M’Shujarts, a girls’ art collective. For more information or to support Colors of Connection, visit colorsofconnection.org.

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Creative Space | Kūrybinė erdvė Kristina Jaskyte Bahr uses Design Thinking to spark innovation in an online Lithuanian classroom

by Laurie Anderson

K

ristina Jaskyte Bahr delights in showing people how to come up with creative ways to solve problems.

The associate professor of the nonprofit management and leadership program at the School of Social Work teaches Design Thinking—a systematic approach to problem-solving that uses humancentered techniques to develop innovative solutions.

An innovator herself, in 2020 Jaskyte Bahr received UGA’s Service-Learning Teaching Excellence Award and was selected for the highly competitive Innovation Bootcamp program for female entrepreneurs.

So it’s no surprise that when travel restrictions due to COVID-19 forced Jaskyte Bahr to cancel a teaching trip to Lithuania, the Lithuanian-born academic got creative.

The Lithuanian Ministry of Education had invited Jaskyte Bahr to teach a seven-weeklong Design Thinking workshop for students and faculty of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences.

“I was supposed to teach in person, but because of COVID, I had to design a whole new set of workshops,” she said.

Instead of canceling the course—the first of its kind at that university, and possibly in the country—Jaskyte Bahr found a work-around using the digital tools Zoom and Mural. Zoom allowed Bahr to engage remotely with students in classroom discussions about the Design Thinking process.

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Mural, an online canvas that students could interact with and share, enabled small groups of students to collaboratively visualize problems and plan solutions.

The workshop was comprised of 22 students who worked in four teams. Each team was tasked with using the Design Thinking method to develop a solution to a social challenge. Because of COVID-19, the short length of the course and the online format, Jaskyte Bahr said the students defined and focused on just four student-related problems: 1. How can we learn about and understand which methods of distance learning are most effective for students?

2. How can working students find time for themselves?

3. How can we help students feel less stressed out?

4. How can we help teams establish their work principles for effective collaboration?

For the first stage of the Design Thinking process students were required to develop a deep understanding of the stakeholders—in this case their peers—through interviews, empathetic listening, observation and research.

“Each student had to interview at least two people during one week's period that we had dedicated to empathy,” said Jaskyte Bahr. “They also had some in-class time to interview each other, because they were stakeholders in all four team projects.”

The information that students collected in the first stage enabled them to more accurately define the problems. They also gained insights that were useful for the next stage—brainstorming possible solutions.

After brainstorming, each team selected the solution that best met the stakeholders’ needs. In the final stage, they designed and tested a prototype of the solution.

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The solutions could be anything.

For example, in response to the third question, one team designed a campus “Relaxation Oasis.” The student reaction to the prototype was so positive that the team planned to present the design to the dean of the university’s public health department.

Another team designed an app that would facilitate teamwork. The app featured icebreakers, personality tests to match collaborators, information about each team member’s likes, dislikes, strengths and weaknesses, and a project planner with timelines.

“Each team member would show the progress they've made on the project and ask questions of other team members,” said Bahr. “It would be structured in such a way that team members would have to complete tasks in order to progress to the next level of the project management.”

Jaskyte also taught a separate workshop for 35 faculty from different departments on how to use a broad range of Design Thinking tools.

Faculty primarily expressed interest in using Design Thinking for developing interventions and future research projects, but realized it had more applications.

"Thanks to the training that inspired me, I realized that I can use design thinking in any field, and that creativity liberates (the groups had an atmosphere of laughter, relaxation, and rejoicing),” wrote one participant.

Though she still prefers in-person learning of Design Thinking, Jaskyte Bahr was pleased that the remote experience was fruitful. “The ability to innovate is critical for nonprofit organizations' effective response to changing environmental conditions,” said Jaskyte Bahr.

And also for teaching and learning in the time of COVID.

GLOBAL

LIETUVOS SVEIKATOS MOKSLŲ UNIVERSITETO INOVACIJOS

LAPKRITIS 2020

• SOCIALINIO DARBO MEDICINOJE PROGRAMA

MĖNESIO NAUJIENŲ LEIDINYS

LEIDINIO VIDUJE PAMATYSITE

Naujienos universitete

Nauja erdvė universiteto patalpose studentų atsipalaidavimui

Ar iš tikrųjų į virtualią kovą stos dėstytojai ir studentai?

One team's solution to the question "How can we help students feel less stressed out?" was by designing a university "Relaxation Oasis" in the Mural online canvas. The student reaction to the prototype was so positive that the team planned to present the design to the dean of the university’s public health department.

NAUJA ERDVĖ UNIVERSITETE STUDENTŲ LAISVALAIKIUI AUTORIUS: SOCIALINIO DARBO MEDICINOJE PROGRAMOS STUDENTĖS

Atsižvelgus į kylančias problemas universitete dėl vis intensyviai didėjančio ir patiriamo streso studentų tarpe buvo ieškoma alternatyvų ką būtų galima padaryti universitete, jog streso sumažėtų. Įsitraukiant tiek studentams, tiek dėstytojoms universiteto programos socialinis darbas medicinoje studentės iniciavo projektą ,,studentų streso mažinimą lemiantys veiksniai". Projekte studentės pasiūlė universitete įkurti kambarį, erdvę studentams atsipalaiduoti, prisėsti, žaisti virtualius ar stalo žaidimus, skaityti, medituoti. Taip pat pasiūlyta sukurti kartu ir erdvę kur studentas galėtų pasikviesti virtualiam ,,mūšiui" ir įvairių klausimų sprendimui netgi dėstytoją, ar kitą studentą, būtent ši idėja itin patiko studentams. Erdvėje būtų galima registracija per telefono programėlę, tam kad būtų sukuriama rami, jauki ir komfortiška atsipalaidavimo vieta studentui ar dėstytojui.

