|
|||||||
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
NASW Foundation Board Members 2011-2012Elizabeth J. Clark, PhD, ACSW, MPH Jeane W. Anastas, PhD, LMSW Elizabeth
J. Clark, PhD, ACSW, MPH
Elizabeth J. Clark is NASW's ninth executive director. Dr. Clark was the executive director of the 12,000-member New York State Chapter for two years before assuming the national post in June 2001. Dr. Clark holds a BASW, an MSW and an MPH in health services administration from the University of Pittsburgh and a master's degree in sociology and a Ph.D. in medical sociology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She also holds ACSW certification from NASW's Academy of Certified Social Workers. Her career has included working as executive vice president of the nonprofit National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship; chief operating officer of a national grass-roots organizing campaign to raise public awareness about the need for increased funding for cancer research; director of the Albany Medical Center Hospital's Department of Social Work and then its Division of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Services; and director of the Department of Counseling and Support Services and the Cancer Care Program at St. Luke's Hospital in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Dr. Clark has held academic administrative and teaching posts at numerous universities and has been involved in 18 grant-funded research projects, often as grant author or principal investigator. Dr. Clark is the author, co-author or editor of more than 70 publications. Her honors include numerous awards for leadership and for outstanding public and community service. She has been named Social Worker of the Year by units of the New York State and Pennsylvania NASW chapters. Board Members Jeane Anastas, PhD, LMSW
Back to top
Recognized as a tenacious advocate for women, people of color and underserved populations, she is the recipient of numerous honors, including an honorary doctorate of public service from Southern Connecticut State University and the Dr. Dorothy I. Height Vision Award from Meharry Medical College. She has served on a number of non-profit and corporate boards. She was one of the principals who led the 2004 March for Women’s Lives in Washington D.C. that drew more than 1.2 million participants. She co-chaired the Task Force for the U.S. ratification of the U.N. Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Under Dr. Cole’s leadership, YWCA USA was a co-sponsor of the four Presidential and Vice Presidential debates for the historic 2008 election. She has been a fellow of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, a research fellow of both the Ford and Rockefeller foundations and a health advocacy fellow of the Avery Institute for Social Change. Dr. Cole earned her Ph.D. in Communication Science and Disorders at Northwestern University and is a Certified Association Executive. Connie Commander, RN, CCM, ABDA, CPUR
Elvira Craig de Silva, DSW, ACSW
Richard (Rick) N. Harris, MSW, LICSW
For more than 16 years, Mr. Harris has served as an Adjunct Professor at Rhode Island College teaching in both the BSW and MSW programs. He is also an adjunct professor at Salve Regina University and worked several years for Boston University as the faculty liaison for students placed in Rhode Island. Rick graduated with a Master of Social Work from Rhode Island College and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts (painting & drawing) from the University of Rhode Island. Besides being a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, Rick held a Certified Rehabilitation Counseling for a number of years and is a certified vocational evaluator and job placement specialist.
NASW Foundation Staff Robert C. Arnold, Director Jennifer C. Watt, Assistant Director Bonita Davis, Executive Assistant Kerri Criswell, Foundation Associate
Nikita Lewis, Accounting Manager Sally Cabellon, Accountant I Kenneth Carpenter, NASW Social Work Pioneer® Volunteer
Luisa Lopez, Director Social Workers Across Nations (SWAN)
Tracy Whitaker, Director
Joan Zlotnik, Director
|
||||
Jeane W. Anastas, PhD, LMSW, (New York City Chapter) is professor at New York University’s Silver School of Social Work. She received her BLS in social work from Boston University, her MSW from Boston College, and her PhD from Brandeis University. 
Dr. Lorraine Cole’s career as a leader of national organizations advancing women’s empowerment, racial and gender equity and parity in health and health care has spanned three decades. In February, Dr. Cole was appointed Director of the Office of Women and Minority Inclusion at the US Department of the Treasury. She is the former chief executive officer of the YWCA USA, which was the nation’s oldest and largest women’s organization, founded more than 150 years ago. Prior to the YWCA, Dr. Cole was president and CEO of the Black Women’s Health Imperative, the only national organization dedicated solely to the health of African American women. She previously served as executive director of the National Medical Association, the national professional organization representing African American physicians and the patients they serve. She was executive director of the Minority Health Professions Foundation, which supports biomedical research in schools of medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and veterinary medicine. She also directed the Office of Minority Concerns for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. 
