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Joseph Zanchelli of Coxsackie - an MSW Graduate Story --
One troubled teen who enjoyed drinking and partying more than earning good grades at Coxsackie-Athens Central High School eventually turned his life around so well he ended up with a presidential assignment and two college degrees. Three days after Joseph Zanchelli of Coxsackie graduated from high school in 1981, he shipped out to Marine Corps boot camp at Parris Island, S.C. "I always had it in the back of my head I'd go military," he said, noting he actually signed up for the Marines during his junior year through a delayed entry program. "The Marines did set my life straight." After boot camp, he went to a Navy facility in Memphis, Tenn., where he received his advanced individual training to become a helicopter mechanic, flight engineer and crew chief. His quick learning, performance and mastery of mechanic and flight engineer skills caught the eyes of Marine leaders. He did so well during hands-on, on-the-job training, academic, flight and verbal tests he was chosen to become a Marine One helicopter crew chief. After he passed a series of tests, he was awarded a presidential support military occupation skill designation and assigned to helicopter HMX-1, Marine One, for a tour from 1982 to 1986. "I became another set of eyes for the president's Marine One helicopter pilot and co-pilot," he said. "As such, I had to monitor all gauges, including fire warning lights, hydraulics and other systems before, during and after flights." He said he had to be the first crew member to arrive before sunrise at a helipad to inspect all equipment, gear and systems and make sure the aircraft was clean. "Every piece of the helicopter gets scrutinized to avoid and prevent any possible mechanical problems and to make sure it was fitting for presidential use," said Zanchelli, now retired from the Marines. "I had to meet unparalleled mechanical, cleanliness and safety standards before each flight. Most people's houses were not as clean as this helicopter." He served as crew chief of Marine One that transported Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton before Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease weakened Zanchelli's muscles in his feet, legs, arms and hands so much he was forced to accept retirement in 1995. His crews also transported vice presidents, heads of state and generals. After his first tour as Marine One crew chief, he was assigned to a training facility through 1989 at the Naval Air Station in Dallas, where he taught Marine Reserve helicopter crews combat-flight tactics until he was picked for a rare second tour as Marine One crew chief. He served his second Marine One tour through 1993. During his two Marine One tours, he logged more than 1,000 flight hours and hundreds of routine and crisis sorties across the United States and overseas. For the overseas missions, he had to help break Marine One down into parts so the aircraft could fit aboard a C-5A transport plane, and then put it back together before flying the president around England, Germany, France, Canada, Mexico and elsewhere. "I got to witness history first hand as the president traveled to world economic and other summits," he said. "I got to stay in the same places and eat the same food as the president did." Zanchelli and a security Marine greeted and saluted the president before getting on and off the aircraft's stairs. For Reagan, he had to make sure the president's jelly bean jar was filled. He also made sure the helicopter had ample beverages and snacks. As a Marine One crew member, he said, he got to see a more personal side to the presidents. "At Camp David, Reagan and Bush would join us in baseball games," he said. "During one game, a Marine used and broke one of Bush's autographed bats. Bush told the Marine not to worry. But our (Marine) leaders told use not to use any of Bush's bats in the future." He and his wife, Cathy were invited and attended Christmas, Fourth of July and other parties in the White House. By the time he retired in 1995, he had earned a Meritorious Service Medal, three Navy Commendation Medals and a Good Conduct Medal. He then earned a bachelor's degree from the College of Saint Rose in Albany and a master's degree in social work from the University at Albany. While working as a hospice intern during college, he decided to become a bereavement counselor. He now counsels relatives and friends of terminal patients at The Community Hospice in Catskill with end-of-life issues. He also has joined The Community Hospice and its seven offices in reaching out to serve veterans nearing the end of their lives in a Community Hospice partnership with veterans organizations. He also has written and distributed "The Healthcare Providers Guide to Understanding the Warrior Culture" to help hospice and health care workers better serve veterans and their families. "I am passionate about our (Community Hospice) work with veterans and I want other veterans to know we care," Zanchelli said.
He lives with his wife and children, Rachel, 22, and Annie, 8, in Coxsackie.

