Mass. Chapter of NASW Honors Kathy Kuhn

The National Association of Social Workers, Massachusetts Chapter (NASW-MA), has honored Kathy Kuhn with the 2011 Greatest Contribution to Social Work Practice Award.  Kuhn, a School of Social Work graduate and Director of Workforce Development at the School’s Institute for Geriatric Social Work (IGSW), will receive the award at the 39th Annual Chapter Awards Ceremony at the Sheraton Framingham Hotel & Conference Center in Framingham, Mass. on Tuesday, March 29, 2011.

According to NASW-MA, the Greatest Contribution to Social Work Practice Award is awarded to a NASW member who has made a significant contribution to Social Work practice. The contribution may include work with individuals, couples, families and groups or in the area of supervision, consultation, research, administration or writing.

“This award has a great deal to do with the School of Social Work,” said Kuhn. “It was here that I began my career working with older adults and am now back creating training in aging. It feels like I have come full circle.”

Kuhn joined IGSW in 2004.  Now serving as Director of Workforce Development, she has worked to build IGSW’s online capability and helped create a catalog of more than 30 online courses. Her current focus is on developing tools for organizations that enhance the transfer of learning, including the creation of IGSW’s Workforce Development Toolkit.  Ms. Kuhn is also a lecturer at the School of Social Work.

Prior to Boston University, Kuhn was Clinical Director of the Geriatric Mental Health and Linguistic Outreach Program at Kit Clark Senior Services in Boston, and served as Director of Social Services and Continuing Care at Marlborough Hospital. Active in several advocacy efforts to improve the provision of mental health services to older adults, Kuhn serves on the statewide steering committee of the Massachusetts Aging and Mental Health Coalition and the Elder Mental Health Planning Collaborative.

-Mackenzie Kreitler