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Welcome to the alumni e-newsletter for the
Department of Social Work  

Alumni From 2007 - 2009: Rise to the Challenge and Give Back

CHHS has received a challenge grant from five generous donors totaling $15,000 to be applied towards priority needs for the college. To complete the challenge:

• CHHS needs to receive 150 individual donations from alumni who graduated or will graduate from 2007–2011 at either the undergraduate or graduate level. So far 114 donations have been received.
  
• The terms of the challenge grant do not stipulate a specific amount for the contribution but the funds must be donated during the current fiscal year which ends June 30, 2010.

We hope you will consider a gift at this time that will benefit faculty and students in the college. You can request that your gift be applied to a specific program or scholarship fund. Please visit the CHHS Alumni and Friends website for more information on ways of supporting the college. For questions, please contact Gail Weirich via e-mail, or at (703) 993-6018.

Am I an Alum of the College of Health and Human Services (CHHS)?

• School of Nursing, 
• Department of Global and Community Health, 
• Department of Social Work, and
• Department of Health Administration and Policy. 

• The Center for the Study of Chronic Illness and Disability (CCID) and 
• The Center for Health Policy Research and Ethics (CHPRE).
  

2010 CHHS Distinguished Alumni of the Year Award  

Barbara L. Young Summers, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN
BSN ’78, MSN ’81, PhD ‘95

Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, and Division Head, Nursing, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
Houston, Texas

Barbara Summers was awarded the honor of 2010 CHHS Distinguished Alumna of the Year on behalf of the CHHS Alumni Chapter Board, accompanied by her husband George Summers, also a Mason alumnus, graduating from the College of Visual and Performing Arts with a BS in 1977, at the university's Celebration of Distinction on April 14.

Dr. Summers' practice hallmark has been a persistent and unwavering focus on building nursing excellence. She has led the creation of new frameworks and models to develop nurse leaders and build organizational cultures that promote health care safety and professional nursing empowerment.  From 1993 – 1997, Dr. Summers worked at National Institutes of Health, where she was manager of critical care services and a nurse specialist in ambulatory cancer care and research.  In addition, Dr. Summers worked for 13 years as a clinical nurse specialist in the cancer center and as director of medical and psychiatric nursing for INOVA. Dr. Summers is the recipient of numerous honors and awards and in November 2009, was inducted as a fellow into the American Academy of Nursing.

Dr. Summers made a presentation to alumni and faculty titled “Synchronicity: Auspicious Coincidence, The Journey of one GMU Alumna.” School of Nursing alumni attending the presentation included classmates and colleagues:  Karen Drenkard, PhD ’06;  Margaret Goode, BSN ‘88, MSN  ’99; Paulette Komarny, BSN ’95; Lynn Magrum, BSN ’79, MSN ’81; Lorraine McLean, MSN '96; and Carolyn Taylor BSN ’78, MSN ’86, MBA ’94.

Spotlight on a Social Work Alumna

Lisa Callahan graduated from George Mason University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Social Work and was accepted into Advance Standing for the Master in Social Work program. She graduated in the inaugural class of Mason’s MSW program in 2004.

In 2005, Lisa began employment with the County of Fairfax, Department of Family Services. She developed and implemented the Medical Respite Program in partnership with a Health Department Nurse Practitioner. This program continues to provide respite care in a local homeless shelter for people who do not have a home but require a safe place to heal after surgery, illness or other medical issues.

Lisa accepted a position in 2007 with the Northern Virginia Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program which advocates for the highest quality of life and care for persons receiving long-term care services. The program reaches out to residents in nursing and assisted living facilities in five jurisdictions in Northern Virginia: Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William. As Ombudsman and Volunteer Specialist, Lisa works to recruit, train and supervise 70+ dedicated volunteers who are assigned to one or more nursing or assisted living facilities.

She has been an active alumna with her alma mater since 2007 and serves as co-president of the CHHS Alumni Chapter Board along with Lori McLean MSN ’96.  Some of her duties include representing the CHHS Alumni Chapter to the Mason University Alumni Association Board of Directors and at other functions within the college and university, providing leadership in fundraising efforts for the college, meeting with students on alumni responsibility, and planning alumni events.

“I thoroughly enjoy meeting and working with talented and amazing CHHS alumni in my professional and alumni duties, and staying connected to those whose paths have crossed mine,” commented Lisa.

Sign Up to Mentor a Social Work Undergrad Student

Mentors are excellent resources to students interested in researching career options or in shadowing an employer in their field of study. If you're a seasoned grad looking to support future professionals in your field or a student seeking career advice please sign up by sending an e-mail. Please provide the following contact information:

Name
Position Title
Place of Employment
Work Phone
Business E-mail Address
Alternate E-mail Address
Best time to be reached
      
We will find an opportunity for you to share your career experiences with a current student. If you have any questions, contact Gail Weirich by email, or at (703) 993-6018.

We appreciate your interest!

