Healthcare Bill Divides Friends?

I WOULDN'T BELIEVE IT IF IT HADN'T HAPPENED TO ME. Today I was snubbed by a "friend" who isn't in favor of the health care bill! I guess he doesn't like my politics--and you know--I don't like his either, but I treated him as I always do, with a hug and a smile. But I could tell he was holding my viewpoint against me.

Gone are the days when I hold in my thoughts, beliefs, values, ideas to make someone like me. Getting this Master's degree has changed me. Hallelujah!

~Ms. T. J.

Three Days Left

WHERE DID YOU GO THIS SPRING BREAK? The beach? The mountains? Home to see your family? Did you stay at school and catch up with your work? Whatever you did and wherever you went, I hope you had a great time.

Me? Oh, I've been in bed. Alone. With the flu. Yep. My husband had it, too. We decided we'd rest better apart. That coughing can really cut into hard-won slumber.

Homework? Nope. Didn't have any focusing abilities. I tried. I even started a power point presentation I need to give in a couple weeks. I think I set up three slides.

Reading? Here and there--in between feverish, sleepless hours tangled up in the sheets.

Did I bathe? Now you are getting personal! Well, um, perhaps I splashed some water on my face and brushed my teeth.

Drink a lot of fluids? Yup.

Eat? Not very much. Funny how the appetite can vanish when a bit of nourishment would do a world of good.

See the light of day? Nope. Fortunately it was dreary and chilly most of the time--okay so maybe the sun came out, but hey, if a tree drops in the forest...you know the story--I wasn't there to see it, so hey, did it shine?

Talk to anybody? Lucky for me, I have persistent, loving friends. So I didn't isolate as badly as I could have, given the hibernation-type behavior I have been exhibiting. One dear friend even drove me to my massage therapist's home so I could get some reflexology. I believe it made a difference. The massage, and the company of my friend.

Feeling better? Yep. Drove my car today. Went to the store to get some more orange juice. Took the dog around the block. The sun was shining and the temp was in the high 60s!

Three days of break left? Hurray!

I am grateful for my usual state of good health. I shall not take it for granted for a long time!

~Ms. T. J.

The Final Spring Break

I CAN'T BELIEVE IT: I am sick during spring break! My husband was really sick last week and despite all my preventive efforts, I am now down with a cold, too.

Is the universe trying to slow me down? Is it, like Carolyn says, normal for the body to hang on when you need it to, and let go when you don't? I am definitely paraphrasing and hopefully I got it right.

I have been doing a lot of sleeping, something I am certain I need. The house is so quiet and peaceful. I believe I need that, too. My energy level is so low, I can't muster up enough of it to do much of anything except, now and then, get on the computer, and lay in bed reading short stories by Dorothy Parker.

As I begin to feel better, I plan to finish my child welfare training, get a massage, have lunch with friends, and maybe take a short trip to a nearby island. Until then, I'll be laying low, drinking lots of fluids, and getting through it.

~Ms. T. J.

My Social Work Philosophy

SOUNDS PRETTY HEADY, EH? Pondering, and stating, my social work philosophy is Part III of a three-part assignment in my Capstone course, Integrative Seminar.

In Part I, we wrote about our "espoused theory," (our values and assumptions, and what we think we want to do); in Part II, our "theories in use," (are we actually doing what we think we are doing?); and now, for Part III, we must scrutinize the first two assignments, and choose the areas of our practice that we want to work on to bring them more into agreement with our espoused practice theories, and also consider whether there are parts that we'd like to drop--or tweak--based on the assessment of our work.

A clear statement of our practice philosophy, along with the findings from Assignment I and II will be used to propose a plan for our professional development. We are allowed to use music, art and poetry to help us express our ideas.

Sounds cool, challenging, exciting, and intense--all rolled into one final assignment for the class (yes, I wrote final assignment--big smiles all around). It's due mid-April, so I have some time to let the ideas marinate...

~Ms. T. J.

The Two-Month Countdown is On!

WHEN I LOOKED AT TODAY'S DATE, I knew there was something significant about it. Hmm... March 8--what could it be? Then I realized that it is exactly two months from graduation day! May 8, 2010 is truly just around the corner. We passed the half-way point of the semester last week, completed our mid-terms, and we are definitely on the downhill slide!

