The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, is a federal initiative to help save the lives of those suffering from HIV/AIDS around the world. NASW Senior Practice Associates Amy Bess and Bekki Ow-Arhus were invited to present at the PEPFAR Orphans and Vulnerable Children Forum in February in Washington, D.C. Attendees represented government staff from more than 20 different countries who work directly with orphans and vulnerable children. Bess discussed the roles of social work associations, particularly as they relate to advocating for the profession and supporting the professional development of social workers. ...

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Raif Walter, left, and Matt Anderson attend a Capitol Hill screening of Anderson’s film From Place to Place, a documentary that follows six young adults in Montana who have aged out of the foster care system. Social worker Matt Anderson became a documentary film producer on a whim. He was working with foster children in Missoula, Mont., when he met Codie, an 18-year-old who had been placed in 17 foster homes in just seven years. Like many former foster children, Codie was struggling to reconnect with family and avoid becoming involved in crime or drug abuse. “He shared his story and I said his life was important,” said...

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People contemplating suicide, suffering from depression or experiencing severe panic attacks may call 911 to get help. But the sergeant of the Cheyenne Police Department in Wyoming says police officers may not fully be prepared or trained to deal with a mental health situation. “Police officers are trained to find immediate solutions to a problem,” said Sgt. Stephanie Neuman, an NASW member with an MSW. “But in dealing with mental health emergencies, police officers don’t always know what to look for … communities deserve to have social workers address what the police officers can’t find.” Some co...

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The Coalition to End Child Abuse Deaths met recently at the NASW national offices in Washington, D.C. From left are NASW members Michael Petit, president of Every Child Matters, and Kimberly Day, coordinator of the Coalition to End Child Abuse Deaths. In recent Capitol Hill visits, NASW joined the Coalition to End Child Abuse Deaths to continue advocacy for the Protect Our Kids Act (H.R. 3653/S.1984), and to discuss the importance of having social workers as child welfare workers. Meetings in the House and Senate resulted in U.S. Sen. Olympia J. Snowe, R-Maine, and U.S. Reps. Jim Moran, D-Va., Al Green, D-Texas, and John Tierney, D-Mass.,...

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The Taj Mahal, in Agra, India, was one of the stops for the NASW People to People Social Work Delegation to India in February. The group also saw young Indian girls perform a dance, shown below. The challenges facing India’s homeless populations can appear daunting to visitors. Participants of the NASW People to People Social Work Delegation to India, however, say innovative programs and the dedicated people behind them are making positive differences for those less fortunate. NASW President Jeane Anastas and NASW Executive Director Elizabeth J. Clark led the professional exchange in February. Anastas said delegates witnessed count...

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Leymah Gbowee is a testament to the value of hope. Faced with years of ongoing civil war in her homeland of Liberia, Gbowee held on to a belief that peace was possible. She unified groups of women to demand an end to the violence that was shattering the lives of innocent people every day. The unrelenting protests proved to be crucial in bringing about a resolution to the country’s stalled peace talks in 2003. Gbowee, as founder and president of the Monrovia-based Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa, continues to work on behalf of advancing women’s rights in the continent, particularly in conflict and post-conflict regions. Gbowe...

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NASW Foundation Manager of Fund Development Susan Rubin and NASW consultant Luisa Lopez traveled to Tanzania in March as part of a multiyear exchange program and Social Work Partnership between NASW and the Tanzania Association of Social Workers, or TASWO. The trip served a twofold purpose, Rubin said, and began with an American International Health Alliance-sponsored All Partners Meeting in the city of Dar es Salaam. The meeting gave TASWO representatives the opportunity to meet each other, and attendees also had a chance to meet with Tanzanian nongovernmental organizations involved in the partnership. “This was the first time TASWO...

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Children’s Bureau Legacy There will be many articles written during 2012 about the 100th anniversary of the United States Children’s Bureau, such as the fine article Paul R. Pace wrote in the April, 2012, issue of the NASW News. What concerns me, and the reason why I am writing this letter to the NASW News Editor, is that these articles will discuss in large part the Bureau’s programs related to child labor, child abuse, and infant mortality. What will probably not be discussed is the contribution the Bureau has made to the field of juvenile delinquency. The Bureau was the first Federal Government agency to give attentio...

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NASW’s Legal Defense Fund facilitated NASW’s participation and that of the NASW Florida Chapter in an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief in a case that challenges Florida’s program of mandatory drug-testing for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families applicants. The case, Lebron v. Wilkins, was filed in federal court and is now before the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The brief argues that Florida’s mandatory suspicionless drug testing of TANF applicants undermines the state’s goal of promoting self-sufficiency and supporting children. TANF applicant Luis Lebron has refused to take a drug test beca...

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NASW leaders presented at the Association of Baccalaureate Social Work Program Directors’ (BPD) 29th annual conference in March, and social work professor Susan Kosche Vallem gave a memorial lecture dedicated to Ron Federico, who is known for his efforts in shaping social work education. The conference, “Sustaining Quality BSW Education in Difficult Times,” was held March 14-18 in Portland, Ore. Kosche Vallem — professor of social work at the Wartburg College in Iowa, chairwoman of the BPD Advocacy and Outreach Committee, and convener for the Action Network for Social Work Education and Research Coalition — pre...

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