September 2010 NASW-MD Chapter E-News

Message From the Executive Director:

After so many years of being a student and then an educator, September, rather than January, always feels like the start of the new year to me. So happy new year to all of you, particularly to our school social workers, our SW faculty members and our Jewish members who are celebrating the new year at this time!
In this issue of the E-News, you will be asked to vote in our chapter elections. The only contested races are the MSW Student Rep and the BSW Student Rep positions. However, your vote is important to us because it tells us you are paying attention.
The Chapter election slate and the link for voting is available at"http://nasw-md.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=61
Please follow the link to vote quickly and easily!
We are also re-running our story from the August E-News about social workers running for office along with a list of those candidates who have been endorsed so far by PACE. Early Voting is now in full swing and Primary Election Day is next Tuesday, Sept. 14th. I hope that all of you will take advantage of your privilege to vote, so much is at stake in the coming year.
Finally, I hope to see each of you at our Clinical Conference later this month!! We have a wonderful line-up of speakers and I am sure it will be worth your while. If you need to reach me for any reason, I am available by email at nasw.md@verizon.net

Daphne McClellan, Ph.D., MSW

Social Workers Running for Office!!

This year, a newcomer has entered the race for the House of Delegates in District 14, Montgomery County. Jodi Finkelstein is a social worker who until recently served as the Executive Director of the Domestic Violence Center for Howard County.
In a letter to PACE Jodi says that she wants to work to keep District 14 families strong and viable and to ensure them the opportunities to live and work in a safe, clean environment. If you are interested in supporting Jodi Finkelstein’s election campaign, you may visit her website at:www.JodiForMaryland.com.

For several years now there has only been one social worker serving in the Maryland General Assembly- Delegate Melony Griffith from District 25 in Prince George’s County. Del. Griffith has been an asset to social work and we have been privileged to work with her on a variety of bills over the years. We are glad she is running for re-election. If you are interested in supporting Del. Griffith’s re-election bid, you may visit her webpage at: www.melonygriffith.com

Social Workers Running for Office!!

This year, a newcomer has entered the race for the House of Delegates in District 14, Montgomery County. Jodi Finkelstein is a social worker who until recently served as the Executive Director of the Domestic Violence Center for Howard County. In a letter to PACE Jodi says that she wants to work to keep District 14 families strong and viable and to ensure them the opportunities to live and work in a safe, clean environment. If you are interested in supporting Jodi Finkelstein’s election campaign, you may visit her website at www.JodiForMaryland.com

For several years now there has only been one social worker serving in the Maryland General Assembly- Delegate Melony Griffith from District 25 in Prince George’s County. Del. Griffith has been an asset to social work and we have been privileged to work with her on a variety of bills over the years. We are glad she is running for re-election. If you are interested in supporting Del. Griffith’s re-election bid, you may visit her webpage at www.melonygriffith.com

Special Education Course for School Social Workers

In an effort to help School Social Workers complete their certification, NASW has been offering a 15 credit hour, college level course in Special Education which is approved by MSDE. Another round of this course will begin this fall on October 11th. The course will be a combination of in-person meetings and online work. The class will meet in-person every other Monday evening through January 31st. The course will be offered in two locations for your convenience: At the NASW office in Catonsville and on the campus of the Kennedy Krieger Institute in northern Baltimore. Click here to learn more or to register for this course.

Additional Information is available at:http://nasw-md.org/admincommonsub_addedit.cfm?PageMode=Edit&SubpageId=45

PACE Endorses Candidates for 2010 Races!!

The following candidates have been endorsed for the Maryland General Assembly races and for Governor:

For Governor and Lieutenant Governor: Gov. Martin O’Malley and Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown
House District 2: Del. John Donoghue
Sen. District 8: Sen. Kathy Klausmeier
House District 10: Del. Adrienne Jones, Del. Shirley Nathan-Pulliam
Senate District 10: Sen. Delores Kelly
House District 11: Del. Dan Morhaim, Del. Dana Stein
Senate District 11: Sen. Bobby Zirkin
House District 14: Ms. Jodi Finkelstein
Senate District 16: Sen. Brian Frosh
House District 20: Del. Sheila Hixson, Del. Tom Hucker, Del. Heather Mizeur
House District 25: Del. Melony Griffith
Senate District 28: Sen. Mac Middleton
House District 35: Del. Susan McComas
House District 38: Del. Jim Mathias
House District 40: Del. Shawn Tarrant
House District 42: Del. Susan Aumann, Del. William Frank, Del. Stephen Lafferty
Senate District 44: Sen. Verna Jones
House District 45: Del. Talmadge Branch
House District 46: Del. Pete Hammen

DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND THE CALL OF DUTY?

NOMINATE NOW FOR THE 2011NASW-MARYLAND ANNUAL AWARDS!!! Recognize your fellow social workers and a local citizen

It’s time again to take pause to recognize and honor your fellow Maryland Chapter members, student members and a local citizen who have made outstanding contributions to the profession or the community. The awards will be presented at NASW-MD’s 2010 Social Work Month Annual Conference on Friday, March 25, 2011, at Martin’s West. Categories include Social Worker of the Year, Social Work Educator of the Year, the Social Work Lifetime Achievement Award, Social Work Field Instructor of the Year, MSW and BSW Social Work Students of the Year, and Public Citizen of the Year. Please note that, with the exception of the Public Citizen Award, all nominees must be a current member in good standing with NASW-Maryland Chapter. Don’t miss this opportunity to say thanks and lift up colleagues who have done so much for the profession and their communities! Deadline is Monday, December 5, 2010.

Criteria for these awards include:

*Nominees for the 2011 Social Worker of the Year Award, Lifetime Achievement Award, and Social Work Students (BSW & MSW) of the Year Awards, must have made significant and outstanding contributions to the profession of social work, displayed leadership in the profession, earned the respect of fellow social workers and represented well the professional ethics of social work. Lifetime Achievement Award nominees should, additionally, be individuals who have a significant span of achievement over his/her career that distinguishes them and a long legacy of commitment to the profession.

* Nominees for the 2011 Social Work Educator of the Year and Social Work Field Instructor of the Year must educate the public about the unique qualifications and diverse professional activities of social workers and must support high standards for training in social work education. The Educator of the Year must advance the body of social work knowledge through research and publication. Additionally, nominees for Social Work Field Instructor of the Year should be individuals who have demonstrated an outstanding adeptness at providing the professional support, mentorship and knowledge necessary to ensure field experiences which contribute to the development of able, efficient and well-versed future social work professionals, and who have made the field experience a meaningful one.

*Nominees for the 2011 Maryland Citizen of the Year cannot be members of the social work profession. Individuals nominated must have made specific outstanding contributions to the human services field and have personally represented ethics compatible with those defined in the NASW Code of Ethics.

Please click here:http://www.nasw-md.org/associations/8535/files/2011_Nominations.pdf to make your nomination (s) or contact Peggy Powell, NASW-MD, at 410-788-1066, ext. 13 (or ppnasw.md@verizon.net), for a nomination form or further information. Please include a statement of 350 words or less telling us why you believe your nominee deserves the award and those contributions the individual has made that make him or her unique; attach additional sheets to the form, if necessary. Please also be sure to include a current resume for your nominee and contact information.