I was having coffee with a friend today and I shared that now that graduation is so close, I am having many feelings. I am naturally a bit nervous, and I have a lot of faith in the future. The sky is the limit! I know that I can do many things with this degree, including, and not limited to, child welfare.

As a Title-IV E grant recipient, I still have the option to opt out and pay back the grant that covered my tuition and books. My plan, since the very beginning, has been to pay back the grant with my employment at a child welfare agency.

A friend of mine is chief of surgery at a local hospital in my city and, before I started school, I consulted with him about the child welfare idea. He encouraged me to apply for the Title-IV E grant, and he likened the child welfare agency to the "bowels" of big city hospitals where he completed his residency in New York--where they get the chance to treat the "sickest of the sick." He said the state agencies would be the best training grounds for me, because I would be working on the toughest cases in child welfare.

I am excited about it. I believe I have something to offer, and I want to help. There have been days when I have left my internship deeply saddened and disturbed by the behavior of human beings--and the ways they maltreat children. And, I have not wanted to leave when it was time to go because I was so impassioned about the work.

In a mere two months, I will be a M. S. W., and qualified to take a job as a clinician. It seems hard to imagine, yet totally real! And, what a journey it has been so far.

~Ms. T. J.

It's After 2 AM

I AM STILL UP working on a paper.

And, these are the days and nights I will remember--with fondness, relief that they are over, and with a sense of gratitude that I could pull this off.

A friend of mine sent me a text in the midst of mid-terms a couple of weeks ago asking if I could go walking. I sent back a short message letting her know it was crunch time, and that spring break was right around the corner so we could get together then.

She responded: You could just quit school. (Belly laughs all around.)

Late last night, my classmates and I were sending Facebook emails back and forth about our Capstone class papers:
C wrote: I have one critical incident, two references and 6 pages .
I wrote: I have two critical incidents, two references and 6.5 pages.
L responded: One incident, one page, no citations ... priceless.

I laughed out loud.

Either this stuff is really funny or I am deliriously tired. I'm in a place where it's a big adventure, or it's just not worth it at all.

I like this place.

~Ms. T. J.

Urgent Call to Action in Georgia: Please Help

This is an URGENT CALL TO ACTION

Let's JAM UP the telephone lines! Please help today. The talking points are provided below and the Board of Regents telephone numbers are just below them.

Please do whatever you can--nothing more, nothing less

WRITE OR CALL:
Dalton State College President
Chancellor
BOARD OF REGENTS MEMBERS

Dalton State College Social Work Program in Jeopardy

Budget Cuts Wide and Deep

If you have been following the news, the Board of Regents has been asked to cut over $265 MILLION out of the higher education budget. One immediate effect of this could be the loss of the social work program at Dalton State College. Unlike other state budget entities, the Board of Regents is given a “lump sum” of money. Cuts to this money are determined first by the President of the college/university and then by the Board of Regents. Our legislators do not have a hand in making these cuts. Thus, our FIRST priority is to write, call and email the Presidents, Chancellor and the Board of Regents.

As NASW-GA members, please join your Board and Legislative Committee in advocating against these cuts with the President of Dalton State University, the Chancellor and the Board of Regents. Writing to the other Presidents of Georgia’s Colleges and Universities would be helpful, but not as urgent.

Enough is enough! The very future of our State is at stake. As the dean at DSC said, “Let them know that while the cost of education is significant, the cost of ignorance is much greater.”

Specific messages about cuts to social work programs can include:

1) Social work education is a priority need for the future.

Backup:

The 2006 Task Force on Health Professions Education published by the Board of Regents cited Clinical Social Work as the second most needed profession to meet the health care needs of Georgians and requires a priority focus. The report reads: “Limited resources and instructional capacity require that priority for the next five years be focused on those professions most in jeopardy. The Task Force has identified the following professions, in priority order, as the most fragile and in need of attention over the near term.”

The number one priority is nursing; number two is clinical social work (tied with clinical psychology)!

2) Georgia ’s per capita ratio of social workers per 100K population is among of the 5 lowest in the Nation.

3) More professional social workers are needed in Georgia ! The number of social workers in Georgia is less than half of the average of all the states!