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FA CU L TY K U DOS

Faculty Kudos Cyprus native Lydia Aletraris, associate research professor, was interviewed November 3, 2020 on Cypriot television’s main news show about the US election. She explained the main issues that concerned American voters and discussed the anxiety and uncertainty that Americans felt. Aletraris was also selected for the inaugural cohort of the Rural Engagement Workshop for Faculty through UGA Public Service and Outreach. https://outreach.uga.edu/programs/rural-engagement-facultyworkshop/

Joon Choi was appointed co-chair to the Society for Social Work and Research’s Immigrants and Refugees cluster. The three year term begins in 2021. Choi will be involved in the SSWR conference abstract acceptance decision-making process.

In October Llewellyn “Lee” Cornelius participated in a panel on social justice titled “Racial/Ethnic and Cultural Contours of Community Interventions, Advocacy, and Change” at the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration. Debbie Salas-Lopez and Cornelius co-authored The Girl from the Bronx: A True Story of Struggle, Resiliency and Courage, a memoir of public policy’s effect on vulnerable populations.

In July, Cornelius and Lemuel “Life” LaRoche BSW ’02, MSW ’03, also participated in a discussion on the radio program Athens News Matters about the experience of Black academics at a majority-white institution.

In December 2020 the consumer finance website WalletHub featured expert commentary by Allison Dunnigan on the history of foster care in America and areas in need of improvement.

Jennifer Elkins was featured by Public Libraries Online regarding implementing a trauma-informed approach in libraries to support the most vulnerable populations.

Rachel Fusco co-authored Dynamics of Family and Intimate Partner Violence with Irene Hanson Frieze and Christina Newhill, through Springer Publishing.

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F ACULTY K UDO S

Kristina Jaskyte Bahr received UGA’s Service-Learning Teaching Excellence Award and also was selected to the Innovation Bootcamp Spring 2020 cohort. The highly competitive program examines the unique challenges faced by female entrepreneurs as well and equip them with the key skills needed to be successful and innovative in an entrepreneurial environment.

Tony Lowe was selected as a recipient of the 2021 UGA President’s Fulfilling the Dream Award.

Lowe was honored for his work helping the city of Hogansville, GA discover and confront its early civil rights struggles and build a plan for economic development that acknowledges its history. Lowe was recognized at the UGA Athens Freedom Breakfast virtual celebration on Friday January 15, 2021.

Jane McPherson has been an invited speaker around the world (virtually, because of COVID-19) on rights based social work practice. She was invited to speak at the European Human Rights and Social Work Network in the Netherlands, as a plenary speaker at the Rethinking Social Work VIII conference in Istanbul, and as the keynote speaker at the Taiwan Association of Social Workers Annual Conference.

David Okech was the convener and director of the first global Prevalence Reduction Innovation Forum (PRIF), bringing together leading researchers in the field of human trafficking to extend the science of prevalence estimation. As director of PRIF, Okech will work with the research teams to establish prevalence of human trafficking in selected hotspots in Brazil, Costa Rica, Morocco, Pakistan, Tanzania, and Tunisia. He was invited to join the program advisory group of The Freedom Fund (UK), as well as the Research and Prevalence Expert Panel (RPEP) of EnCompass, LLC. Michael A. Robinson and his co-authors were awarded the Florence W. Vigilante Award for Scholarly Excellence for “The Dehumanization of Black Males by Police: Teaching Social Justice - Black Life Really Does Matter” published in the Journal of Teaching in Social Work. The award is given annually in honor of the journal’s founding editor. Robinson and his co-authors were recognized in November 2020 at the virtual Annual Program Meeting of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE).

Anna Scheyett was named a 2020 NASW Social Work Pioneer ™ by the National Association of Social Workers Foundation (NASWF). “During the course of her career, Scheyett has demonstrated a commitment to community-based collaborative scholarship, excellence in social work education, and has served as a mentor to countless students and young faculty,” stated the NASWF press release.

Amy Shipp was invited to present at the Charleston Child Trauma Conference. Her presentation was titled “The Envision Project: Specialized Services for Commercially Sexually Exploited Youth”.

Rebecca Wells was selected as a UGA 2020-2021 Service Learning Fellow. The year-long program provides selected faculty the opportunity to learn best practices in service learning, community engagement and how to integrate these practices into their teaching and research. Wells also published on medical homes for children with special healthcare needs https://news.uga.edu/ kids-with-special-needs-still-face-care-gaps/ , was quoted in “Healthday” about her research, and was interviewed for WUGA’s Athens News Matters.

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Nnenne Onyioha-Clayton is the African Programming and Research Initiative

to End Slavery (APRIES) program manager of research and implementation work conducted in Senegal. She is an active community advocate and a graduate of the Partnership for Southern Equity’s Just Energy Academy, designed to effectively engage communities on issues of race and equity. Onyioha-Clayton holds a BSc in biology from University College London.

