On June 23, 2010 the following SSW alumni will be honored by NASW CT at their Annual Awards Dinner.

Catherine Havens, JD, MSW ’74 will be given the Educator of the Year Award. She is the Director of the MSW Program at the UConn School of Social Work as well as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Assistant Professor of Community Organization. Her areas of specialization include wo

<img class="size-full wp-image-2465" title="Catherine_Havens" src="http://socialwork.uconn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Catherine_Havens.jpg" alt="Catherine M. Havens, JD, MSW, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Director of the MSW Program" width="21

men’s studies, women in administration, women offenders, criminal justice, and law and social work.

Gail Champlin, MSW ‘68 will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. She worked for 28 years as the Director of The Center for Professional Development at the University of Hartford and tirelessly participated on Boards, Commissions, and many non-profit organizations. Gail is a former NASW/CT chapter president. She currently works at Saint Joseph College.

Eileen McNulty, MSW ‘86 will be honored with the 2010 Social Worker of the Year Award. She is the Director of Youth Services in Bristol. In the true tradition of notable social workers, Eileen has combined her clinical skills with community organization skills in working to design and fund programs and to provide creative venues for at risk youth.

Lawrence Pellegrini will receive the MSW Student of the Year Award. He is a casework major and will be graduating in August of 2010. He has excelled both academically and in the field, taking a leading role at UConn and contributing to the growth and development of the profession.

Maria D. Martinez, MSW ’83, PhD has accepted the position of Interim Assistant Vice Provost for the Institute for Student Success for a one-year term beginning June 1, 2010. During this interim period, a formal search for a permanent Assistant Vice Provost will be conducted.

Dr. Martinez joined the university in 1986. She began as a Student Support Services Counselor, was promoted to Director of the Student Support Services Program in 1993, and in 1995 was again promoted to Director of the Center for Academic Programs, a position she holds today. Under her leadership, CAP has significantly increased access and educational opportunities for Connecticut students from low income and first generation backgrounds.

Dr. Martinez is a member and past president of the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Association of Latinos in Higher Education (CALAHE). She is also a member of the Connecticut Association of Educational Opportunity Programs (CAEOP) and the New England Educational Opportunity Association (NEOA). Dr. Martinez provides an important voice on programming and policies and is a strong advocate for increasing educational opportunities for all students. Dr. Martinez holds a B.A. in Sociology with a minor in Education from Herbert H. Lehman College in New York City, a Master’s in Social Work and Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Connecticut.

Larry Pellegrini has always been interested in getting to know people.

“I appreciate where people come from,” Pellegrini says, “what makes people who they are, not just the superficial things, but their underlying substantive realities.”

A 2009 graduate of the University of Connecticut’s master’s of public administration (MPA) and certificate in non-profit management programs, Pellegrini is now completing a second master’s degree in social work (MSW), along with certificates in survey research, public financial management, and mental health and substance abuse.

Transitioning out of a seven-year career as an economist, Pellegrini had spent his previous career producing statistics on society in the past and present.

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Courtesy of UConn Today

April 28, 2010

By: Heather Turner, CLAS ’12

In a long career at UConn as a professor of fine arts and the director of the William Benton Museum of Art, Salvatore Scalora ’71 has seen the power of philanthropy.

Today, Scalora and his family personify it in their tribute to his late wife, Mary Scalora ’80, ’92, by creating and supporting a fund to help students following her footsteps in social work.

Mary Scalora graduated from UConn in 1980 to become a teacher, but soon realized that the social problems her students experienced at home were negatively impacting their ability to learn.

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Courtesy of UConn Today
May 13, 2010
By: John Sponauer

The School of Social Work is getting a makeover, inside and out.

Inside – Updated classroom furniture, a new coat of paint, and comfortable furnishings for students and visitors.

Outside – Needed renovations have begun and will continue throughout the summer and early fall. Watch for our “unveiling” in Fall 2010.

Check back for updated information and pictures.