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Dean's message: Celebrating 80 years of impact

This fall, we kick off celebrations for the School of Social Work’s 80th anniversary. Founded in 1934 during the height of the Great Depression, the School quickly filled a critical need for social workers and administrators to deliver on the promise of New Deal programs.

EddieOver the next eight decades, the School expanded academic offerings, recruited a renowned faculty, engaged diverse communities, and sparked social innovation with groundbreaking research. As we look toward the future, we will build on this platform for innovation to achieve social impact that is significant, scalable and sustainable.

Your unwavering commitment to create lasting social change motivates and inspires us each and every day. Thanks to your support, the School is ranked third among the nearly 220 advanced social work degree programs in the nation and offers an array of scholarships for immensely talented students—many the first in their families to obtain a university degree.

As a laboratory for change, we must think deeply and differently about our future as we continue to formulate a powerful set of proven and practical tools to foster social change and transformation.

Thank you for being a part of this journey. We couldn’t do it without you.

Eddie Uehara
Professor and Ballmer Endowed Dean in Social Work


Spotlight on giving

Major gift establishes professorship in healthy agingPigott-mowe

Karen Fredriksen-Goldsen has been named the School's Lynn Pigott-Mowe Healthy Generations Term Professor—a five-year appointment created by longtime University and School of Social Work friend Lynn Pigott-Mowe (right). This generous gift recognizes Fredriksen-Goldsen's many contributions to innovation, science, education and practice in the field of social work and aging, as well as her leadership of the School's Healthy Generations Hartford Center of Excellence—one of only five such centers in the nation.

Howard and Lynn Behar augment support for oncology social work

With the sustained support of Howard and Lynn Behar (MSW '86, PhD '99), the School has grown one of the country’s leading medical social work programs, the Carol LaMare Initiative, with Taryn Lindhorst as its faculty director. A recent and substantial gift from the Behars will make it possible to extend more scholarships to social work students building careers in oncology care—working with people living with cancer or in need of compassionate and effective palliative care.

Endowed professorship in direct practice honors Sidney Miller 

A new endowed professorship honoring emeritus faculty member Sidney Miller, who passed away in February, was created recently by members of his family. The Sidney Miller Endowed Professorship in Direct Practice will enhance the School’s ability to recruit and retain faculty specializing in serving individuals, couples, families and small groups.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1922, Miller attended Brooklyn College before his education was interrupted by World War II. After the war, Miller transferred to Columbia University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and, later, a master’s degree in psychiatric social work. In 1953, Miller and his wife, Janet, moved to Seattle where he worked at the King County Juvenile Court and later at Ryther Child Center. He was an associate professor at the School until 1988.

Throughout his lifetime, Miller was a voracious reader, a follower of current events and a strong supporter of progressive political and human rights causes. The Miller endowed professorship will help bring clinical work to life by integrating theory and direct practice, a professional skill Miller demonstrated daily.


School and alumni updates

Kevin Haggerty appointed director of Social Development Research Group

Following a national search, Kevin P. Haggerty was selected as the new director of the School’s Social Development Research Group, an interdisciplinary team that Kevin Haggertyspecializes in prevention science and youth development. For more than 25 years, Haggerty has focused on developing innovative ways to help parents, communities and schools better assess and implement prevention-based interventions targeted at youth.

Haggerty has been with the School of Social Work since 1985, previously serving as its director of research as well as assistant director and associate director of SDRG. He is a popular speaker on substance abuse and delinquency prevention and has written extensively in the field. The group’s previous director, Richard F. Catalano, will continue with SDRG as a researcher.

HR Director Lorre Allen co-chairs event celebrating Civil Rights Act anniversary

The Civil Rights Act of 1964, considered one of the most important pieces of legislation in American history, was signed into law 50 years ago. The anniversary was recognized by Gov. Jay Inslee with a proclamation and speech at the State Capitol in Olympia, with representatives from government, business and the community attending.cra

The event was organized by the Washington Diversity Council and the Northwest Industry Liaison Group and co-chaired by Lorre Allen (pictured with Gov. Inslee), the School’s new human resources director. Allen has more than 15 years’ experience in human resource management, employee relations, equal opportunity, diversity and cultural competency. She was previously with the University’s Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Personnel, where she served as director of equal opportunity and affirmative action.