Yosha Dotson comes to us as an academic professional and graduate recruitment

coordinator. Dotson graduated from the School of Social Work with her MSW in 2017. She is an ardent advocate for mental health. Before returning to UGA, Dotson’s work experience included collaborating with local and state government leaders to affect change and policy issues.

Gina Kurtz, financial and human resources director, joined us from the Office of

Global Engagement (OGE), where she served as associate director of finance for the past five years. She served in multiple roles at OGE and elsewhere at UGA, has extensive experience in finance and in human resources, and supervisory experience with both staff and students. Kurtz holds an MBA from Liberty University.

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P A SSA G E S

Join us in welcoming seven new faculty and staff members to the School of Social Work community.

We are glad you are part of the family!

Margeli Mendez, administrative assistant, joined us on a permanent basis as the assistant for the field office. She had been employed in this role as a temporary staff member for a number of months. Mendez has worked in the nonprofit sector for over 10 years and is a Certified Leadership Coach, Speaker and Trainer.

Rebecca C. Poon, APRIES Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning

(MERL) coordinator. Poon comes with over 16 years of experience in education and has led research projects, conducted formative and impact evaluation studies, and coordinated the implementation of district-wide programs and policies. She holds a PhD in education from the University of California, Berkeley.

Elke Yath, APRIES business manager, is responsible for managing all financial activities. She comes to APRIES from the University of Georgia Human Resources and Payroll Office. She has twelve years of experience working in the HR field and holds the professional designations of SHRM-SCP and PHR. She holds a BBA from Brenau University.

Hui Yi, APRIES research scientist holds a PhD in statistics from Virginia Tech.

She conducts research using statistical analysis for complex, high volume and high-dimensional data. The statistical methods she closely works with include regression, multivariate methods, Bayesian models, data mining, machine learning, amongst others.

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Farewell

Retirements

The COVID-19 pandemic made the SSW think outside the box to say goodbye to our colleagues. We celebrated the following five retirees virtually with online message boards (viewing links included). If you would like to post a message to any of their boards, please send an email to Jennifer Abbott, jabbott@uga.edu, or Kat Farlowe, kfarlowe@uga.edu, and we will give you an invitation to post.

Jeanell Muckle, chief financial officer and administrative manager, retired after over 33 years with the university. Muckle began working at the SSW in 1995. In addition to her financial duties, Muckle was involved in the running of multiple aspects of the SSW including human resources and external affairs. She was a long-time member of the Black Faculty and Staff Organization (BFSO), served as the SSW Staff Council Representative, and was a UGA Foundation Third Pillar Society member. Muckle served on several ad hoc committees across the university in various leadership roles. https://www.kudoboard.com/boards/rMoTwWYy#view

Laurie Anderson, public relations specialist, retired after 30 years with the

University of Georgia. From a temporary job as receptionist in the College of Agriculture, she moved to permanent and increasingly responsible positions in the Odum School of Ecology and Office of Research before joining the SSW in 2013. Anderson wrote and distributed articles about the SSW community and was responsible for publishing the Connect magazine and Empower newsletter.

She also served as SSW resident photographer and website contributor. https://www.kudoboard.com/boards/FaL13Rnv#view

Tom Artelt, senior academic professional and MSW/DIV coordinator, retired after a combined total of 20 years with the university. An ordained minister, in addition to coordinating the BSW field program, he oversaw the dual master of social work/master of divinity degree program, was recognized as BSW teacher of the year three times, and served as chair of the University Council Libraries Committee. He plans to continue serving the community as a part-time DJ for WUGA-FM, the Athens affiliate of Georgia Public Broadcasting. https://www.kudoboard.com/boards/C9B4PDHE#view

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Larry Nackerud, professor, retired after over 26 years with the SSW. During his tenure at UGA, Nackerud served as associate and interim dean of the SSW and was chair of the Institutional Review Board in the UGA Office of Human Subjects for 10 years. Nackerud was active in the mentoring of PhD students, serving on 76 dissertation committees, 28 of which he chaired. Social work students in the MSW and PhD programs voted him Teacher of the Year repeatedly. Nackerud shares his thoughts on teaching at the SSW below. https://www.kudoboard.com/boards/QamSSOLJ#view

Teresa Payne, director of information technology services, retired in

December after 32 years at the university. She joined the School of Social Work in 1996 and oversaw the creation of the school’s first website and growth of internet and technology use in classrooms. UGA Today’s Campus Spotlight highlighted her commitment to assisting students and the community with technology. https://www.kudoboard.com/boards/LriMjWKJ#view

Departures Mumbi Mwaura, MSW/MPH ‘14, graduate programs recruitment coordinator, accepted a position as a program associate for curriculum resources with the Council for Social Work Education. For four years Mwaura led student recruitment activities as well as developed and implemented continuing education units, served on the school’s external affairs committee and as interim coordinator for the MSW/ MPH program.

DeVin S. Taylor, development coordinator, joined Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law as an associate director, Major Gifts.

Larry Nackerud on Teaching ...

“I have enjoyed creating/developing some interesting in-classroom and out-of-classroom excesses/activities for students, like the tour of the ‘chicken killing plant in Athens’; hayrides with students through the Oconee Hills Cemetery; having students participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count sponsored by the Audubon Society and the Ornithological Lab at Cornell University as a great way to learn about ‘time and place’ sampling, which is how social workers try to ‘count’ another elusive population, persons who are homeless; the use of Auction Theory as a means to exemplify the policy analysis model of Game Theory; and teaching students to just say the word ‘empirical’ at any time, particularly when another faculty member is around. My claim was that the term was a major part of the ‘culture’ of the School of Social Work and the University of Georgia and students needed to understand/know the ‘culture of higher education’ if they were to be successful. I have actually had former students yell out the term at me when I see them around Athens.”

