TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Dr. Michael Parker, assistant professor in the School of Social Work at The University of Alabama, has been selected as one of 10 outstanding social work faculty scholars by The John A. Hartford Foundation of New York City and The Gerontological Society of America.
During the next two years, Parker, also an adjunct assistant professor of gerontology and geriatric medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, will participate in a program to improve the well being of older adults by strengthening geriatric social work. As part of the program, Parker will be working with the U.S. Army to study long-distance caregiving among Army officers.
“The University is very proud of this honor earned by Dr. Parker and his important research in the ever-growing area of aging research,” said Dr. Nancy Barrett, UA provost and vice president for academic affairs.
The prestigious Hartford Geriatric Social Work Faculty Scholars Program is one of four programs funded as part of The John A. Hartford Foundation Inc. initiative to enhance the capacity of social work education to meet the needs of the nation’s older adults. The Program will be administered by the Gerontological Society of America, the national organization of professionals in aging.
“We are very happy to see the positive results of Dr. Parker’s hard work. This is just another indicator of the strong faculty we have in the School of Social Work whose emphasis is on social work and gerontology,” said Dr. Ike Adams, dean of the UA School of Social Work.
The Hartford Foundation Inc. of New York City is a private philanthropy established in 1929 by John A. Hartford, who was chief executive of the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company. Nearly all of the Foundation’s grants are directed to its Aging and Health Program, which addresses two major areas: Academic Geriatrics and Training; and Integrating and Improving Services for Elders.
“My selection by the distinguished review panel of researchers has helped confirm the rightness of my decision to leave a successful military career and to devote the balance of my life to the welfare of seniors and their families,” said Parker who served for 20 years with the U.S. Army Medical Department.
“I am extremely honored and excited about this national awards for myself and for The University of Alabama. We have an abundance of extremely talented gerontologists at UA, and I look forward to developing and enhancing existing partnerships with them in addressing the needs of seniors in Alabama and our nation,” Parker said.
Parker retired as a lieutenant colonel after 20 years of active service with the U.S. Army Medical Department, and he continues to serve as a part-time research scientist with the U.S. Army Physical Fitness Research Institute, U.S. Army War College, in Carlisle, Pa.
He also serves as a primary investigator for Department of Defense-funded research with senior leaders related to long distance parent care, health promotion, successful aging and spirituality. Parker is a co-investigator on a National Institute on Aging longitudinal study of mobility and health among seniors in Alabama. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in psychology from Auburn University and his doctorate in social work from The University of Alabama.
The University of Alabama School of Social Work was named one of the top 55 social work graduate programs in the country by U.S. News and World Report, spring 2000. Established in 1965, it is the state’s only comprehensive social work program of its type offering bachelors, master’s and Ph.D. degrees. The school’s programs benefit citizens in all of Alabama’s 67 counties, due to its strong partnership with Alabama’s public social agencies.
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Suzanne Dowling, 205/348-8324