Veterans Mental Health Training Initiative (VMHTI)

The Veterans Mental Health Training Initiative (VMHTI) is a multi-year comprehensive training project developed by the National Association of Social Workers – New York State Chapter (NASW-NYS), aimed at increasing the number of community health and mental health professionals clinically trained in the assessment and treatment of mental health issues specific to veterans and their families. VMHTI is supported by a grant from the New York State Legislature as part of its efforts to address the unmet mental health needs of returning Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans and their families.

Each VMHTI training cycle consists of two regional conferences, which are free to attend and approved for continuing education credits for New York State physicians, licensed social workers, mental health counselors, and marriage and family therapists. In addition to the regional conferences, VMHTI sponsors local programming to further increase the knowledge base of professionals working with military service members and their families across the state.

For the 2020 VMHTI program year, NASW-NYS will be providing live in-person individual trainings, conferences with multiple breakout workshops, online live webinars, and a special edition VMHTI Newsletter with self study CE opportunities.

NASW-NYS Hiring for a Policy Coordinator!

The Policy Coordinator is responsible for putting the mission of social work into action through implementation of the Chapter Advocacy Agenda. Pursuit of theChapter Advocacy Agenda is achieved through lobbying on behalf of the Chapter at the NYS Legislature, government agencies, and other organizations; finding creative sources of funding for professional development opportunities as they relate to the legislative landscape for members; and staffing and assisting the Political Action for Candidate Election committee.

NASW-NYS is an equal opportunity employer, committed to a policy of equal opportunity and non-discrimination. Applicants from diverse communities are encouraged to apply.
To apply, send your resume with cover letter to info.naswnys@socialworkers.org with subject line ‘Policy Coordinator’.

NASW-NYS Nomination Form for 2020 Chapter Election

The Nominations & Leadership Committee uses this information to establish the preliminary slate for elected governance positions and appointments to committees and task forces. You may nominate yourself or another colleague. All nominees must be a member in good standing of the NASW-NYS Chapter. **Nominees will also be asked to complete a Biographical Fact Sheet to be considered for selection.

Click Here To Nominate
Click Here for All Position Descriptions

NASW-NYS Names Samantha Fletcher MSW, Ph.D. as New Executive Director

It is with great pleasure that the Board of Directors of NASW-NYS announces the hiring of our new Executive Director, Samantha Fletcher, PhD, MSW.

We are excited that such a perfect candidate emerged from our intensive search.

Samantha has all the attributes to be an inspiring and strong leader for the Chapter for a long time. You will be hearing more in the weeks to come about opportunities to meet our future new ED. Please join me in welcoming Samantha to what I believe is the beginning of a highly successful partnership.

Sincerely,
Marcia Schwartzman Levy, LCSW-R
President, NASW-NYS

Professional Bio

Samantha Fletcher earned a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of Tulsa (2000), a Master’s degree in Social Work (2014) and a Ph.D. (2018) from the University at Albany School of Social Welfare. Prior to her tenure at the University at Albany, she worked for over 15 years in human services including a family law firm, a crisis pregnancy center, an Islamic school, as well as a personal training business.

While pursuing her Ph.D., Samantha served as the project coordinator of a peer support program for veterans, funded by the Joseph P. Dwyer Statewide Veteran Peer Support Program (Dwyer Program). She supervised the program development, implementation, and evaluation of 16 non-profit county programs focused on peer-delivered services (e.g., individual mentoring, support groups, volunteerism, community education, and referral to veteran-focused services). As the senior research assistant, Samantha implemented a mixed methods study evaluating the Dwyer Program in 11 New York counties. She also organized a yearly conference for key stakeholders in each county and senate staff featuring nationally recognized veterans and, along with the Principal Investigator of the project, disseminated the findings of their evaluation to New York State Senate and at multiple national Social Work conferences.

After earning her Ph.D., Samantha served as the Assistant Dean of Academic Programs and the Director of Admissions in the School of Social Welfare at the University at Albany. She worked with a diverse team of administrators and faculty to implement quality educational programming for social work students at all levels (BA, MSW, and Ph.D.). In addition to enacting New York State and the Council on Social Work Education mandates for the School, a special emphasis of her work was to deepen and expand the School’s focus on social justice.

Samantha partnered with the Assistant Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to implement a social justice group for students, faculty, and staff called “The Gathering;” this endeavor increased awareness of social injustice for all members of the community and instantiated an on-going method for critically examining inequality at micro-, meso-, and macro-levels of analysis. The approach highlighted the inclusion of community activists and other experts who worked with participants to create a safe, active, and reflective environment. Group members explore personal assumptions/biases, values, and beliefs via exercises and activities that ultimately provide a sense of responsibility about becoming a change agent. This work has been particularly useful for helping aspiring social workers make inclusiveness a habit in their practice as well as in their everyday lives.