Empirical!

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CL A S S NOT ES

ClassNotes Class Notes 1970s

1980s

MICHAELIN REAMY WATTS MSW ’79, accepted the 2019 Library of Congress Best Practices Literacy Award in November of that year on behalf of Bring Me A Book Franklin. Watts is president of the Apalachicola, Florida nonprofit. The award honors organizations doing exemplary, innovative and replicable work to increase literacy. “Bring Me A Book Franklin…wants to express its gratitude to Program Coordinator Karen Kessel and the many dedicated local and snowbird volunteers who dedicate their time, energy, skills and caring to the children of Franklin County,” said Watts in accepting the award.

VICTOR K. WILSON BSW ’82, vice president for Student Affairs at UGA, delivered the rescheduled Spring 2020 undergraduate Commencement keynote address Oct. 16 in Sanford Stadium. In his address, Wilson challenged graduates to find what brings them joy in personal and professional life. “You will never know where you may find your bliss, but you must never stop seeking it,” he told the audience.

“Keep your head and your heart open.”

In an interview with Macon, Georgia news agency WMAZ about the rise of child abuse during the pandemic, ANGELA SOLOMON MSW ’89, noted how Bibb County social workers were responding in a virtual setting. “We have educated [staff ] on suicidal issues, mental health issues, bullying issues, child abuse issues, and we’ve asked them to look at the clues such as if a student is not logging on, why isn’t that student logging on?” said Solomon, school social work coordinator for the district. “If the student is not engaged, why isn’t the student not engaged?”

1990s

From left, Karen Kessel, program coordinator and Michaelin Reamy Watts, president, of Bring Me A Book Franklin, at the awards ceremony in Washington DC with Judy Koch, president of the Bring Me A Book Foundation.

Photo by Brigid Hubberman (taken before 3/20).

Source: http://bit.ly/3vIZURz.

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The prevalence of mental illness during the pandemic could lead to greater awareness and understanding of the issue, which could lessen the stigma, KIM JONES BSW ’91, told the Atlanta Journal Constitution in April 2020. Jones is executive director of the Georgia chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. “What we are experiencing right now is what people with a mental health condition experience their whole life,” she said. “I think it would be hard for anyone, after COVID-19, to not relate to it.”

C LA SS N O TE S

A Heart and Head Aligned How earning the MA NML degree has strengthened my twenty-year commitment to animal rescue.

by Allyson Hester MA ’20

H

aving worked in a volunteer capacity in animal rescue for two decades in Athens and currently employed full-time with the Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, my head and my heart felt perfectly aligned when I made the decision to pursue my Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management and Leadership through the UGA School of Social Work. I graduated two months ago from the program, and it was without a doubt, one of the greatest experiences of my life. Every class was packed with authentic, relevant information I could use to further my impact in our nonprofit world, particularly as it pertains to animal welfare.

Animal rescue has been part of my core since I was a young child who would always choose stuffed animals over dolls as my playthings. It is definitely an inherent passion! For the past 20 years, I have worked to lower the animal euthanasia rate in our community, and we’ve made massive positive progress! In the year 2000, the euthanasia rate in the Athens area was near a heartbreaking 70%. To change these statistics I created and helped maintain www.Athenspets.net, and immediately we started seeing promising results.

We grew our volunteer base to help in the effort, and

Hester with her two rescue dogs, Scruffy (17 years old) and Maya (7 years old). Photo by Regina Fitzpatrick

in 2015, Athenspets became a 501(c)(3) charitable organization where I currently serve on the Board of Directors and serve on the ground, working directly with the dogs at the municipal shelter. In 2020, less than 5% of animals at the municipal shelter were euthanized. We have come so far and are working tirelessly to maintain that momentum!

This substantial impact would be much less if not for partners like the hundred-year-old Athens Area Humane Society (AAHS) where I serve as the Vice President of the Board of Directors. As a Board member, part of my duty is to help fundraise for the organizations I serve, especially during a capital campaign. Applying the knowledge learned in the MNML program, particularly from Joan Prittie’s fundraising class, I am crafting an intensive fundraiser soliciting corporate and individual gifts paired with an upcoming long-distance hike to generate revenue for both Athenspets and AAHS. If you would like to learn more, please visit my blogsite at www.AppalachianTrailClarity.com/JMT. Happy trails and happy tails!

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MAMIE MARIE HARPER BSW ’09

The University of Georgia’s Alumni Association held its annual 40 under 40 Celebration on September 25, 2020. The virtual event, honored young alumni who have made significant contributions in their communities and the University of Georgia.

Mamie Marie Harper BSW ’09 was honored for her work as an advocate for the foster child population and founding of the nonprofit organization, Carrie’s Closet of Georgia, where she also serves as its executive director. Carrie’s Closet of Georgia provides clothing, other necessities and services for foster children and families serving over 600 children in six different counties. Mamie has also been instrumental in helping shape the policy for clothing security to be included in the Georgia Foster Children Bill of Rights.

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Center for Civic Innovation

Photographer

C LA SS N O TE S

DENISE EMAMI BSED ’97, MSW ’00 and

GEORGE EMAMI AB ’01, MBA ’10

The University of Georgia’s Alumni Association Bulldog 100 honored the top 100 fastest-growing organizations owned or operated by UGA alumni.

