David Takeuchi, Professor and Associate Dean for Research, received the Family Research Consortium (FRC) Legacy Award in June to recognize his enormous and distinctive contributions to research on family life in contemporary society and to training the next generation of scholars in family mental health. FRC was established with funding from the National Institute of Mental Health in 1985 to improve the quality of investigation and to stimulate broader collaboration in the field of family research. In addition to receiving the award, Takeuchi is serving as co-director of the fourth consortium, extending from 2004 through June 2008.
Dr. Takeuchi has also accepted the Department of Health and Human Service’s invitation to serve as a member of the Community Influences on Health Behavior Study Section, Center for Scientific Review for the term ending June 30, 2011. Members are selected on the basis of their demonstrated competence and achievement in their scientific discipline as evidenced by the quality of research accomplishments, publications in scientific journals, and other significant scientific activities, achievements, and honors. Service on a study section also requires mature judgment and objectivity as well as the ability to work effectively in a group, qualities Dr. Takeuchi brings to the section.

Nancy Hooyman, Professor of Gerontology and Dean Emeritus, is the principal investigator for a Gero-Ed Center (National Center for Gerontological Social Work Education) major initiative. The UW School of Social Work was recently awarded a $1,797,330 grant from the John A. Hartford Foundation, via a contract with the Council on Social Work Education, to renew its Gero-Ed Center initiatives for the next five years (July 1, 2007 – June 30, 2012). The Gero-Ed Center’s mission is to promote graduates’ gerontological competencies in undergraduate social work and MSW programs nationwide and to enhance the health and well-being of older adults and their families.

Selected Center programs include increasing gerontological social work student recruitment and leadership development, educational policy and advocacy, and infusing gerontological competencies throughout curricula in 45 percent of accredited undergraduate and MSW programs. The Gero-Ed Center will fund undergraduates’ experiential learning opportunities with older adults and specialized gerontological offerings, and work with authors to increase gerontological content in foundation texts  Admissions staff and career advisors nationwide will be provided with gerontological social work career and curricular resources. Syllabi and other gero teaching resources are disseminated to faculty and doctoral students nationwide through the Center’s website, www.Gero-EdCenter.org.

In addition, Dr. Hooyman gave the keynote address at the Korean Gerontological Society’s International Symposium last spring. Her remarks centered on trends in aging in the U.S. and implications for policy and practice. At this second international conference, the focus was on a comparative look at aging and the quality of life in the U.S., Korea, and Great Britain. She also spoke about aging to over 200 students at Kangnam University in Seoul. Her widely used text, Social Gerontology: A Multidisciplinary Perspective, is now in its 8th edition.

Paula Nurius, Professor, was awarded funding by the Royalty Research Fund for her study “Violence, Stress, and Distress: Integrating Research of High-Risk Youth.” Dr. Elaine Thompson, from the UW School of Nursing, is co-principal investigator. This study is part of a research program focused on developmental analysis of violence and exposure to adversity as these interface with other risk and protective factors among high-risk youth. It is ultimately aimed toward adapting and testing preventive interventions with youth and their families. Nurius is also the co-author of Interviewing and Change Strategies for Helpers: Fundamental Skills and Cognitive Behavioral Interventions, 6th edition, being published by Thomson Brooks/Cole Publishing Company in 2008.

Dorothy Van Soest, Professor and Dean Emeritus, published a new student text on diversity and social justice with colleague Dr. Betty Garcia from California State University, Fresno. The book is Social Work Practice for Social Justice: Cultural Competence in Action, A Guide for Students.

Susan Kemp, Associate Professor, was awarded the Charles O. Cressey Endowed Professorship in Clinical Social Work with Children and Families. Created by Bryan and Christy Cressey, the Cressey Professorship honors Bryan’s father, Charles, MSW ’50, who had a long and distinguished social work career. The Cressey Professorship recognizes a faculty member for distinction in clinical work with families and children.

Emiko Tajima and Taryn Lindhorst, Associate Professors, were nominated for a Take Action Against Domestic Violence Award presented by the King County Coalition Against Domestic Violence for their community-based research efforts on behalf of battered mothers and their children. Tajima and Lindhorst are working with the Domestic Abuse Women's Network, New Beginnings, and the Eastside Domestic Violence Program to evaluate a brief intervention to improve communication between mothers and children at these shelters.

An education-focused symposium developed by Lynn Carrigan, MSW Practicum Coordinator, was accepted into the Gerontological Society of America. Carrigan’s symposium describes an interdisciplinary course she is designing with the UW School of Medicine under the direction of the Group on Aging, Spirituality, and Religion, chaired by SSW Associate Professor Amy Ai.

Bonnie Letinich, Assistant Clinical Professor, has been chosen by the National Board for Certification of Hospice and Palliative Care Nurses in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to serve on its Social Work Advisory Committee. Her role is to advise and assist with a survey of hospice and palliative care social workers and assist in establishing the test content for certification of hospice and palliative care social workers. Letinich is the coordinator of Evergreen Palliative Care in Kirkland, Washington.

Gino Aisenberg, Assistant Professor, Receives Martin Luther King Award

On Thursday, January 17, 2008, Dr. Eugene (Gino) Aisenberg, Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work, received a Martin Luther King Award at an annual celebration of Dr. King’s extraordinary life of service. Every year one recipient is selected from each of the UW Health Sciences schools.

Among the many letters of nomination for Dr. Aisenberg, one colleague wrote:

"In the last six years in the School of Social Work, Dr. Gino Aisenberg has established himself as an engaged educator and inspirational community leader. His exceptional teaching is deeply rooted in the principles of public service and social justice, and he is admired and appreciated by students, faculty, and the community he serves. Gino has many natural gifts, including a sustained commitment to creating a more just world. He has a strong academic knowledge base that he has translated into imparting outstanding cultural competency skills and mentoring students that pervade every part of his teaching, research, and service. In all his work within the academy and wider community, Gino combines his extensive practice experiences and the most current research knowledge with a deep commitment to responsive practice that is culturally sensitive and socially just. Community leaders and practitioners as well as students all speak of encounters with him as “an oasis,” where they feel an integral part of the learning process, and where they feel simultaneously supported, challenged, and inspired. Gino’s real commitment to the larger community is evident in the practicum mentorship of social work students in underserved communities, initiating and supporting the Latino/a Social Work Student Organization, and organizing an annual Latino/a Behavioral Health Conference. Each of these new initiatives for the School of Social Work speaks to the ever-expanding impact of his work. The School’s faculty and students are honored to have Gino as a colleague and scholar-activist. He epitomizes the values and teachings of an extraordinary hero in the movement for social justice, Dr. Martin Luther King."

 
Jennifer Stuber, Assistant Professor, is engaged in research to enhance the competency of social workers by providing resources and training to educate them about the potential for people with severe mental health issues to reach a level of recovery. The aim of her research is also to reduce the stigmatization associated with severe mental illness. She is working in collaboration with Washington State’s Division of Mental Health.