Connie Commander is Owner and President of Commander's Premier Consulting Corporation. Ms. Commander focuses on the advancement of case management and medical management in today’s healthcare environment. Previous experiences have been in health plans, physician networks, and facility based departments located in Texas and Illinois. She currently educates case managers to develop and implement a Collaborative practice of case management and care coordination throughout all healthcare settings. Ms. Commander views Collaborative models, Integrated Healthcare delivery systems, and effective transitions of care as critical components for care coordination. Ms. Commander is a national speaker and author, and mentors others in the field. She participates in multiple advisory committees and professional associations. She has been awarded both the National and Houston Chapter Case Manager of the Year award, and has held several National Board positions with the Case Management Society of America (CMSA), including National President for 2006-07, and Immediate Past President for the National Association of CMSA for 2007-08. 
Elvira Craig de Silva, DSW, ACSW (Wisconsin Chapter), is associate dean of the Communication Skills, Social Sciences and Foreign Languages Department at Waukesha County Technical College in Pewaukee, Wisconsin . She received her DSW from the Universidad del Museo Social Argentino, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and a diploma in Latin American Studies from Rutgers University . Her professional experiences include: teacher (15 years) at the School of Social Welfare, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee ; director of the Industrial Labor Team at Rutgers Mental Health Center, New Jersey ; and coordinator of Education and Research, Social Work Department, VA Hospital, Milwaukee. Dr. Craig de Silva has done extensive work in diversity and intercultural communications and has been actively involved with NASW for the past 20 years including
National President, NASW 2006-2007, president, Wisconsin Chapter (1996-98). Honors include: Partners in Education Award, Women of Distinction Award, Recognition Awards from United Way, School-to-Work Initiative, and State and National Leadership. 
Bernice Harper
was Medical Care Advisor to the Health Care Financing Administration in Washington, DC. Her career has focused on the area of health care and health care policy formulation. She was instrumental in developing long term program policies which highlight continuity-of-care, including community and institutional care, and stresses the importance of psychosocial components. Her commitment to the long term care of those in need has served to demonstrate the best of the best for the profession and for those in need.
She identified and labeled specific stages of coping with death that are important to understand, especially for professionals living through the process with clients. Dr. Harper is co-founder and past-chair of the Foundation for Hospices in Sub-Saharan Africa. She is the author of Death: The Coping Mechanism of the Health Professional. This book serves as a definitive publication on death and the special needs for professionals to cope with their related stress.
She is nationally recognized for her work and is sought after for training workshops and conferences. Dr. Harper was the first recipient of the NASW Foundation Knee/Wittman Outstanding Achievement in Health/Mental Health Policy Award and is an NASW Social Work Pioneer®.
Rick Harris, LICSW has practiced clinically and administratively in the human service field for over thirty years in a variety of settings including child welfare services, mental health organizations, public schools and has served on numerous commissions, statewide committees and advocacy coalitions. Rick has provided consultation in over 15 states in the areas of consumer rights, mental health and rehabilitation services, grant writing and human service system development. He has been the Executive Director of the Rhode Island Chapter since July of 2002. Over the years, Rick has concentrated on numerous advocacy campaigns for programs for the poor; LGBT rights; women’s equality rights; immigrant rights; civil rights; and mental health, and disability issues. 
Gloria C. Ramsey, RN, JD, is a nurse attorney and a nationally recognized expert in bioethics, research ethics, nursing education and practice, and health disparities. She is an Associate Professor in the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences’ (USU) Graduate School of Nursing in Bethesda, Md., and an assistant research professor in the school of medicine department of medical and clinical psychology. She also directs community outreach and information dissemination for the University’s Center for Health Disparities Research and Education. In 2008, she was appointed by Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley as a member of the State Advisory Council on Quality Care at the End of Life, and she was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing and recognized for her expertise in bioethics. Due to her active involvement in bioethics, Ramsey was invited to present at the 9th World Congress of Bioethics, organized on behalf of the International Association of Bioethics and held in Croatia in 2008. More than 800 people representing 72 countries attended the Congress to discuss the challenges across bioethics in the 21st Century. Ramsey presented two papers she authored, “Biomedical Research: A Strategy for Improving Health and Reducing Health Disparities” and “Community-Based Participatory Research: Strengthening Trust as a Means to Reducing Health Disparities”.  |
|
 |