This year’s virtual event was held on February 11, 2021.

© Melissa Bugg

School of Social Work alumna, Denise Emami (BSED ’97, MSW ’00) and her husband, George Emami (AB ’01, MBA ’10) owners of The Brokery, were recognized as the 22nd fastest growing company on this year’s 2021 list. The Brokery serves residential and commercial property sales.

Recently, it has expanded operations to include both company-held commercial real estate and home renovations. “We are very grateful and humbled,” Denise said, upon receiving the honor.

“The road to success is surely filled with many who have tread before us and are willing to turn around and help those coming along behind them.”

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2020 School of Social Work

James "Jim" Dodd Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients Laura Jalbert and Cheryl Averett Johnson were the 2020 School of Social Work James “Jim” Dodd Distinguished Alumni Award honorees. This prestigious award is given annually to alumni who demonstrate the core values of the School of Social Work.

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LAURA JALBERT • BSW ’99, MSW ’00

CHERYL AVERETT JOHNSON • BSW ’89

Laura Jalbert is owner and clinical director of Mindful Transitions in Marietta, Georgia. When in-person contact became problematic due to the pandemic, Jalbert pivoted her team and resources to provide psychotherapy services online. They are also actively lobbying professional groups and legislators to encourage increased access to technology for those with few resources.

Cheryl Averett Johnson is the president and CEO of West Central Georgia Cancer Coalition (WCGCC) in Columbus, Georgia. Through the “Neighbors Helping Neighbors Cancer Assistance Fund", the WCGCC is helping cancer patients who are in active treatment (chemo or radiation) and have been affected by COVID-19, with their mortgage/rent or utilities assistance.

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C LA SS N O TE S TRACIE HOGAN SIMMONS BSW ’91, was named Citizen of the Week for the first week of October 2020 by the Dalton Daily Citizen-News. Simmons, the lead social worker for Whitfield County Schools, was described as “an absolutely exceptional individual, and tremendous for the community,” by colleague Wanda Phillips.

XERNONA THOMAS, ABJ ‘91, MSW ’92, EDD ’17, was appointed superintendent of the Clarke County School District in December 2020. Thomas has 28 years of experience serving students and communities in Clarke and Oconee counties as a school social worker, assistant principal, principal, chief of staff, and interim superintendent. “Despite the challenges due to COVID, she makes difficult decisions every day to ensure student achievement remains the core of what we do,” stated Tawana Smith Mattox, CCSD board vice president.

Clarke County School District Superintendent Xernona Thomas introduces the Dream Awards presentations at the MLK Freedom Breakfast January 17, 2020.

Photo: Dorothy Kozlowski.

SCHNAVIA SMITH HATCHER, MSW ’98, was named dean of the University of Alabama’s School of Social Work, effective August 1, 2021. Hatcher earned her doctorate at the University of Kansas School of Social Work. She has served as director of the UNC Charlotte School of Social Work since 2016. “As an alum and former faculty member, UGA has played a significant role in my foundation as a social worker and administrator,” said Hatcher. “I look forward to potential SEC partnerships focused on community engagement and research.”

2000s In November SHELLY HUTCHINSON MSW ’00, was re-elected state representative of Georgia House District 107, which includes Lawrenceville.

Her two-year term begins January 2021. Rep. Hutchinson is owner of The Social Empowerment Center.

SARAH TUNEBERG BSW ’02, led Colorado’s COVID-19 testing and containment until December 2020.

In that role Tuneberg organized testing, contact tracing, technology development, and support services for citizens in isolation and quarantine.

Read more about her in a UGA Today Alumni Spotlight.

MIRIAM SABIN PHD ’02, joined the British medical journal The Lancet at its New York offices in March. Sabin is among the authors of “COVID-19 exacerbating inequalities in the US,” published in the journal in April. “UGA School of Social Work gave me a world-class foundation in social work research that has continued to guide my work,” said Dr. Sabin. I continue to benefit from my academic preparation professionally, which ensured I could work at all levels - whether on micro level issues or global ones. As such, I have been so fortunate to have worked at the CDC, the World Health Organization and now the British medical journal The Lancet thanks to the versatility I developed at UGA SSW. I owe a great deal to the faculty and the opportunities I had and will be forever grateful. I carry my friends from UGA SSW in my heart and throughout the rest of my career.”

ASHLEY ALLEN MSW ’06, LCSW, director of MaconBibb and Monroe County Health Services at River Edge Behavioral Health, was interviewed in October 2020 about rising suicide rates and available resources. Allen and her fellow MCHS staff also welcomed the opening of a new 48,000 square foot Recovery Center. The $14 million, state-of-the-art facility houses separate wings for adults and children, including a Children’s Crisis Stabilization Unit. The unit is one of only four of its kind in Georgia and the only one of three in the state that caters to clients as young as five.

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Reimagining the World SJ Henderson MSW/MPH ’20 says she doesn’t have goals, but she does have dreams.

by Laurie Anderson

“I

often feel like goals can be ceilings, they can make you limit your own capacity,” said the dual degree graduate student. “I do not have goals. I have dreams, desires, and plans.”

Henderson graduated in December 2020 with master’s degrees in social work and public health.

The two disciplines have provided her with opportunities to see the impact of public policy, both first-hand and as part of a bigger picture.

