Social Work Students Organize for Katrina Victims

Students Jeff Sinott, Dawn Tol, Fukiko Miyagi, Catalina Hope, Takako Radom, and Agnes Hiyek join faculty members Amy Okamura, Charlene Letourneau and Roberta Osuyos at the fundraising event.

The School of Social Work Student Social Action Committee brought the flavor of New Orleans to Kensington last October at a benefit for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Approximately 130 students, faculty and friends came together to raise over $4,400, which was donated to Habitat for Humanity to help rebuild New Orleans.

Committee president Jeff Sinott and vice president Dawn Tol organized the event, which offered hors d'oeuvres and music from Theo & the Zydeco Patrol, with the help of Kensington homeowners Dennis Frisman and Bob Lauri. Mark Peterson, Wayne Murphy, the Asian and Pacific Island Student Association and others were instrumental in organizing and underwriting the event.

School of Social Work Fights Substance Abuse with Success

As the School of Social Work continues to address society's pressing issues, new and long-standing substance abuse initiatives are providing solutions for an age-old problem. Listed below are several unique and innovative ways that SDSU is collaborating with the local community to make a difference.

Driving Under the Influence Program Sets a High Standard

One of the largest such centers in the state, the Driving Under the Influence Program (DUIP) has been recognized for its excellence by the State Department of Alcohol and Drugs. Headed up by Georgi DiStefano, L.C.S.W., and located in Kearny Mesa, the DUIP provides services to over two thousand offenders per month. It has set standards for clinical effectiveness by training social workers to recognize high-risk individuals who may need intervention and treatment beyond the program. The DUIP is self-supporting and channels profits back to the university.

Research Grant Awarded to School of Social Work Professor

John D. Clapp, Ph.D., was awarded a $1.5 million grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism for a study on an ever-timely issue: reducing risk in college drinking environments. The first phase of the study examines the environments where students drink. The second phase will seek to design environmental interventions to address the problems and risks related to alcohol. In the third phase, these interventions will be tested in the students' drinking environments.

Curriculum and Programs Change Lives

The Center on Substance Abuse, a part of the School of Social Work and founded in 1985, supports multiple programs and courses that educate students on drug and alcohol issues. SPAN, a program bridging the gap from addict to addiction counselor, has certified over three hundred students who have gone on to careers in counseling and social work. Student-to-Student, the university's first comprehensive drug and alcohol prevention program, helps students create awareness among their peers of the negative effects of drug and alcohol abuse; it now functions as a campus-wide student organization. What's more, curriculum continues to be developed that educates students and professionals in substance abuse recognition, intervention and treatment.