FACULTY UPDATES --

Katharine Briar-Lawson, Dean, was honored this October with the annual "Community Builder Award" from the United Way of Northeastern New York.

Zvi Gellis, Associate Professor & Director of the Center for Mental Health and Aging, received notice of a grant award in the amount of $144,000 from the New York State Office of the Aging for the Albany Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NNORC) proposal submitted by the Center for Mental Health and Aging in collaboration with community partners. Gellis' research focus is on aging and mental health. This focus has relevance for social welfare especially among demographics involving growing aging populations. Gellis, who has published several articles and two book chapters, is a Research Fellow at the National Institute of Mental Health. This is the first NORC award for Albany County. It also includes partners with expertise in the organization and administration of bio-behavioral health services and the National Institute of Mental Health funded Intervention Center on Mental Health and Aging at the UAlbany School of Social Welfare.

The program goals are to enable older adults living in the Albany Southwest NNORC site to (1) access a continuum of supportive services which will assist them to "age in place" in their homes, and (2) maintain independence, and connection to the community, thus improving quality of life. The supportive services are delivered through a partnership in which older adults, local social service providers, spiritual leaders, and other community agencies come together to create a coordinated menu of services and programs that build on the strengths of older adults living in the Albany Southwest NNORC site. NNORC-ACES program will have a website with information and links to the New York State Office on the Aging.

Dr. Gellis, also was awarded a grant to evaluate the Telehealth Program for Home Care at St. Peter's Health Care Center. The focus of the program is to maintain the patient in the least restrictive environment and improve quality of life by providing timely biobehavioral interventions for symptom control over time.

Blanca Ramos, Associate Professor, has received the 2005 Hispanic Heritage Month Service and Leadership Award, presented annually by the New York State Department of Health. The award is in recognition and appreciation of Ramos' "compassionate concern and pioneer spirit in the provision of effective health care and culturally competent services to the community." For UAlbany Press Release>>

Carolyn Smith, Professor, received a Prestigious R0-1 Grant from National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). The major goals for the four-year project, entitled Long-Term Consequences of Exposure to Family Violence, are to assess the extent of family violence in a community sample, and to investigate the extent to which, and mechanisms through which, experiencing family violence contributes to drug use and other adverse outcomes, including intergenerational violence.

Philip McCallion, Professor and Director of the Center for Excellence in Aging Services was awarded a grant with partners at the New York State Office for the Aging from the Administration on Aging. The project, entitled “Point of Entry and Persons with Alzheimer’s Disease and other dementias in rural areas: A systems change project” will be funded by the U.S. Administration on Aging and the NYS Department of Health. The grant will provide $1,000,000 over three years to two regions of the state to develop demonstration programs. Professor McCallion and his colleague, Lisa Ferretti, who co-wrote the grant, will provide technical assistance and conduct the evaluation of the project.

Professor McCallion recently was awarded Fellow status by the Gerontological Society of America (GSA). GSA Fellows represent the highest class of membership and are recognized by peers for outstanding contributions to the field of gerontology. McCallion has served the GSA in many capacities, including serving as chair of the Special Interest Group on Aging and Developmental Disabilities (1998-2000).

Eric Hardiman, Assistant Professor, was awarded a grant from the NYS Office of Mental Health (OMH) to do a study in New York City of consumer perspectives about
the new OMH initiative in mental health entitled PROS (Personalized Recovery-Oriented Services).

Mary McCarthy, Assistant Dean for School Advancement & Director of the Social Work Education Consortium was elected as President-Elect of NASW New York State Chapter for 2005-2006.

Brenda Smith, Associate Professor, was awarded Board Member of the Year at the Albany Citizen's Council on Alcoholism and Other Chemical Dependencies in June 2005.