First-hand exposure came with internships at Chess & Community as an outreach coordinator, and as a special project coordinator with a focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion for The Cottage, a sexual assault and children’s advocacy center.

The broader view came through her public health capstone, for which she looked at how exclusionary housing policies and infrastructural violence resulted in long-term toxic exposure for Black communities. That research, “Environmental Racism and the Contamination of Black Lives: A Literature Review,” has been published in the Journal of African American Studies.

In addition to carrying a full course load, when students were on campus Henderson worked 40 hours a week from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. at one of UGA’s dining halls. She also made time to volunteer—as an administrative assistant at the Department of Juvenile Justice, as a REACH mentor at Clarke Central High School, a group facilitator at People Living in Recovery, and as a motivational speaker at two public schools.

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And she found time to tell the story of Kalief Browder, an unjustly incarcerated Black youth, in a docudrama she developed titled “Letters to Kalief.”

Henderson said she intended the film to raise awareness of and instigate dialogue about mental illness, mass incarceration, systemic racism and other issues facing Black communities.

While Henderson’s workload would exhaust most people, she worried about missing opportunities to strengthen relationships.

“I always tended to feel like I was not doing enough,” she said. “Due to my hectic schedule, I often felt that I was not available enough to engage with my cohort or professors as much as I’d like.”

Rebecca Wells, clinical assistant professor and coordinator of the MSW/MPH program, disagrees.

“She is very motivated and consistently put forward great work,” said Wells. “She’s an allaround joy to work with, and she excelled in her courses, her MPH capstone, and in her internship at the Cottage.”

Henderson credits Wells, as well as Ron Walcott, vice provost for graduate education and dean of the Graduate School, and Debbie Kuppersmith of UGA’s Payroll Office, for helping her achieve her academic dream.

“Dean Walcott really made me feel ‘seen’ and for that I am grateful,” said Henderson. “I am also

CLA SS N O TE S

Two Disciplines, One Heart 2020 MSW/MPH graduates demonstrate resilience, strength

by Rebecca Wells, PhD Clinical Assistant Professor, MSW/MPH Program Coordinator

O

ur Master of Social Work/Master of Public Health (MSW/MPH) students always do incredible work.

I am consistently impressed by the ways they seamlessly integrate two disciplines, allowing each to inform the ways they show up in the other degree program.

grateful for TAP (Tuition Assistance Program) and for Mrs. Debbie Kuppersmith, who explained how TAP works so I could utilize this resource more efficiently.”

Henderson is beginning to be ‘seen’ by the public as well. As a part of Shelter Projects, a microfellowship she was awarded by the Willson Center for Humanities and Arts, she created a spoken word performance reflecting on her experience during the “twin pandemics” of systemic racism and COVID-19. “Define Pandemic?” was published in Flagpole Magazine. She also presented the work as an invited speaker at UGA’s 2021 State of the Public’s Health Conference.

As for Henderson’s future plans, she recently accepted a position at Manchester University as the Director for the Center for Advocacy, Response, and Education. In this position she will be able to continue her work in sexual violence prevention and education.

The fall 2020 MSW/MPH graduates showed incredible resilience during the pandemic. All twelve graduates began their specialization internships last summer, and many had to switch placement sites – either due to UGA’s switch to remote instruction or because of changes at their original placement site. They handled these challenges with tremendous grace and capability.

In addition, they all completed their MPH capstone projects, producing high-quality work in the midst of incredible stress.

The successful navigation during the last two semesters of the MSW/ MPH program truly exemplifies the resilience that the School of Social Work instills in our students. I am amazed by their commitment to excellence and social justice, and I am confident they will go out and use their skills to make our world a healthier, more equitable place for all.

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CL A S S NOT ES BRYAN SCHROEDER MA ’06, was interviewed in July

by Dr. Cassandra Quave for the science podcast Foodie Pharmacology. Brian is executive director of the nonprofit Giving Kitchen. In December the organization began a substance abuse recovery initiative for members of the food service industry.

“Many food service workers are forced to choose between housing stability and addiction. When they make the brave decision to get the help they need, GK will be here with the support they deserve,” Schroeder told the food service industry magazine FSR.

NICOLE LOVE HENDRICKSON MSW ‘07, NPML CERTIFICATE ’11, made history in November when she became the first African American elected to chair the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners. The 40 year old mother will head the government for Georgia’s second most populous county. She served as associate director of the Gwinnett Coalition for Health and Human Services before leaving that position to run for office. [photo: Wesley Person, Gwinnett Daily Post] In April 2020 Athens-based video production company Chispa House launched OneDumbVideo. com, a video streaming platform that offers videographers impacted by the pandemic a way to showcase their work and potentially earn extra money. CARTTER FONTAINE MA ’12, is president of Chispa House. Subscribers to the site can vote for the best video of the week, which can earn the creator additional income. Submissions are free and open to anyone at any skill level.

FENWICK BROYARD, III MSW ’13, is the community engagement specialist for the Clarke County School District and a community organizer for the Athens Works Initiative. Broyard co-leads the school district’s School Closure Meal Distribution program, and as part of the AWI also works to connect resources with local businesses impacted by the pandemic.

