Ruth Gerritsen-McKane, PhD, LCSW

Dr. Gerritsen-McKane has been actively engaged in social work for 20+ years, most of that time has been spent in academia in the area of field education.  Her passion for field education was cemented when her PhD research culminated in developing a field education model for a founding BSW program at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi, Ghana.

She is passionate about global social work and has conducted research in Argentina, Ghana, Morocco, Mozambique, Haiti, Japan and China, where she was a visiting professor at Wuhan University of Technology.  Further she mentored students in their research, while completing their field education in Mexico, Guatemala, Jordan, South Korea, Germany, Ghana, Batswana, Peru, and Austria.

She has presented in over 60 conferences world-wide and published several articles with co-authors.

Dr. Gerritsen-McKane was privileged to complete a post-doctoral certification in Global Mental Health: Trauma and Recover through Harvard University’s Program in Refugee Trauma.  One of her takeaways from this opportunity was the reality that there is nothing happening in the world that is not happening here in the United States.  Consequently, we are much more alike than we are different.  Her philosophy immediately found companionship with Regis College as she studied the Core Values of the Sisters of St. Joseph, particularly “Love and service of the Dear Neighbor without distinction.”

Interview: Dr. Gerritsen-McKane, MSW Field Director and Associate Professor, talks about how her life lead her down the path to social work, what she loves about the social work profession, and her advice for aspiring social workers. Read More