HAPPENINGS
WINKLEMAN MEMORIAL LECTURE 2020 On February 18, the School of Social Work held the annual Leon and Josephine Winkelman Memorial Lecture. The annual Winkelman Lecture has become a leading forum on the U-M campus for presenting emerging knowledge in gerontology from the social sciences and the health science professions. The annual Winkelman Lecture was established by an endowed gift from the Winkelman brothers—Stanley J., John, Frederick R. and Henry R.—as a memorial to their parents, Leon and Josephine Winkelman. In 1928, Leon Winkelman co-founded the Winkelman department stores in Detroit, and, even through the time of the Detroit riots in 1967, he stood by the city and its African American population. His philanthropy advanced social justice issues. Dean Lynn Videka also made special mention of Josephine Winkelman, an early graduate of the U-M social work program (when it was based in Detroit) and a social worker alongside Jane Addams at Chicago’s Hull House. The theme for the 2020 Winkelman Lecture was “Brave New Age of Social Relations.” The keynote was delivered by Toni Antonucci, Elizabeth M. Douvan Collegiate Professor of Psychology and senior research scientist at the U-M Institute for Social Research. Antonucci works with the Convoy Model, a construct for understanding an individual’s health and well-being as a function of their personal interactions. Three panelists responded: • K ristine J. Ajrouch, director of the Michigan Center for Contextual Factors in Alzheimer’s Disease, who spoke on her more than 20 years of research on identity formation, social relations and unique aging and health needs among southeast Michigan’s fastgrowing Arab American population • N orvena Wilson, creator of the Silver Center, a pilot program in Wayne County that engages socially isolated seniors by using technology to facilitate pop-up group classes and social activities • A ssistant Professor Xiaoling Xiang of the School of Social Work, who spoke about her research providing homebound seniors with cognitivebehavioral therapy via computer applications, with home care workers assisting (see page 4).
Top (left to right): Dean Lynn Videka, Professor Toni Antonucci, Professor Robert Taylor Bottom (left to right): Professor Toni Antonucci; Kristine J. Ajrouch, Michigan Center for Contextual Factors in Alzheimer’s Disease; Norvena Wilson, Silver Center; Assistant Professor Xiaoling Xiang
40 · University of Michigan School of Social Work
The 2020 Winkelman Memorial Lecture demonstrated how those who would traditionally be isolated by age and poor health are participating in a wider world thanks to researchers working with technology to engage and deliver services in new ways.