CHHS Signature Alumni Event: "The Dirt on the Grape"

SAVE THE DATE

The Dirt on the Grape…The Next Course
CHHS Signature Alumni Event
October 2, 2010

Time TBA

Mark your calendars to join us for the CHHS Signature Alumni Event on Saturday, October 2, 2010. Sommelier Mary Watson-DeLauder returns and joins Chef Sandy Amato (owner of Cooking with Sandy) to educate and tantalize your tastebuds with dessert and dessert wine pairings.

We invite CHHS Alumni and guests to come and learn something new, re-connect with friends and colleagues, and enjoy an evening of socializing.

Details on the event will be available soon on the CHHS Alumni website. For information contact Gail Weirich by email, or at (703) 993-6018.

The CHHS Signature Alumni Event is held in conjunction with Alumni Weekend.

Let Us Hear from You

Social Work Students Bring College Dreams to At-Risk Youth

Saturday, May 1, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Mason Fairfax Campus

Social work education at George Mason University is an exciting place to not only learn, but to apply learning by providing a real community service. The College Dream Tour is an example of such a project.  The project was first implemented last year by a senior class who planned the event from beginning to end. 

The goal of the project was to expose a group of at-risk youth, in middle school to the idea of going to college.  The project targeted those children who were not likely being encouraged to go to college because of many reasons.  The tour was designed to introduce college and college life to children while having fun.  The event was very successful and there were many requests that it be repeated. 

This year, another group of students are planning the College Dream Tour.  The College Dream Tour theme this year is “Step to Success” and the program is expected to involve 100 children. Two social work classes, one taught by Dr. Molly Davis, and the other section taught by Dr. Angela Kim have joined forces to plan this event.  The combination of the two courses will allow for an increased number of students to participate. 

The middle school students will experience campus life, eating in the dining hall, viewing a dormitory room, classrooms, and the library and attending a college event.  A small group of students (6-7) are assigned to two tour guides.  Because Mason students have studied the research on how to impact aspirations and dropout prevention, they hope to provide an opportunity to dialogue with students while they are touring about the importance of staying in school. 

Social Work students will  have a follow-up on May 6 at noon. to review the planning, implementation and evaluation of this project.  If interested in attending or program information, please contact Molly Davis.

Blazing the Trail: Promising Practices for Healing Psychological Trauma of Service Members, Veterans, Families, and Community

On Friday, May 21, there will be a workshop on, “Blazing the Trail: Promising Practices for Healing Psychological Trauma of Service Members, Veterans, Families, and Community.”  The course will be held at Research I, Room 163 at the Fairfax campus.

The cost of the class is $100 for health care professionals, $75 for full-time students, and includes all materials, breaks, and continental breakfast. The course is approved for four Contact Hours and four CEUs.

Online registration will be available through the college's Office of Academic Outreach beginning May 3. For additional information, please contact the Office of Academic Outreach.

Faculty News

Dennis J. Ritchie, PhD

Dennis J. Ritchie, PhD, Enochs Chair in Child Welfare and Professor of Social Work, is co-leading a field-based seminar this May in Costa Rica focusing on the interrelated themes of human rights, particularly women’s and children’s rights. Other themes of interest include sustainable human, social, economic, political, and community development; intrafamilal, gender-based, and community violence, poverty; and health and social services. 

The other co-leader is Dr. Teresa Ramellini, Professor of Social Work and Women's Studies and Director of the Center for Women's Studies Research at the University of Costa Rica.

This program is offered through Mason’s Center for Global Education, in partnership with the University of Costa Rica. Students will earn 3 credits in Social Work, Sociology, Women and Gender Studies, or Conflict Analysis.

Paul Clark, PhD

Paul Clark, PhD, and two nursing colleagues at Life with Cancer®, Mason nursing adjunct faculty member Geronima Cortese-Jimenez, and Eric Cohen, RN (GMU BSN, ‘00) through support from the George Mason University Center for Consciousness and Transformation, are currently conducting a study of four complementary treatment modalities for managing the physical and psychological symptoms of CIPN. During the six week study, participants will be randomly assigned to receive one of four modalities that include a Yoga class, Meditation class, Psychoeducational class, or Reiki sessions, one hour per week. The study is currently open to anyone who completed chemotherapy at least three months ago (or more) and continues to experience symptoms related to CIPN.

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a side effect that occurs with many of the most common chemotherapeutic agents used to treat cancer. CIPN is the result of damage caused to the peripheral nervous system by chemotherapy and can affect sensory, motor, and autonomic neurons. Typically, CIPN is experienced as tingling, burning, numbness, or pain in the upper and lower extremities and other parts of the body. Severity of symptoms can range from bothersome to disabling and can have profoundly negative effects on quality of life. There are no treatments or drugs that effectively treat or lead to the reversal of CIPN symptoms and conventional treatments often yield limited results for symptoms of CIPN.

Studies using complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments, including massage and yoga have proven successful with pain and quality of life issues related to cancer and its treatment however, there have been few CAM studies that specifically address CIPN. It is hoped that results from this study will help reduce the negative physical and psychological symptoms of CIPN while improving quality of life for the participants. For more information about the study you can contact Dr. Clark at (703) 993-2737.