Michael Mallory, MSW, LCSW, Chicago District Chair
Happy Spooky October, Chicago!
Hopefully, all of you are enjoying the beginnings of fall and have started to indulge in some of the delicacies of fall cuisine. Like many of you, I am on the frenzy of double checking my CEUs in anticipation for renewal. That said, I was so pleased to see many of you at our recent in-person event; it is always a pleasure being able to meet you as my fellow colleagues.
As we near our renewal deadline, please remember that there are several CEU requirements that may be a little tricky to obtain. Therefore, our upcoming virtual conference will off several of these CEUs. I highly recommend that you look at the agenda and consider attending! Feel free to click here to read more and register,
Also, I am very pleased to announce that our Chapter Awards committee has selected the individuals being honored for their work in Illinois that promotes social justice and social change with and on behalf of the people and communities they serve. Awardees are as follows:
Lifetime Achievement Awardee Thomas A. Kmetko, LCSW
Social Worker of the Year Chelsea Laliberte Barnes, LSW
Emerging Social Work Leader Leyda M. Garcia-Greenawalt, LSW, MSW
Public Citizen of the Year Raquel Rosendo
Please take a moment to read more about our Chapter Award recipients. [Click ME to read]
Thank you all for your continued dedication to our work. I wish you all a safe and happy October.
Humbly yours,
Michael
Advocacy / Legislative Updates:
Please see our current updates HERE.
Licensure Renewal Updates
IDFPR removes in-person CE requirement! While this is exciting it is important to remember that there are other new requirements for this renewal period. For more information click HERE.
NASW Chapter Conference:
This year’s conference will be virtual and joined with the North Dakota and Nevada chapters. As mentioned above, there are quite a few critical CE opportunities being offered. For more information and to register please click here.
Student Loan Forgiveness:
While we did not receive a broader reaching loan forgiveness opportunity there have been other efforts from our government leaders to address student loan debt in the nation. That said, the implementation of the SAVE repayment plan is a way that the government is attempting to address student loan debt. Please review the student aid website for further information. Click here.
For those of you working in community mental health, there is a wonderful opportunity being provided through the Community Behavioral Health Care Professional loan repayment program. This offers a partial repayment for LCSW professionals working in this type of setting. For more information please read our story here.