The National Association of Social Workers Foundation Honors Janet Williams, MS, DSW with the 2005 Knee/Wittman Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award

WASHINGTON —The National Association of Social Workers Foundation is pleased to announce that Janet Williams, MS, DSW has been awarded the Knee/Wittman Lifetime Achievement Award for her dedication and commitment to mental health services research and to bridging social work research and practice.

The Knee/Wittman Awards are given to recognize individuals who are models of excellence and have made significant contributions in the field of health and mental health. The Knee/Wittman Award Program was established to recognize those who represent the values, ethics and approaches exemplified by two dedicated social work pioneers, Ruth Knee and Milton Wittman.  The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to a professional social worker who has made exemplary contributions in health and mental health practice.

Since the beginning of her career, Dr. Williams has been a Research Scientist at the New York State Psychiatric Institute and Deputy Chief of the Biometrics Research Department. She is also a Professor of Clinical Psychiatric Social Work in the Departments of Psychiatry and Neurology at Columbia University .

Through her lengthy career, she has applied her research to social work practice. Since 1975, she helped lead the development of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manuals, one of the most widely used and taught diagnostic tools in social work education.

Dr. Williams co-edited a groundbreaking and widely used book entitled Advances in Mental Health Research: Implications for Practice. In 1994, she founded the Society for Social Work and Research, a group advocating for the social work academic community.

In 1999, Dr. Williams was inducted into the Columbia University School of Social Work Hall of Fame.

It is with great honor that the NASW Foundation presents Dr. Williams with this award.

For more information about the award, or to interview Dr. Williams, please contact the NASW Communications Department at 202-336-8228 or media@naswdc.org

The National Association of Social Workers Foundation, in Washington , DC , focuses on enhancing the well-being of individuals, families, and communities through the advancement of social work practice.