May 23th, 2007 --“American Dilemmas: Historical and Comparative   Perspectives on Diversity, Health Disparities, and Issues   of Substance Abuse”

Sponsors:

The School of Social Welfare, the Institute for Social Services Research and Development and the School of Social Welfare Diversity Committee

Co-Sponsors:

SUNY Affirmative Action Office, Center for Jewish Studies, the New York Latino Research and Resources Network, and the Departments of Africana Studies, English, History, Judaic Studies, Latin American, Caribbean, and U. S. Latino Studies, Political Science, and Women’s Studies

The conference, “American Dilemmas: Historical and Comparative Perspectives on Diversity, Health Disparities, and Issues of Substance Abuse,” has two broad purposes.

First, purpose of the conference will be to encourage conversation across the disciplines within the university community.

Second, equally important purpose will be to engage in a specific conversation on issues related to the nation’s historically diverse and underserved populations.

Plenary Speaker: Orlando Patterson, the John Cowles Professor of Sociology at Harvard University -- will offer both theoretical and practical insights on the dilemmas many of us face in addressing and working with diverse population groups.

Opening Remarks: Peter Delany, Program Director for Health Services Research, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Conference presentations will cover a broad range of diversity issues, ranging from the politics of the disabled body to Poospatuck Indian needs assessment.

The preliminary conference agenda, panel listings, and online registration are available on this website. There is a minimal conference registration fee of $20, which includes lunch. Registration fees will be waived for students at their request, but you must pre-register and request such a waiver by indicating student status on the registration form. You can also register for the conference by contacting Dikla Madera, 518-442-5762; DMadera@uamail.albany.edu. For additional information, please contact Beth Elitzer, 518-591-8790; BElitzer@uamail.albany.edu.

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Dawn Knight-Thomas, Assistant Dean for Student Services, received the Graduate Student Service Recognition Award, in recognition for the contributions that faculty and staff make to graduate students.

Ronaline Saunders, Ph.D. Program Assistant, received the Graduate Student Service Recognition Award, in recognition for the contributions that faculty and staff make to graduate students.

Grit Bernhardt, MSW Student, has received the GSO Service Recognition Award in the first annual Graduate Student Organization Aaward, in recognition for the contributions that graduate students make.

School of Social Welfare U.S.-Africa Partnership for Building Stronger Communities Project: 2006 Summer Study Tour

Nine University at Albany students, faculty, and community members traveled to South Africa and Swaziland in mid-July with the Summer Study Tour of the U.S.-African Partnership for Building Stronger Communities Project. They visited Johannesburg, Zululand, Cape Town, and Swaziland, where they met with local families, orphans, church members, and social welfare students. The group distributed handmade quilts to households in South Africa and Swaziland in which both parents have died of AIDS. Read More...

School of Social Welfare 40th Anniversary Event - Mental Health Services: A Critical Need for Disaster Victims and Their Families
Date: Friday, October 20, 2006
Time: 2:00 - 3:30 p.m.
Location: Page Hall, Arthur Levitt Room
Contact: Stephanie H. Wacholder
Telephone: (518) 442-5753
e-mail: swachold@uamail.albany.edu
Web site: http://www.albany.edu/alumni/homecoming06.htm
Cost: Free
Details: A forum with John Weaver, Disaster Mental Health Manager, American Red Cross (www.eyeofthe storminc.com). Co-sponsored by UAlbany School of Social Welfare, NYS National Association of Social Workers, and NYS Psychological Association.

School of Social Welfare 40th Anniversary Reception
Date: Friday, October 20, 2006
Time: 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Location: Milne Hall, Room 200
Contact: Stephanie H. Wacholder
Telephone: (518) 442-5753
e-mail: swachold@uamail.albany.edu
Web site: http://www.albany.edu/alumni/homecoming06.htm
Cost: Free
Details:Celebrate the School of Social Welfare's 40th Anniversary A reception to meet and share memories with Dean Katharine Briar-Lawson, faculty, students, staff, alumni, former deans, representatives of community agencies, corporate and foundation sponsors, government officials and representatives.

