Release
School of Social Welfare Faculty Member Named President of New York Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers
Contact: Catherine Herman (518) 437-4980
ALBANY, N.Y. (November 30, 2005) -- University at Albany School of Social Welfare faculty member Mary L. McCarthy was named president-elect of the New York State Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) in June. McCarthy will become president on July 1, 2006 and serve for two years.
McCarthy has been a faculty member since 1989 and an active member of NASW since completing her Masters in Social Work at the University at Albany in 1982. She has served at the local, state, and national levels on a number of committees including chair of the state and national Political Action Committee and chair of the state and national Nominations and Leadership Identification Committee.
McCarthy has held various positions at the School of Social Welfare including assistant director of field education, director of undergraduate field education, and assistant dean for student services and development. Currently she is the director of the Social Work Education Consortium, a collaboration of the 15 graduate schools of social work, the New York State Office of Children and Family Services, the 57 county commissioners, and New York City's Administration of Children's Services. The goal of the Consortium is to develop a long term approach to the professionalization and stabilization of the public sector child welfare workforce.
Prior to joining the faculty at the School of Social Welfare, McCarthy worked in the Bureau of Pupil Personnel Services at the New York State Education Department. She began her career in child welfare in Central New York and worked for St. Catherine's Center for Children as parent aide and intake coordinator for the prevention program.
Her recent publications have been in the area of child welfare workforce retention, including reports for 24 counties based on a retention study. She has been recognized for her contributions to NASW, and received the distinction of Social Worker of the Year in 1992 from the Northeast Division.
UAlbany's School of Social Welfare
is ranked second in per capita scholarly
productivity among the social work programs
in the nation. The School's mission
is to further social and economic justice
and to serve people who are vulnerable,
marginalized or oppressed. This mission
is implemented through education, knowledge
development and service that promotes leadership
for evidence-based social work with a global
perspective. As a recognized national and
international leader in developing innovative
and creative programs, along with facilitating
public-private partnerships, the School
has been able to attract premier students,
providing them with an unsurpassed educational
experience at the bachelor's, master's
and doctoral level.