As part of National Social Work Month, the WVU Graduate Social Work Organization and the WVU Division of Social Work teamed to bring in “Dreams of Hope,” a group of young performance artists whose show focuses on LGBTQ issues. Both host organizations felt that it was imperative to make honoring human diversity a prominent part of the National Social Work Month Festivities.

To read more about the event, check out this article in the Daily Athenaeum!

Instructor (MSW Required, Doctoral Degree Preferred)

WVU Division of Social Work, Beckley, WV and Charleston, WV

Approximate start date: Fall Semester, 2012

Contact: Dr. Christopher Plein, Interim Chair

Phone: (304) 293-7974

E-mail: Chris.Plein@mail.wvu.edu

Click here for more information.

Citing high job satisfaction scores and rapidly-expanding employment opportunities, US News and World Report has confirmed what we have all known for a long time: Social workers have incredible careers.

Social work job opportunities are expected to balloon by nearly 20% over the next decade, making the profession among the safest bets in uncertain economic times. Great news for people who want to take on the fulfilling job of helping others!

To read the article, please click here.

WVU alumnus Mark Rogalsky continues to do all social workers proud, receiving well-deserved national accolades from Social Work Today.

Rogalsky was named one of the nation’s “Top 10 Deserving and Caring Social Workers” for his efforts to bring “Dancing Classrooms” to Pittsburgh area schools.

Dancing Classrooms is a program which provides confidence-building instruction in the art of ballroom dance to school children across the country. When given this opportunity, participants often bloom, discovering social skills they never knew they possessed.

Read more about Rogalsky’s heroic efforts here.

The WVU Division of Social Work is excited about reviewing your MSW applications for the Fall of 2012 and welcoming a new class of fantastic social workers to our family! Please keep the following deadlines in mind as you prepare your application materials for the MSW program!

3/1/12 Priority Deadline – The initial round of admissions decisions will include the awarding of scholarships and graduate assistant positions. If you are interested in applying for either of these financial assitance programs, be sure to submit all of your application materials by March 1st!

4/1/12 Regular Deadline – The second round of admissions decisions will not include considerations for scholarships or graduate assistant positions. Remember that applicants considered on this date have a lower probability of being accepted than those who turn in their application by 3/1/12.

5/1/12 Late Deadline – The third and final round of admissions decisions will not include considerations for scholarships or graduate assistant positions. Remember that applicants considered on this date have a lower probability of being accepted than those who turn in their application by 4/1/12.

No applications will be accepted after 5/1/12

For more detailed information on approaching deadlines, please click here [Snippet Error: This file has been deleted.].

Dr. Kristina Hash, associate professor of social work and director of the gerontology certificate program, was selected to receive the Hartford Partnership Program for Aging Education Outstanding Faculty Award.

This is a national award honored through the New York Academy of Medicine’s Social Work Leadership Institute and the Council for Social Work Education. The selection committee noted the level of support and mentorship Dr. Hash consistently provides to her students as they work to become leaders in geriatric social work, as well as her focus on geriatric competencies related to social work leadership in small towns and rural areas. The committee was also impressed by Dr. Hash’s incredible dedication to the field of aging and the development of aging focused programs she has successfully launched, plus a statewide HPPAE consortium (known as the Mountain State Partnership Program) she helped to build with field faculty and students. Mr. Samuel Leizear, field coordinator and Dr. Karen-Harper-Dorton, professor in the Division of Social Work, are co-directors for the Mountain State Partnership Program.

Watch Dr. Hash’s Acceptance Speech Below!

The Dominion Post recently published an article about the West Virginia University Division of Social Work’s annual course in Vietnam and Cambodia. Click here to read the article!

For years, Professor Neal Newfield has helped our students embark upon the journey of a lifetime. Beginning in the bustling streets of Ho Chi Minh City, our students explore the community health needs of their host country. Dr. Newfield’s program emphasizes the importance of learning outside the classroom, from visiting Vietnamese social service agencies to learning about children who suffer from disabilities that are the result of exposure to Agent Orange. Our students also travel to Central Vietnam and Cambodia, all the while working directly with Vietnamese citizens who also attend classes.

During one such trip in 2009, several of our students wrote beautiful articles about their experiences in Vietnam and Cambodia and posted them online. Their blog is packed with breathtaking pictures and penetrating insight. Our students happily immersed themselves in the beautiful cultures they encountered and in so doing, engaged in an earnest examination of their own cultural perspective. Please click here to view their blog.

The West Virginia University Division of Social Work is committed to empowering people everywhere.

Congratulations are in order for the West Virginia University Division of Social Work’s Chatman Neely, who won the prestigious Social Worker of the Year Award at the recent National Association of Social Workers West Virginia Chapter (NASWWV) spring conference in Charleston.

“Truly, it was one of the most touching moments of life,” Neely said. “I come from a proud and strong-willed Appalachian family that gives to others as much as possible. It’s in my blood to give back and care about others.

“I felt honored, a little overwhelmed, and surprised.”

Neely enjoyed the distinct pleasure of receiving the award from his friends and fellow Division professors, Jacki Englehardt and Linda Ferrise, both of whom applauded Neely’s practice experience, as well as his dynamism in the classroom.

Neely’s acceptance speech was heartfelt, humble tribute to the friends, family, and colleagues who have helped him help others throughout his impressive career.

Neely is a senior lecturer and off-campus MSW coordinator for the Division’s Wheeling campus. He has been involved with WVU since 1986 but has been teaching social work for 17 years. He is also an MSW alumnus of the Division. Neely teaches all over the state every academic year, an experience he views as “a gift.” He has volunteered on NASW’s spring conference planning committee for over 20 years, bringing together educators, practitioners, and students from all over the state. Neely is currently completing his PhD in Clinical Social Work at the Institute for Clinical Social Work in Chicago.

WVU recently received a $3.2 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to help increase the number of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematic disciplines (STEM).

The grant is awarded under the NSF’s ADVANCE program is dedicated to developing systemic approaches to increase the representation and advancement of women in academic STEM careers – and contributing to the development of a more diverse science and engineering workforce. It is the first ADVANCE grant WVU has received.

Associate Professor of Social Work Dr. Leslie E. Tower is a co-Principal investigator. She will serve on the Equity Leadership Team of the project. She will also serve as the liaison between the Leadership Team and the Internal Advisory Board. She will gain input from faculty and senior WVU administrators, through mechanisms such as administering climate surveys and disseminating the results.

Dr. Tower has experience working with WVU administrators and the WV legislature regarding policy modifications. She has published related articles in such top journals as Public Administration Review and the Review of Public Personnel Administration.

Top, Left to Right: Michelle Withers, assistant professor of biology; Melissa Latimer, associate professor and chair of sociology and anthropology; J. Kasi Jackson, assistant professor of women’s studies; James Nolan, associate professor sociology and anthropology
Bottom, Left to Right: Maura McLaughlin, assistant professor of physics; Marjorie Darrah, associate professor of mathematics; Katie Stores, Ph.D., grant development officer; Leslie E. Tower, associate professor social work and public administration

We just posted two new job openings on our Career Opportunities page. You can check the page for the most up-to-date job openings, but I’ll post them here, as well:

• Faculty Position – southern off-campus MSW program; Charleston / Beckley, WV. Position Description

• Faculty Position / Coordinator to Off-Campus MSW Program – southern off-campus MSW program; Charleston / Beckley, WV. Position Description