 Immaculée Ilibagiza, Rwandan genocide survivor and author of the best selling book, Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust, was the guest speaker for a benefit showing of Hotel Rwanda at the Palace Theater Friday evening, April 28.  About 55 guests attended a reception at UAlbany President Kermit Hall's home prior to the evening events. Over 200 attendees heard Ms. Ilibagiza tell her chilling story of survival during the 1994 massacre. Barbara Rio and Starr Wood from the UAlbany School of Social Welfare will be leading 9 students to Kigali, Rwanda in July for community building activities there as part of the School of Social Welfare's 2006 Summer Study Tour to Africa. Ms Ilibagiza appeared in Albany to support fund-raising activities to assist with the expenses for student travel to Rwanda. Direct link to Capital News 9's story: http://www.capitalnews9.com/content/headlines/?SecID=33&ArID=177177

Portrait Unveiling at Draper Hall -- February 1, 2006 - Collins Fellows and Distinguished Professors at all levels from the School of Social Welfare, College of Computing and Information, School of Criminal Justice, and Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy were honored with the unveiling of their portraits at a ceremony in the Draper Hall lobby.

UAlbany's Center for the Elimination of Minority Health Disparities Launches Arbor Hill Community Immersion Project --
The Education Core of the University at Albany's Center for the Elimination of Minority Health Disparities (CEMHD), directed by Blanca M. Ramos, has unveiled a cultural immersion project aimed at informing young adults of available health-related services within the Arbor Hill community. The project recently involved a 3-day program in which UAlbany faculty and graduate students from various ethnic groups chaperoned black area high school students on a bus tour through Arbor Hill. The students were enrolled in UAlbany's Liberty Partnership Program, an after-school project designed by the Center for Women in Government and Civil Society. For complete article: http://www.albany.edu/news/releases.shtml

SSW Internships in Aging Project Celebrates 5 Years
The Internship in Aging Project (IAP) celebrated its fifth anniversary in May of 2005 with a reception highlighting program successes and honoring The John A. Hartford Foundation and the William Randolph Hearst Foundation as Funders of the Year. Alumna Tianna Moscinski Pettinger '01, a member of the first class of interns in the program, was presented with the Alumni Award. Diane VanDusen and Julie Poniatowski O'Donnell, both SSW alumni, were honored as mentors.

A Visit from President Hall --

August 30, 2005 - As the new semester began, President Hall and Kathryn Lowery, Vice President for Finance and Business, delivered "apples for teachers" and welcomed faculty and staff back to campus.

Jessica Strolin, Ph.D. Candidate, MSW '04, is a 2005 recipient of the Vincent J. Fontana New York Foundling Award. The $15,000 grant, funded by the Vincent J. Fontana Center of the New York Foundling Hospital, is awarded to doctoral students whose dissertations examine issues that will have a significant impact upon service delivery and innovative practice in child welfare.

Crystal Rogers, Evelyn Williams and Jessica Strolin , Ph.D. students in the School of Social welfare, have received awards from the Initiatives for Women Fund --

Crystal Rogers will use her award for her dissertation research which focuses on the stress and coping of pregnant women with Sickle Cell Disease.

Evelyn Williams will use her award to fund research to complete her doctoral work. The study she is undertaking examines the influences of identity and career choice on the professionalization experiences of African American, social welfare graduate students.

Jessica Strolin will use her award to cover costs associated with attending ICPSR summer quantitative methodology workshops.

Liz Espinoza, an incoming MSW student is the recipient of the Initiatives for Women Endowed Award. She will use this award to cover research costs associated with her Master's thesis on transnational Peruvian migration.

Justice Tedesco, an MSW student, received an award from the Initiatives for Women General Award. She will use this award to purchase Open Book scanning software and other assistance technology.

Jacqueline Melecio, LMSW, Assistant Executive Director of the NYS Chapter and Ph.D. Candidate in School of Social Welfare has been awarded the 2007 Gilman-Wells Award. The Gilman-Wells Award is presented annually by the NASW Council of Chapter Executives at the NASW Annual Leadership Meeting in Washington, D.C. Read more....

