Hartford GSWI Alumni Networking Groups

Welcome to the resource page for the Hartford GSWI Alumni Networking Groups! Beginning with the Alumni Roundtables event at GSA in November 2011, the initiative has generated a great deal of enthusiasm and collaboration among GSWI alumni and mentors. This site, which is currently in construction, will provide a platform to communicate information and share updates about the Alumni initiative and group activities. Below, you can find information on the alumni networking groups, liaisons, and group members. In the coming weeks, we will be adding new members who have expressed interest in joining the groups, and new groups that members have volunteered to organize. Alumni of the HGSWI are welcome to join groups by contacting the group liaisons with their request.

Please check back with this page in the coming weeks for updates, and feel free to contact me at daniel.gardner@hunter.cuny.edu if you have any questions about the website or the Alumni Networking initiative.

Daniel S. Gardner 
Chair, Hartford GSWI Alumni Networking Committee

National Alumni Advisory Committee:
Daniel Gardner, Chair
Leslie Hasche, University of Denver
Daniel Kaplan, Columbia University
Duy Nguyen, New York University
Julia Meashey, GSWI
Deborah Waldrop, SUNY - Buffalo

Caregiving and Family Issues


Group Liaison: Bryan Ford (fordbryan@gmail.com)

Dementia


Group Liaison: Daniel Kaplan (dbk2006@gmail.com)

Disability


Group Liaison: Nicole Ruggiano (nruggian@fiu.edu)

End of Life/Palliative Care

Group Liaisons: Mary Beth Morrissey (mamorrissey@fordham.edu) &
Karla Washington (karlatwashington@gmail.com)

*NEW GROUP*
Ethnicity, Immigration, and Aging

Group Liaison: Keith Chan (greystar999@gmail.com)

Recent demographic shifts suggest that the aging population in the United States will become increasingly heterogeneous in terms of ethnicity and culture. Research efforts, social policies, and practice modalities in social work have only begun to account for these changing demographics. This Networking Group will bring together Hartford Alumni who are interested in tackling these issues by examining the intersections of ethnicity, immigration and aging.

GLBT Issues

Group Liaison: Noell Rowan (nlrowa01@louisville.edu)

The gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered aging population is receiving increasing attention in the scholarly literature. This group welcomes scholars interested in collectively working to raise awareness of this often hidden population of older adults and join together for mentorship, collaborative study, and to address the issues facing this population in practice, policy and research.

Health

Group Liaison: Duy Nguyen (duy.nguyen@nyu.edu)

*NEW GROUP*
HIV/AIDS and Older Adults

Group Liaison: Richard Beaulaurier (beau@fiu.edu)

*NEW GROUP*
Longterm Supportive Services Network

Group Liaisons: Robin Bonifas (robin.bonifas@asu.edu) & Kelsey Simons
(ksimons@research.baycrest.org)

Long-term care is comprised of a range of social, health, and personal care services offered over an extended period of time in either congregate settings (e.g., nursing homes, assisted living and day programs) or as community based options (e.g., home health services and care management). An aging population is contributing to a greater need for these long-term supportive services. Likewise, there is a need for better integration and continuity of care in order to maintain or enhance psychosocial, physical, and cognitive functioning among older adults and people with disabilities. This Alumni Networking Group will bring together Hartford Geriatric Social Work Initiative alumni, Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) staff, as well as other social work leaders in research, policy, and practice to build social work leadership, mentorship, research knowledge, and knowledge exchange opportunities in the field of social work in long-term care.

Mental Health

Group Liaison: Leslie Hasche (Leslie.Hasche@du.edu)

The growing burden of older adults facing mental health and substance use conditions has been characterized as a looming crisis due to the complexity of the conditions, workforce shortages, fragmented service systems, and the need for more research on services and treatments.  This Networking Group connects Hartford Alumni with an interest in understanding and responding to older adults’ needs related to mental health and substance use conditions. 

*NEW GROUP*
Neighborhood, Housing, and Relocation

Group Liaisons: Amanda Lehning (ajlehning@gmail.com) & Tam Perry
(teperry@wayne.edu)

There is a growing recognition that the physical and social environment impact older adults' health, well-being, and ability to age in place. Furthermore, the resources of both the individual and their surrounding environment influence decisions about where to live as well as the ability to relocate. This Networking Group will bring together Hartford Alumni who are interested in examining neighborhood and housing effects on older adults.

Poverty


Group Liaison: Amanda Lehning (alehning@umich.edu)

Productive Aging

Group Liaison: Ernest Gonzales (egonzales@brownschool.wustl.edu) &
Emily Greenfield (egreenf@ssw.rutgers.edu)

*NEW GROUP*
Social Policy, Practice, and Advocacy

Group Liaison: Nancy Giunta (ngiunta@hunter.cuny.edu)

This Networking Group invites both policy researchers and others interested in learning how their current research can help shape policy decisions. Policy researchers in gerontology are interested in studying social, economic, health and long-term supportive service policies that affect older adults and people with disabilities, and the service delivery systems charged with meeting their health and social care needs. Social policies and service delivery systems guide our practice as gerontologists; social inquiry on how to maximize their effectiveness is essential. The group also welcomes researchers who would like to learn more about how to disseminate their research to policymakers or other decision-makers who can advance the interests of older adults.

*NEW GROUP*
Trauma, Violence, and Abuse across the Life Course


Group Liaisons: Tina Maschi (tmaschi@fordham.edu) &
Robin Bonifas (robin.bonifas@asu.edu)

The purpose of this alumni networking group is to bring together scholars committed to examining and developing responses to experiences of trauma, violence, aggression, and abuse across the lifespan, with particular attention to culturally diverse older adults and vulnerable populations. Many members of these populations reside in service settings such as the family home, public housing, and short- and long-term institutional settings, while others confront service systems addressing interpersonal and social/structural violence and elder abuse, homelessness, war and mass trauma, and criminal justice. Drawing from a rights-based perspective, the networking group will further develop the social work voice as an equal and collaborative partner in research and advocacy addressing the following key areas of practice and policy: (1) understanding the etiological roles of trauma, violence, aggression, and abuse as a social determinants of health and well-being in late life, (2) examining the vulnerabilities (e.g., age, poverty, substance abuse, chronic health conditions, mental health, disability, gender, neighborhood, veteran status, and sexual orientation) that influence elder abuse and mistreatment, and (3) developing and testing prevention and intervention models that address psychological, emotional, social, cultural, and structural factors associated with violence and may reduce risk and foster resilience among older persons and their families. Such models may include trauma-informed and empowerment practices, culturally competent family and community interventions, victim advocacy and conflict resolution approaches, care coordination, and interdisciplinary education models that incorporate key stakeholders.