4) Professional social workers are needed to meet the needs of Georgians in all areas: mental health, health, schools, businesses, nursing facilities, ETC.

Please add any information or example you have about the need for additional social workers, thus social work education!

Below please find contact information for all of those who need to hear from the social work profession:

President, Dalton State College

John O. Schwenn
President, Dalton State College
Westcott Building
650 College Drive
Dalton, GA 30720
706.272.4438
jschwenn@daltonstate.edu

Chancellor, University System of Georgia
Erroll B. Davis Jr., Chancellor
Office of the Chancellor
Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia
Suite 7025
270 Washington Street, SW
Atlanta, GA 30334
office: 404-656-2202
fax: 404-657-6979
email: chancellor@usg.edu

Board of Regents: 18 total members
If you can only write a few letters or make a few calls, make they mean more by choosing Board members who live closest to you!

Kenneth R. Bernard, Jr.
Sherrod & Bernard
P.O. Box 1154
Douglasville, GA 30133
Phone: (770) 920-8350
Fax: (770) 920-8970

James “Jim” A. Bishop
The Bishop Law Firm
777 Gloucester St., Ste. 401
Brunswick, GA 31520
Phone: (912) 264-2390
Fax: (912) 264-5859

Frederick E. Cooper
P.O. Box 52367
Atlanta, GA 30355
Phone: (404) 467-0905

Larry R. Ellis
Ellis Services & Solutions Enterprises, LLC.
3835 Presidential Parkway, Suite 118
Atlanta, GA 30340
Phone: (770) 458-3773

Robert “Bob” F. Hatcher (Chair)
MidCountry Financial Corp.
201 Second St. , Ste. 950
Macon, GA 31201
Phone: (478) 746-8222
Fax: (478) 746-8005

Felton Jenkins
800 Crawford St.
Madison, GA 30650
Phone: (706) 342-3564
Fax: (706) 342-3564

W. Mansfield Jennings , Jr.
ComSouth Corporation
250 Broad St.
Hawkinsville, GA 31036
Phone: (478) 783-4001
Fax: (478) 783-4620

James R. Jolly
347 Ivey Gate Ridge #2
Dalton, GA 30720
Phone: (706) 226-2317
Fax: (706) 275-4433

Donald M. Leebern, Jr.
Georgia Crown Distributing Co.
P.O. Box 308
McDonough, GA 30253-0308
Phone: (770) 302-3000
Fax: (770) 302-3109

William “Dink” H. NeSmith, Jr.
Community Newspapers, Inc.
297 Prince Avenue Suite 14
Athens, GA 30601
Phone: (706) 548-0010
Fax: (706) 548-0808

Doreen Stiles Poitevint
2001 Twin Lakes Dr.
Bainbridge , GA 39819
Phone: (229) 246-8577
Fax: (229) 248-1922

Willis J. Potts, Jr. (Vice Chair)
2614 Horseleg Creek Rd., SW
Rome, GA 30165
Phone: (706) 802-1313
Fax: (706) 802-1313

Wanda Yancey Rodwell
5628 Silver Ridge Dr.
Stone Mountain , GA 30087
Phone: (770) 879-5700
Fax: (404) 598-1068

Kessel Stelling, Jr.
Bank of North Georgia
8025 Westside Parkway
Alpharetta , GA 30004
Phone: (770) 751-4778
Fax: (770) 754-9950

Benjamin “Ben” J. Tarbutton, III
Sandersville Railroad
206 North Smith St .
Sandersville , GA 31082
Phone: (478) 552-5151 x208
Fax: (478) 552-1118

Richard L. Tucker
Arlington Capital LLC
One Sugarloaf Centre, 1960 Satellite Blvd, Suite 3500
Duluth , GA 30097
Phone: (404) 463-0592
Fax: (404) 657-7913

Allan Vigil
Allan Vigil Ford
P.O. Box 100.001
Morrow, GA 30260
Phone: (678) 364-3673
Fax: (678) 364-3947

PLEASE HELP IF YOU CAN! Thank you.

This e-mail is reprinted with permission from: Allison S. Huppmann, Member Services Coordinator, National Association of Social Workers Georgia Chapter in Atlanta, GA