Two alumnae serve on Seattle's minimum wage proposal committee

Nicole Vallestero Keenan (MSW ’11) and Sarah Cherin (MSW ’04) were on Mayor Ed Murray’s Income Inequality Advisory Committee, responsible for hammering out the $15 per hour minimum wage proposal that the Seattle City Council passed June 2. Seattle is the first major city in the nation to address income inequality in such a bold way. Cherin is the political and policy director for United Food and Commercial Workers Local 21. Keenan is the policy director at Puget Sound Sage, an organization that focuses on creating sustainable jobs.

Two new books deal with forgiveness and letting go

Just MercyA novel by Dorothy Van Soest, former dean of the School of Social Work and professor emeritus, was published by Apprentice House in August. Just Mercy explores the complexity and difficulty of forgiveness and the true nature of justice. The story was inspired by Van Soest’s acclaimed investigation into the lives of 37 men executed in Texas in 1997. Reviewers have called the family drama “compelling” and “thought-provoking.” Van Soest is the author of nine research publications and more than 50 journal articles; this is her first novel.

Balboa Press recently published The Body as Shadow by Eleanor Limmer (MSW ’67), which illustrates how underlying negative patterns can affect the body through physical symptoms such as pain and illness. Limmer, a holistic counselor, has been in private practice for 30 years.


Awards and accolades

Forefront dinner raises $125,000 to enhance suicide prevention effort

 More than 350 enthusiastic supporters attended a fundraising dinner for Forefront, a suicide prevention program affiliated with the School of Social Work. Forefront recently spearheaded a successful effort to pass a state law requiring suicide prevention training for doctors and nurses in Washington state, the first law of its kind in the nation. In addition to advocacy work, the jenn stuber and sue eastgardgroup has trained more than 1,000 mental health professionals and graduate-level social workers in risk assessment; launched a program to provide comfort and peer phone support for state residents recently bereaved by suicide; and worked with news media to educate the public about suicide.

An emotional high point of the evening was a standing ovation for School alumna and Forefront training director Sue Eastgard (MSW '88), pictured left with faculty director Jennifer Stuber. During the event, Eastgard received the inaugural award for suicide prevention training excellence.

School alumna selected Teacher of the Year at Seattle University

This spring, students at Seattle University’s College of Arts and Sciences selected Amelia Derr (MSW '01, PhD '14) Teacher of the Year. The annual award gives students the opportunity to recognize a teacher they feel is inspirational. Derr was noted for her passion and dedication both inside and outside the classroom, along with her “campus-wide recognition for excellence and quality.”

IWRI awarded grants totaling $4.5 million 

Karina Walters and colleagues at the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute received nearly $3.2 million over five years from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to implement and test the Yappalli Choctaw Road to Health, a culturally focused risk-prevention and health-leadership program, which targets obesity and substance abuse issues. Cynthia Pearson and her IWRI colleagues received nearly $1.3 million from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to develop and evaluate a human-subject research training curriculum with research partners in the American Indian Alaska Native community.

Karina Walters joins national academy of social work scholars

Karina WaltersIn recognition of Karina Walters' extraordinary record of "high-impact work that advances social good," she has been selected to become a fellow of the prestigious American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare. In addition to her role as director of the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute, Walters is the associate dean for research at the School of Social Work and the William P. and Ruth Gerberding Endowed Professor. The induction ceremony for Walters and her fellow awardees will be held Oct. 25 at the Council on Social Work Education annual conference in Tampa, Fla.

SDRG grants top $1.2 million for research on youth development

More than $1.2 million has been awarded to the School-affiliated Social Development Research Group for research that includes the impact of marijuana legislation on youth behavior; the feasibility of using Facebook to involve parents in teen drug-prevention efforts; training support for a prevention system called e-Communities That Care, recently launched in two Utah towns; and the development of a career-and-college transition program for youth aging out of foster care.

