William L. White

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William L. White is a writer on addiction recovery and policy.

Contents

Biography

White was born the eldest son in an Army family, father, William "Billy" White and mother, Alice White. His father was a construction worker and his mother was a nurse. His family grew quite large with more than 20 adopted, foster, related and siblings living in a small rural home in Decatur, Illinois. [1] He received a bachelor's degree from Eureka College, studying psychology, sociology and history. [2]

Career

His first job was with the Illinois Department of Mental Health in 1967, where his responsibilities were to tour the wards of the mental health institution and screen the alcoholics and addicts for community placement. In the seventies, he became an outreach worker, gathering addicts and alcoholics from jail or hospitals and connecting them with services like Salvation Army shelters, SRO’s and AA meetings. In 1970, he worked at Chestnut Health Systems, one of the first local community treatment centers in Illinois, and became the clinical director of the facility.

In 1975, White left to pursue a master's degree in Addiction Studies at Goddard College. Upon graduating he began working with the Illinois Dangerous Drug Commission, and then became deputy director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s training center in Washington DC. In 1986, he returned to the Chestnut Health System and founded the Lighthouse Institute, an addiction treatment research center. In 1998, he published his best-known book, Slaying the Dragon: The History of Addiction Treatment and Recovery in America. He was a senior consultant at the Chestnut Health System engaged in research and writing on addiction treatment and recovery coaching up until his retirement in 2014. He continues to write about the history of treatment and recovery on his website. [3]

Professional appointments

Bill White's has held many professional appointments since 2000 to the present day including:

Awards

1999McGovern Family Foundation Award for the best book on addiction recovery for Slaying the Dragon
2001Keith Keesy Memorial Award presented by the Illinois Association of Alcohol and Drug Dependence
2001President’s Award, NAADAC—The Association for Addiction Professionals
2002Lifetime Achievement Award, Illinois Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Professional Certification Association (IAODAPCA)
2003National Association of Addiction Treatment Provider’s (NAATP) Michael Q. Ford Journalism Award
2004National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD) Award for Compelling Documentation of the Alcoholism Movement in the United States
2006Eagleville Award—an annual award presented by Eagleville Hospital to a person who has made a significant contribution to the field of addiction treatment.
2006Lifetime Achievement Award presented by NAADAC—The Association for Addiction Professionals
2006Jeff Luke Servant Leadership Award presented by White Bison for service to the Native American Wellbriety Movement
2007John P. McGovern, M.D. Award presented by the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) for outstanding contributions to the field of Addiction Medicine
2009Lifetime Achievement Award, Mayor’s Drug and Alcohol Executive Commission, City of Philadelphia
2010Dr. Nelson J. Bradley Life Time Achievement Award, National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers
2010The John P. McGovern Award and Lecture, Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc.
2010Recovery Award for Excellence in Addiction Research & Education, Foundation for Recovery
2011Recovery Heroes Honoree, NET Institute-Center for Addiction & Recovery Education
2012Norman E. Zinberg Award & Memorial Lecture, Harvard University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry
2012Friend of the Field Award (for extraordinary contributions to the field of opioid addiction treatment), American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence
2012Lifetime Achievement, The Voice Awards, Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration
2013Saul Feldman Award for Lifetime Achievement for sustained and significant contributions to leadership and policy in the mental health and addiction recovery field. ACMHA The College for Behavioral Health Leadership
2013Resolution of commendation for sustained and seminal contributions to the addiction treatment and recovery field, Board of Directors, The Illinois Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Association
2013Distinguished Advocate of the Year Award, Texas Association of Addiction Professionals
2015Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award, America Honors Recovery / Faces and Voices of Recovery for outstanding contributions and lifetime devotion to the recovery advocacy movement.
2015William L. White Lifetime Achievement Award for the Advancement of Recovery Research (year one recipient of named award). Young People in Recovery & Association of Recovery Schools.

Books

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References

  1. White, W. L. (2007). "Conversation with William L. White". Addiction. 102 (9): 1365–1376. doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2007.01796.x. PMID   17697275.
  2. "Brief Professional Biography". williamwhitepapers.com. William L. White. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
  3. "Selected Papers of William L. White". williamwhitepapers.com. William L. White. Retrieved August 24, 2010.