6 2 - Dominican University

Concepts in Successful Aging
As a child, Adrian Kok learned a lot about how to live a successful and fulfilling life from his
grandmother. While his parents were working, his grandmother watched him and taught him
many life lessons, which he hasn’t forgotten to this day.
“I am inspired by her zest for life, her generosity, her forgiving
nature, her optimism, and her belief that there is always a solution to
every problem,” Kok says. “These are qualities that I have found to
be important in order to be successful. She showed me that life could
be lived fully with very few material things and, more importantly,
she showed me what successful aging meant.”
Kok, associate professor in the Graduate School of Social Work, is
now instilling some of these lessons in social work students who plan
to serve the aging population. Kok leads Dominican’s new gerontology
certificate program, which is funded through a grant from the Council
on Social Work Education’s National Center for Gerontological
Social Work Education. In order to receive the certificate, students
in the master’s of social work program take foundational courses that
have an emphasis in gerontology in addition to interning at several
aging agencies.
Mark Rodgers, PhD, dean, Graduate School of Social Work, explains
that students in the gerontology certificate program are well trained
to work with this ever-growing population. “The Baby Boomer
generation is retiring and the social work profession is not prepared
to meet the needs of the elderly. By 2015, it is estimated that 70,000
trained gerontology social workers are going to be necessary,” Rodgers
explains. “The certificate program positions our students to not only
have an MSW degree but also have this designated certificate. It will
give them a leg up since they will have already completed internships
in the field of gerontology.”
As the Baby Boomer generation ages, Kok is hopeful that more
gerontology related jobs will be created and that the salary for these
jobs will increase. “Baby Boomers are going to demand more
independence and better care as they age,” he says.
While the opportunities are great, one of the biggest challenges is
getting students interested in gerontology. “While students love to
work with families and children, we have grants to provide stipends
to students working in agencies for the aging. So, there is an
incentive to try it out and gain important experience.”
RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT
FEATURE
Students in the certificate program work at several different types
of agencies such as nursing homes, retirement communities, hospice
facilities, hospitals and government agencies, so that they can get
experience in a wide range of options. In the classroom, the students
take the required 20 social work courses, however 10 of the
foundation courses are infused with gerontology. In addition,
students who already have their MSW can complete a four-course
program to receive a certificate in aging.
Because of Kok’s research and experience, Dominican’s certificate
program has an emphasis on ways to use technology with older
adults. In addition, there is a great deal of advocacy work that social
workers can do on behalf of the elderly. Issues such as working rights,
ageism, community involvement and public policy are all ways for
gerontology-trained social workers to be involved.
“There is a great need to train social workers to pay attention to the
needs of older adults. We strive to help students understand these
needs from the micro level, or one-to-one relationships, to the macro
level, such as political advocacy issues,” Kok says.
For his accomplishments in the classroom and his work in the
gerontology program, Kok was recently honored with the Graduate
School of Social Work’s Excellence in Teaching Award.
“His students always find him to be a very organized teacher and a
professor who is enthusiastic about the sometimes difficult subject of
social work research,” Rodgers says. “He uses a lot of creativity in the
classroom, and his classes are very interactive and interesting. He is
effective at conveying the practical applications of what the students
are learning.”
With gerontology, Kok has found that when students have personal
experiences with older adults in their lives, they are more able to
understand the curriculum. In accepting his recent award, Kok
encouraged students to ignore the cell phones and computers and
spend more time talking with their elders. “Your relationships with
older adults give you an important perspective – they humanize your
own aging and deepen your empathy. And, you just might be able
to see the greater good in the things that you do.”
Fall 2010 Dominican University Magazine
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