Indian-American awarded prestigious Social Worker Award

Washington, July 9 (UNI) Renowned social worker Dr Manoj Pardasani of Indiana University has been honoured with the prestigious 2006 Regional Social Worker of the Year Award.

At a ceremony held in Highland, Indiana, Pardasani was lauded for his service in diverse fields ranging from senior citizens' centers, group homes for the disabled and HIV/AIDs related activities.

Dr Pardasani began his career in social work as a teenager in Mumbai. He organised a group of friends to volunteer their time and resources and created a literacy programme for homeless and/or orphaned children.

The programme expanded rapidly and in a few years they served nearly a hundred children utilizing the services of 250 volunteers.

His calling brought him to the Wurzweiler School of Social Work (New York) from where he obtained his Masters and Doctoral degrees in Social Work. He has been an active member of NASW since 1996.

For the last 10 years, he has been working as a social worker in diverse fields, settings up senior citizens' centers, group homes for the developmentally delayed, community mental health centers and homelessness/HIV/AIDS-related social services. His doctoral dissertation evaluated the impact of senior citizen center participation and programming on the lives of the elderly and was awarded the 2004 Outstanding Research Award by the National Council on Aging.

Last year, Pardasani was appointed as an Assistant Professor in the Division of Social Work at Indiana University Northwest (IUN).

Since then, he has immersed himself in volunteering and serving in the local community. He has shared his expertise and skills to assist various community organizations, social service agencies and social workers in Northwest Indiana state.

Pardasani was the co-author of a successful grant application that yielded 1.6 million dollar in federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding to provide housing opportunities for HIV-positive individuals and families in Northwest Indiana.

He has helped create a Programme Manual for Brothers Uplifting Brothers Inc. He has also done a lot of research on aging and providing resources for the elderly. He also created a Manual and Resource Directory for Caregivers and their loved ones for the NWI Area Agency on Aging (in collaboration with five MSW students).

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