Faculty Notes
Our full- and part-time faculty are leaders in research and practice. They are experts in fields such as gerontology, child welfare, family violence, international social work, homelessness, mental health and health. This section of our newsletter will keep you up to date on the most recent research and accomplishments of the School of Social Policy & Practice faculty.
Joan K. Davitt, Ph.D., was chosen by The Gerontological Society of America as a 2005 John A. Hartford Foundation Geriatric Social Work Faculty Scholar. As one of the ten geriatric social work faculty members selected, Dr. Davitt will receive $100,000 in funding over the next two years. The program also offers the scholars opportunities for professional development. The Gerontological Society of America issued a press release on May 31, 2005, naming the ten scholars, and stating, “Now in its fifth year, the program aims to improve the well-being of older adults by increasing the number of adequately trained geriatric social workers.” Dr. Davitt’s research focus is on the Racial Disparities in Medicare Home Health Care.
Richard J. Estes, DSW, was honored in New York City by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) for his several decades of work in helping to advance international social work and international social work education worldwide. The “Partner in International Social Work Education Award” was only the second time the CSWE made such an award. Professor Estes continues to serve as a member of the Council’s Global Commission and, in September, became Chair of the Global Commission’s Council on External Relations.
During the summer, Professor Estes released two new book on different aspects of his international work: Social Development in Hong Kong: The Unfinished Agenda (London & New York: Oxford University Press, 2005); and Medical, Legal & Social Science Aspects of Child Sexual Exploitation: A Comprehensive Review of Child Pornography, Child Prostitution, and Internet Crimes Against Children Volumes I and II (St. Louis MO: GW Medical Publishing). A supplemental CD-ROM to the Child Sexual Exploitation volumes will be released by the publisher in late September. He also is busy completing work on an edited volume that focuses on dilemmas in international development worldwide – Advancing Quality of Life in a Turbulent World (Dordrecht NL: Springer, Inc. 2006). That volume is an outgrowth of the School-sponsored international conference of the same title held at Penn in November, 2004.
Professor Estes’ summer also was packed with travels and guest lectures at various universities in Asia and the Pacific. He also served as External Examiner for the Department of Social Work of the University of Hong Kong.
Gloria Gay, MSW, LSW, received the Chisolm Award in May 2005, from the Philadelphia Congress of the National Congress of Black Women. The award is presented in honor of the Late Honorable Shirley Chisholm, “a woman with the courage of her conviction, who was unbought and unbossed. She fought the good fight, and helped, cared for and served others.” Also, Ms. Gay received a Martin Luther King Community Involvement Award on January 18, 2006, at the eleventh annual Interfaith Commemoration of the Life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The event took place at the University of Pennsylvania’s Bodek Lounge in Houston Hall.
Femida Handy, Ph.D., presented a paper, “Nonprofit entrepreneurship: To profit or not to profit?” at the 4th International Conference on Entrepreneurship – “Exploring the Dynamics of Entrepreneurship” – September 8-9, 2005, in Stockholm, Sweden. Earlier this summer, in August, while carrying out research activities in India, she was invited to give a key note speech at a conference held by iVolunteer Forum in Pune, India, on the Role of Volunteers in NGOs. Dr. Handy has three recent publications: Cnaan, R.A. & Handy, F. (2005) “Toward Understanding of Episodic Volunteering” Vrijwillige inzet onderzocht (VIO, Netherlands) Vol2, No 1. pp28-35; Handy, F. & Kassam, M. (2005) “Women’s empowerment in rural India” in Professional Reference Book: Women Empowerment in India: ICFAI University Press by V.V. Ramani (Ed.), ICFAI; Diniz, L. & Handy, F. (2005) “Holographic Structures Creating Dynamic Governance for NGOs,” ISTR Conference Proceedings (May).
Andrew Lamas, JD, was presented the CGS Distinguished Teaching Award by the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Arts and Sciences in May 2005. Professor Lamas is a part-time lecturer at the School of Social Policy & Practice, and his primary appointment is through the Urban Studies Department in the School of Arts and Sciences.
Walter Palmer, JD, received the MLK Community Education Award In Honor of Dr. Judith Rodin, for outstanding contributions to the advancement of education and educational opportunities in West Philadelphia. He received the award on January 18, 2006, at the eleventh annual Interfaith Commemoration of the Life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The event took place in the University of Pennsylvania’s Bodek Lounge, in Houston Hall.
Phyllis Solomon, Ph.D., was presented the 2005 Knee/Wittman Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award on Saturday, October 22, by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Foundation. This award program was “established to recognize those who represent the values, ethics, and approaches exemplified by two dedicated Social Work Pioneers, Ruth Knee and Milton Wittman.” Normally, two awards are presented annually: one recognizes Lifetime Achievement in Health and Mental Health Practice, and the other recognizes Outstanding Achievement in Health and Mental Health Policy. This year, however, the panel decided to combine the awards into one – the Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award – to recognize Dr. Solomon’s contributions to both policy and practice.
Irene Wong, Ph.D., was appointed External Examiner for the higher Diploma in Social Security Program, School of Professional and Continuing Education, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China (2005-2007). In May, 2005, she presented at a workshop on “Residential Alternatives for Adults with Mental Illness” at the System Integration for the Care of Adults with a Mental Illness Conference hosted by the Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research, University of Pennsylvania. Co-presenters of the workshop are Trevor Hadley (Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania) and Robert Spencer (Research and Information Management, Philadelphia Office of Behavioral Health). In April, 2005, Dr. Wong gave a presentation to the London Chinese Community Network Mental Health Subgroup Meeting on “The Community Integration of Persons with Mental Illness in Supportive Housing in Philadelphia” in London, U.K. Also, on July 18, 2005, Dr. Wong and Robert Spencer (Research and Information Management, Philadelphia Office of Behavioral Health) were invited as speakers of a plenary panel on “Models and Methods for Community Collaboration” at the Eighteenth NIMH Research Conference on Mental Health Services. Their presentation focused on building public-university partnership in mental health services research.