Bryan Schroeder, executive director of the nonprofit Giving Kitchen in Atlanta, GA. Source: https:// thegivingkitchen.org/staff

2010s Triple Dawg LAUREN A. RICCIARDELLI AB PHILOSOPHY ’06, MSW ’11, PHD ’17, edited “Social Work, Criminal Justice, and the Death Penalty” (Oxford University Press, August 2020). The volume equips and students and beginning professionals with a holistic overview of the intersection of criminal justice and social justice. Chapter contributors include Dean Anna Scheyett, Emeritus Professor ED RISLER PHD ’98, MSW '82, BSW '77, Professor Larry Nackerud, Associate Professor Michael A. Robinson, and alumni JOHN R. BARNER PHD ’11, and KATHERINE J. CRAWFORD PHD ’16.

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REBECCA GALBREATH MSW ’16, LCSW, rides in a police car with officers two days a week now as part of the Savannah Police Department’s new Behavioral Health Unit. Galbreath helps police respond to individuals in crisis and is also available by phone or telemedicine for calls that involve opioid or substance abuse, suicide and mental health disorders. Even after the call is over, the unit continues to work with clients and their families, reported the Savannah Morning News. The unit is one of the first police-led BHUs in Georgia.

MARIE MCCOLLUM MSW ’16, was named director of programs and partnerships at The Decatur Foundation in January 2020. She is responsible for coordinating DEF’s two mentor programs, Opportunity Partnership, REACH, and Partnership for Career Achievement.

Thanks to the University of Georgia’s “Engage GA” online platform, the Athens Community

.

C LA SS N O TE S

ClassNotes Class Notes We've all had a chance to travel life's path in different ways: incredible stories to tell, fun adventures to reveal, and accomplishments to share. Let all your classmates know what is new with you by sharing a Class Note.

We highlight alumni in our monthly Empower newletter, on social media, and in Connect magazine.

3 WAYS TO SUBMIT A CLASS NOTE http://bit.ly/UGASSWClassNotes You can also submit photographs!

EMAIL

Send your news to Jennifer Abbott, jabbott@uga.edu

PHONE

(706) 542-9093

2020s TENESHA LITTLETON PHD ’20, was selected for the Creating the Next Generation of Scholars in Child Maltreatment Science Fellowship Program (CMT32) funded by the National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development at Penn State University. The CMT32 postdoctoral fellowship is designed to prepare fellows to conduct cuttingedge, transdisciplinary applied research in the child maltreatment sciences.

Claire Jordan

ONLINE

Council on Aging has added 150 new volunteers since the pandemic began, ELLEN EVERITT MA ’19, reported in October. Everitt, a graduate of the nonprofit graduate program and ACCA’s volunteer coordinator, said the increase has enabled the organization to serve 2,000 clients—almost three times the number served before the platform was available.

We can't wait to hear from you!

Tenesha Littleton recipient of a Creating the Next Generation of Scholars in Child Maltreatment Science postdoctoral fellowship at Penn State University.

DANIEL MCCRARY MSW ’20, accepted an offer in December 2020 to join Mann-Grandstaff Veterans Administration Medical Center in Spokane, Washington as a psychotherapist. “I’ll work with individuals, couples, families, and groups with a focus on couples and families. I’m very excited,” he said.

SIMONE MOONSAMMY MSW ‘20, was featured in the UGA Graduate School Magazine. According to the article she plans to pursue a degree in law with a focus on immigration policy.

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Dash Photography

B OA R D OF ADVISORS

BOARD of ADVISORS The School of Social Work’s Board of Advisors is made up of emeriti faculty, alumni, government officials, corporate partners, and community activists. We give of our time, energy and financial resources, and are committed to building vital support for the school and strengthening ties with corporate, not for profit and civic organizations, governmental entities and key stakeholders. Our trusted relationship with the School is cultivated through transparency, open communication and stewardship of every gift.

As Board of Advisors members, we give our time serving as ambassadors to the School of Social Work in our workplaces and communities. Each of us brings our own unique talents and knowledge resources to the board.

Affinity to the mission of the School of Social Work and the University of Georgia, the desire to move the profession forward, and the rewards of recruiting the best and the brightest students and faculty - all these create a culture of paying it forward purposefully and with gratitude.

Kathy Anderson (BBA ’80) Founder, Democracy in Action Gainesville, GA

Anna Watkins

Why we serve, why we give.

Spencer Frye (BS ’14)

Executive Director, Athens Habitat for Humanity State Legislature Representative, District 118, Athens,

As members of the Board of Advisors, we understand that supporting the School of Social Work aids in the advancement of social justice and well-being both today and in the future as current students enter the profession. This is why we give.

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Robert Newcomb

For the Board of Advisors, giving is altruistic and promotes a sense of comradery and common purpose.

We give financially to the School of Social Work because of the proven fiduciary integrity of the School’s leadership and the immediate impact our gifts have on student support. We are inspired to give because of the innovative research conducted by the School of Social Work faculty and because we understand the importance of preparing future social work professionals.

David Meyers (MSW ’96) Public Service Associate, J. W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, Athens, GA

, GA

BOARD O F A DV ISO R S

Georgia United Credit Union, Duluth, GA

Assistant Professor Emeritus UGA School of Social Work, Athens, GA

Dash Photography

Katheryn B. Davis (MSW ’70)

© 2018 Cindy M Brown

Ken Chrzanowski (MED ’89)

Extriara Gates (MSW ’11)

Rachelle “Shelly” Hutchinson (MSW ’00)

Psychotherapist, Owner of Lavender Grove Psychotherapy, Atlanta, GA

Director, Social Empowerment Center State Legislature Representative, District 107, Lawrenceville, GA

Chip Morris (MSW ’91)

Ed Risler (BSW ’77, MSW ’82, PhD ’98)

Founder, A Strong Hand Up Monroe, GA

Professor Emeritus, UGA School of Social Work, Athens, GA

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School of Social Work

Donor Spotlight

The Philip L. Smith Memorial Award in Macro Social Work In recognition of the groundbreaking legacy of Philip Smith and his commitment to macro social work.