Dean Katharine Briar-Lawson and Professors Bonnie Carlson, Mary McCarthy, and Blanca Ramos visited the Universidad Catolica Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo de Chiclyo in Peru. This collaboration involved local development and community capacity building. For more information please go to: http://www.usat.edu.pe/noticias/index.htm#noticia01

Tara Nickle, a Ph.D. student at UAlbany's School of Social Welfare, was selected as a Hartford Doctoral Fellow for 2005. This prestigious national award, funded by the John A. Hartford Foundation, is presented to a select number of Ph.D. students each year who are interested in the field of Gerontological Social Work Research. Nickle is a doctoral research assistant in the Center for Excellence in Aging Services at the School of Social Welfare and an adjunct professor in the School.

Reducing Depression in Homebound Older Adults Subject of UAlbany Study. UAlbany Center receives $1 million from the National Institute of Mental Health. UAlbany researchers funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) will study and evaluate a depression treatment program for older homebound medically ill adults. The School of Social Welfare's Zvi Gellis, Director of the Center for Mental Health and Aging, will collaborate with Martha Bruce of Cornell University’s Weill Medical College, Elizabeth Misener of Albany Medical College, and St. Peter’s Hospital’s Jean McGinty, Lynda Tierney, Cindy Jordan, and Jean Burton to conduct the research, set to begin in May 2005. University at Albany Article

University at Albany School of Social Welfare Dean Katharine Briar-Lawson was elected president of the National Association of Deans and Directors of Schools of Social Work (NADD) at their annual meeting this past month. University at Albany Press Release

UAlbany School of Social Welfare Associate Dean and Professor Anne E. (Ricky) Fortune has been elected president of the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR) for 2005-2006. SSWR was founded in 1994 as a professional organization for social work researchers. University at Albany Press Release

School of Social Welfare Partners with Indonesia to Develop Support Systems for Tsunami Victims
Assistant Professor Eric R. Hardiman, Ph.D., recently traveled to Indonesia with faculty members from Ohio State University and UNC-Greensboro to train " trainers" to address the mental health needs and related tsunami trauma of Indonesians. Hardiman facilitated training and outreach models, based on his research and work on peer services with the aftermath of 9/11 in NYC.Describing his experience as life changing, he found profound reliance among Indonesians despite "staggering losses". Hardiman expects to return to further support the mental health outreach efforts. Times Union Article and University at Albany Article . ABC News Article:

EVENTS

October 12, 2007, 12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
School of Social Welfare Celebration Honoring Scholarship Awardees and their Donors

School of Social Welfare, held a celebratory luncheon to honor scholars and donors socialize with alumni, representatives of community agencies and organizations, corporate and foundation sponsors, government officials and representatives, friends, faculty (current and former), and staff.

June 1 & 2, 2005

International Social Work Practice Research Symposium
To honor the late William J. Reid, whose work shaped the agenda for research on social work services for 35 years, and to further stimulate high quality practice research in social work, the University at Albany School of Social Welfare will host an international practice research symposium on June 1 - 2, 2005 in Albany, NY.
The symposium will feature State-of-the-art papers, posters and summaries of the evidence for practice effectiveness in four major tracks: child welfare, mental health, aging and substance abuse. Plenary sessions will encourage the development of new partnerships and capacity building among key stakeholders and will present a historic map of the practice research movement in Social Work.
Registration and additional informational materials are available online at http://www.albany.edu/ssw/Research_Symposium or by contacting Lisa Ferretti by email at lferretti@albany.edu or by phone at 518-442-5832. Thank you for your interest; we look forward to your participation.

Friday, June 3, 2005, 1:00-3:00

Alumni Weekend Presentation - Aging in the 21st Century: Encouraging the Evolution of Aging Prepared Communities. Milne 200
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM - Reception
Presented by Philip McCallion, MSW '81, Ph.D. '93, Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Excellence in Aging Services, at the School of Social Welfare.
Downtown Campus Map: http://www.albany.edu/maps/downtown.html