RENO - Following a nationwide search, the University of Nevada, Reno is pleased to welcome Goutham M. Menon as its new director of the School of Social Work.
Menon, who comes to Nevada from the University of Texas at San Antonio, said Nevada's social work program has been doing well, with a stable student population and faculty, and will offer him the opportunity to build on that base.
"We are looking to expand access to students across the state, so this move is a good fit for me," Menon said. "Our faculty is positive and willing to explore and develop these opportunities."
According to Menon, the social work workforce has historically been low in Nevada. Working in consultation with faculty, he intends to grow that pool of new professionals by reaching out to prospective students through traditional classroom settings for the School of Social Work's undergraduate and graduate degree programs, and expanding its offerings of online and hybrid degrees.
The undergraduate social work degree currently offers an online program that entails students doing three years at a Nevada community college, followed by a one-year distance online course at the University.
"We'd like to translate this program to our master's degree because there is a need for people with a master's degree in social work in the health and human services professional. And this will increase as our health care environment changes," Menon said.
In addition to growing the student population within his school and reaching out to partner more with local agencies, Menon will immerse himself in his passion for research, which focuses on the use of technology in the field of health and human services.
Distance education, or using technology to reach rural and underserved populations, will also be at the top of his list for projects to continue and further enhance while he is here. He will reach out to the University of Nevada School of Medicine to add his faculty's social work expertise to its telemedicine and Project ECHO outreach services to rural patients and providers.
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