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The School of Social Work is deeply grateful to Sharon Smith for establishing the Philip L. Smith Memorial Award in Macro Social Work to honor her late husband.

by Sharon Smith

P

hilip Leonidas Smith was born in Atlanta, Georgia on October 8, 1943 to E. Leonidas Smith and Elizabeth Huddleston Smith.

He grew up in Chattanooga and graduated with his BS from the University of Chattanooga (now the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga) in 1965. When he began his studies in social work at the University of Georgia, he requested a macro practice experience in community organization, the first MSW student to do so. The School of Social Work accommodated his request by fashioning a combination micro and macro practice. His first field placement was a micro placement within a school system, and his second field placement was a macro placement in a community center in Atlanta. The School of Social Work provided him an excellent educational foundation upon which his professional life would take various paths.

Upon his graduation with a Master of Social Work in 1968 he returned to the Tennessee Department of Public Welfare and was appointed director of The Neighborhood Services Program, a federally funded War on Poverty program which offered communitybased programs in public assistance intake, homemaker services, and child welfare.

In 1970 he was recruited to serve on the staff of the Florida Board of Regents, at the time the sole governing body of the Florida State University System. His assignment was to conduct research on human resource utilization in Florida agencies that were primary employers of social work graduates.

During and following the completion of this research and publication of findings he worked with schools of social work across Florida, both public and private, to facilitate better understandings and working relationships between the institutions producing social workers and the agencies employing them.

The result was the development of a differential staffing model that received a great deal of attention nationally.

In 1975, he was recruited to Tampa, Florida, to develop a social work program at the University of South Florida, a large urban university. He put together a solid cadre of faculty to create the

Department of Social Work, and over the next several years developed the BSW and MSW programs, both fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. He served as Chair of the Department of Social Work for thirteen years. He taught courses in both programs and continued to be involved in research and grant writing. He assisted in the development of the Human Resources Institute at USF and was the creator and director of the Center for the Study of Developmental Disabilities. He was elected twice by university faculty to represent them as Speaker of the Faculty Senate. He was a tenured associate professor, and an award-winning teacher at the university.

Following his tenure as chair of the department of social work at USF, he was invited to serve as assistant provost. In this capacity he guided the administration and the faculty in matters of collective bargaining, faculty development programs, and faculty recruitment, salary equity, and faculty retention.

When seeking his counsel, faculty members and administrators knew Phil would speak candidly and truthfully. At the time of his retirement in 2005 he held position of Associate Provost.

In all aspects of his life, whether personal or professional, Phil was a vanguard for social justice, civil rights and equality. He spoke the truth. In the late 1960s during the civil rights movement he was one of four friends who started the first Chattanooga chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union and served that organization as its second president.

Phil was a man of unimpeachable integrity, humor both subtle and outrageous, and a great storyteller.

He was also a man of great compassion, as anyone who knew him would attest. He and his wife, Sharon, rescued many cats and a few greyhounds during their nearly 45 years of marriage.

Phil Smith died on May 14, 2020 at the age of 76, before he could complete the establishment of this scholarship. It now becomes a memorial scholarship, not only to honor the man for which it is named, but to pay it forward for macro practice students in social work who will strive to make their communities more inclusive and more humane for everyone.

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Gifts in Action One commitment at a time, you are making the world a better place.

by Jennifer Abbott, Director of External Affairs

T

he University of Georgia completed its most ambitious and successful fundraising effort in its history, after raising $1.45 billion. The campaign publicly launched in November of 2016 with a 1.2 billion dollar goal which was surpassed 16 months ahead of schedule and brought in donations from all 50 states and 62 countries. The School of Social Work also had its most successful fundraising effort in its history surpassing its goal as well for a total of $1,898.71 from 2,897 gifts and pledges.

The School of Social Work thanks all of our alumni, friends and community partners who have financially supported and continue to support the work of our students and faculty. The School of Social Work is committed to social justice, well-being and innovation to solve persistent social problems across the state of Georgia and around the world.

To make a gift to the School of Social Work, please visit our giving page: https://t.uga.edu/6Tl. You may also email Jennifer Abbott, jabbott@uga.edu.

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Thank you!

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$1.9 mil total raised 2,897 gifts & pledges 50

gifts & pledges over

8 new

$10K

endowed student award funds

2 new professorships

UGA Athletic Association Professor in Health and Well-Being Rachel A. Fusco Thomas P. Holland Distinguished Professorship in Nonprofit Management and Leadership - vacant

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School of Social Work Building 279 Williams Street, Athens, GA 30602 (877) 535-6590

BSW • MSW • MSW Online • MSW/JD • MSW/MPH • MSW/M.Div. • PhD MA and Online Certificate in Nonprofit Management & Leadership New • Substance Use Counseling Certificate New • Center for Human Trafficking Research and Outreach The Institute for Nonprofit Organizations The Center for Social Justice, Human and Civil Rights

Photo by Nancy Evelyn

SSW.UGA.EDU DOROTHY KOZLOWSKI

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