Social work professor appointed to Asian American health coalition

Dr. Mieko K. Smith, a professor in the School of Social Work at The University of Akron, was elected in June to the executive committee of the Ohio Asian American Health Coalition.

Created in 2002, the coalition promotes the health and well-being of Ohio's Asian-American population through community research, education and advocacy. Members hail from public policy, academia, medical, ethnic- and faith-based community groups, professional organizations, and health and human services fields.

Active in community health efforts

Smith was also recently appointed to the advisory board of the Akron Health Department's Office of Minority Health. She also serves on the national advisory council of the Asian and Pacific Islander National Cancer Survivors Network as well on the board of the Professional Association of Social Workers in HIV and AIDS.

A resident of Beachwood, Ohio, Smith joined the UA School of Social Work in 2009. Prior to that, she was a social work professor at Cleveland State University.

A noted program evaluator, she recently evaluated the breast and cervical cancer prevention program for Vietnamese, Cambodian and Laotian immigrant women offered by the Asian Services In Action, Inc., and presented her findings at the American Public Health Association's 2010 conference. She is also an evaluator of the Ohio Asian American Health Coalition's Health Through Action project, and has evaluated the Healthy Eating and Active Living project implemented in Cleveland's Ward One with funding from Kaiser Permanente.

Focus on all aspects of family health

Smith has directed several major projects, including vocational rehabilitation research funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research and a family-strengthening program for families of children with severe emotional disturbances funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Her publications include two books about child mental health and several journal articles and book chapters about mental health, family and children, and program evaluation.

The School of Social Work at The University of Akron offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs that are fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. For more information, call 330-972-5275 or visit the School of Social Work.

Media contact: Cyndee Snider, 330-972-5196 or cyndee@.uakron.edu.