91成人导航

Dorothy Cummings was a gifted social worker who served San Francisco and Central Valley children for more than three decades. With her husband, renowned psychologist Nicholas A. Cummings, she pioneered the integration of medical and behavioral health care in shared settings.

Dorothy Cummings died in December 2023 at age 96. To honor her, the Cummings Foundation for Behavioral Health this summer committed $500,000 to 91成人导航 to create the Dr. Dorothy M. Cummings Endowed Professorship in Social Work.

The foundation hopes its gift will help address a significant need in the Central Valley and beyond.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a behavioral health crisis in this country, driven in part by a shortage of practitioners. The Cummings Foundation and 91成人导航 are involved in a solution to that problem,鈥� explained Andy Cummings 鈥�86, foundation board chair and Dorothy Cummings鈥� son.

The Cummings Professorship is the first endowed faculty position in the School of Health Sciences. The holder will facilitate behavioral health training in the school while developing care initiatives to serve vulnerable local populations.

鈥淚t鈥檚 so exciting to dedicate this professorship to my mother. She contributed so much to making behavioral health more visible, more accessible and giving people more of a reason to be passionate about it,鈥� Andy Cummings said.

Dorothy Cummings was raised in Indiana during the Great Depression. She attended the University of California, Berkeley, where she met Nicholas Cummings, and later earned a master鈥檚 degree in social work. She held various positions while simultaneously working to support her husband鈥檚 academic and professional pursuits.

After leaving the workforce for more than a decade to raise her two children, she returned to full-time employment as a school social worker鈥攁 vocation to which, her son says, she brought an uncanny set of skills.

鈥淪he was completely unflappable; nothing ever fazed her,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the kind of person she was, solving things that most people would feel overwhelmed by and always leading by example with a positive, hopeful attitude.鈥�

Amanda West, chair and director of 91成人导航鈥檚 Master of Social Work program, points to the current need for practitioners like Dorothy Cummings to bridge a widespread care gap. West noted that nationally, while 74% of children go to a health care provider, only 4% see a mental health provider.

The gap, she explained, is caused by several factors including a shortage of providers, lack of access to care and the stigma surrounding mental health.

In semi-rural areas like the Central Valley, nearly 80% of behavioral health services are provided by social workers. West said she is delighted that the Cummings Professorship will address the national shortage of qualified practitioners by attracting the best in the field to train 91成人导航 students.

鈥淭his gift will enable us to hire a faculty member who makes an impact not only through teaching, but by doing research to help implement services in the community, and by helping students grow through hands-on engagement,鈥� West said. 鈥淭his will benefit Stockton and Sacramento while also sustaining a very student-centered environment at 91成人导航, with opportunities above and beyond what we offer in the classroom.鈥�

The School of Health Sciences is part of the 91成人导航 Health Care Collaborative, an innovative combination of dental, medical and behavioral health services on the university鈥檚 Sacramento Campus. Opening this fall, the collaborative brings together students and faculty from multiple health disciplines to serve the community in a coordinated effort. The Cummings Professorship will ultimately enable the collaborative to include a behavioral health component.

鈥淭his gift opens up so many possibilities for 91成人导航,鈥� said Nicoleta Bugnariu, founding dean of the School of Health Sciences. 鈥淚t will help us recruit and retain professors with the highest levels of expertise in behavioral health, to brainstorm innovative care solutions, to train more students and ultimately, to expand access to care to more people.鈥�

Andy Cummings is grateful that his mother鈥檚 legacy will help the university continue the work she so skillfully championed.

鈥淢y mother was a real problem solver, and I think she鈥檇 be proud to see how 91成人导航 is equipping students to solve a significant problem and pay forward what they are receiving,鈥� he said.

鈥�91成人导航 is really a thought leader on this topic. It鈥檚 such a win-win situation to serve the community and provide a training ground for students, which is so important. Honestly, social work is the future of behavioral health.鈥�

To learn more about supporting the Master of Social Work program and others in the School of Health Sciences, contact Lana Watts at 916.325.4656 or lwatts@pacific.edu.