Other grants to School of Social Work faculty: Diana Pearce ($143,000) to create a Self-Sufficiency Standard—which measures the income needed to meet basic living requirements—for Washington, Oregon and New York City; Shelby Langer ($142,000) for research on the impact of stem-cell transplants on patients and couples; Taryn Lindhorst ($78,000) for research on domestic violence; and Anjulie Ganti ($32,000) to support a social work substance-abuse prevention certificate program.


In the news

MSW program receives $1.5 million for behavioral health training    

Tessa Evans-Campbell, director of the School’s MSW program, was interviewed Sept. 26 by the Puget Sound Business Journal about a new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services grant awarded to the School to train social workers specializing in behavioral health. The three-year grant provides 33 MSW students (99 in all) with a stipend of $10,000 each year to fund their training, with a focus on children, adolescents and transition-aged youth who are at risk of developing a behavioral health problem such as substance abuse or an eating disorder. “That’s an area of huge need in our country,” noted Evans-Campbell in the article. Money that does not go toward student training will be spent on lectures, seminars and webinars.

POC’s Benjamin de Haan interviewed by Huffington Post

ben de haanChild welfare advocate and Huffington Post correspondent Marquis Cabrera interviewed Benjamin de Haan, executive director of Partners for Our Children, about POC’s data portal, which was launched last year. The Web-based portal delivers free, detailed and timely information to paint a comprehensive picture of Washington state’s most vulnerable children and families. “In the year since the [data portal] launched,” de Haan said in the article, “it's become a go-to resource….Everyone from policymakers to family court judges to agency staff to advocacy partners have found the tool to be valuable in helping understand how the system is working and what areas may need improvement.”

Local media tap School experts following actor's death by suicide

Actor Robin Williams’ suicide last summer engendered much discussion in homes and offices and in the media about suicide prevention. Sue Eastgard, director of training at Forefront, a School-sponsored suicide prevention program, was interviewed the day after Williams’ death by KUOW-FM reporter Marcie Sillman. Eastgard talked about the increased risk of suicide among middle-aged white men, a population that traditionally does not like to ask for help or be a burden to others. Eastgard also appeared on KING-5’s popular midday program, New Day Northwest, to offer help and hope to people who are struggling with depression.


Upcoming events 

Frontline Heroines art exhibit celebrates courage and dedication

chapelleA series of oil and watercolor paintings by local artist Judith Larsen honors the courage of female journalists, human rights workers and social justice advocates. The exhibit includes portraits of Dickey Chapelle, the first female war correspondent to be killed in action, and Anna Politkovskaya, a newspaper editor, author and social rights activist who was assassinated in Russia. Larsen has been an artist and designer for more than 30 years and a journalist for more than 10 years. She has a bachelor's degree in fine arts and communications from the University of Washington. The exhibit, located in the School’s first floor gallery, will be on display through Dec. 12.

School-sponsored reception Oct. 24 in Tampa welcomes local alumni

As part of the 60th annual program meeting of the Council on Social Work Education, Oct. 23–26 in Tampa, Fla., the School of Social Work will cswe logohold a reception Friday, Oct. 24, from 7:30 to 9 p.m. in the grand ballroom at the Marriott Tampa Waterside Hotel. School alumni in the area are encouraged to attend. There, you can meet and talk with Dean Eddie Uehara, School of Social Work faculty, UW Tacoma Social Work Program faculty and fellow alumni.


Milestones

Kim Isaac, assistant dean for advancement, leaves University of Washington

Kim Isaac, who has been with the School’s Advancement Office for more than 12 years, has accepted a new position at Seattle University as Kim Isaac 2associate vice president for development. Said Eddie Uehara, Professor and Ballmer Endowed Dean in Social Work: “It has been my great pleasure to work with Kim for almost a decade and witness her consummate skills in connecting, inspiring and motivating alumni and friends. Kim has been instrumental in developing valued relationships, elevating the School’s profile and building capacity.” Greg Ross, assistant director for advancement, will serve as interim assistant dean until a replacement is named.


 

 

 

Fall 2014

Giving
Updates
Awards
News
Events
Milestones


viewbook

Take a look at our new viewbook with inspiring testimonials from some remarkable students.


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The Alumni Career Mentorship Network links seasoned social work professionals with current social work students and recent graduates exploring career options.

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