Samantha’s career has highlighted social activism as a key area of research and practice. Her interest in injustice of all kinds led her to address the lived experiences of lifelong social activists as part of an independent investigation. Via multiple interviews with older adults who identify as liberal social activists, she analyzed their narratives, as well as historical documents including newspaper articles, flyers, diaries, meeting minutes, and the like to better understand how these seasoned activists remained motivated, for decades, to fight for policy and practical change at local, state, and national levels. The participants inspired Samantha to follow in their footsteps by remaining vigilant, determined, and thoughtful about the socio-political context in which social movements begin. In this new position, Samantha looks forward to supporting and learning from the diverse members of NASW NYS, promoting the profession and advocating for policy change to create a safe, inclusive, and just society.

Personal Bio

Samantha was born and lived in Oklahoma until she moved to the Capital District of New York in 2004. She is a member of the Cherokee Nation and strongly embraces native culture. Samantha has been married to her partner for over 20 years. During the first few years of marriage, they were therapeutic foster parents to five children between the ages of 7 and 14. Samantha and her husband chose to become parents through adoption. They have three children Halle, 16, Seth, 18, and Tyler, 19. In her spare time, Samantha enjoys spending time with her family and friends, reading, exercising, and experiencing diverse cultures.

You can reach NASW-NYS Executive Director Samantha Fletcher, Ph.D., MSW, at sfletcher.naswnys@socialworkers.org or by calling the NASW-NYS Chapter at 518-463-4741.

NASW-NYS Welcomes Interim Executive Director Bonita Sanchez, MSW


Bonita Sanchez, MSW has been named Interim Executive Director for NASW-NYS. 

The National Association of Social Workers – New York State Chapter (NASW-NYS) Board of Directors is pleased to announce Bonita Sanchez, MSW as Interim Executive Director of NASW-NYS. We are confident Bonita will provide stable leadership during this time of transition and keep us on this amazing path we have solidified until a new Executive Director is named.

Bonita has been an active member of NASW for nearly four decades. She has held several leadership positions at the state and national level, including Treasurer (1982–1992), Vice President (2000-2002), and Regional Representative (2018-2019) for the NASW-NYS Chapter and served on the NASW National Legal Defense Trust Fund (1989-1993). Additionally, she has served on various NASW-NYS Chapter committees, most recently as the Chair of the Committee on Nominations and Leadership Identification (2012-2018).

Previously, Bonita worked in the field of developmental disabilities and children and families for 12 years before becoming a social work educator in the 1980s – first at Siena College and later as Assistant Dean and Director of Field Education at the University at Albany’s School of Social Welfare, where she helped qualify over 10,000 social work students at the university for 28 years before retiring in 2011. She later assumed the role of Field Liaison for the School of Social Welfare – a position she continues to hold today. For her outstanding contributions to the field of social work, Bonita was awarded the 2018 NASW-NYS Lifetime Achievement Award.

Bonita will partner with the NASW-NYS Board of Directors on organizational planning and the Executive Director search, as well as oversee staff operations. Our Chapter remains committed to serving our members at the highest standards and hosting a successful conference this June.

Please join me in welcoming Bonita Sanchez!

Sincerely,

Marcia Schwartzman Levy, LCSW-R
President, NASW-NYS


You can reach NASW-NYS Interim Executive Director Bonita Sanchez, MSW, at bsanchez.naswnys@socialworkers.org or by calling NASW-NYS at 518-463-4741. 

Announcement of the 2019 Preliminary Election Slate

 

The New York State Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers is pleased to announce the candidacy of the following members for the positions indicated. The Committee on Nominations and Leadership Identification (CNLI) has certified that the slate meets all the requirements of the bylaws.

Members wishing to have their name added to the ballot by petition have 30 days from the date of this announcement (Friday, May 3, 2019) to submit a petition to the NASW-NYS Chapter’s Committee on Nominations and Leadership Identification (CNLI) at info.naswnys@socialworkers.org

For a list of all NASW-NYS Board and Leadership positions, please click here.

Division membership data and official petition form(s) are available by request through the NASW-NYS Chapter. Please submit any questions about the petition process or election form requests to Romel Wilson, LMSW, Member Relations Specialist at rwilson.naswnys@socialworkers.org

 

Visit the 2019 Chapter Election Website
 


 

2019 preliminary slate

 

 

 

 

Visit the 2019 Chapter Election Website