NAADAC, The Association for Addiction Professionals, Recognizes Counselor's Achievement

For Immediate Release - Alexandria, VA

Donovan Kuehn
703-741-7686, ext. 125
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Frank Lala, MEd, PhD, was awarded the William F. "Bill" Callahan Award for his sustained and meritorious service at the national level to the profession of addiction counseling by NAADAC, The Association for Addiction Professionals, at the NAADAC/ TAAP (Texas Association of Addiction Professionals) annual conference in Corpus Christi, TX, on July 8, 2005.

"I am deeply honored and moved in accepting the prestigious NAADAC's William F. "Bill" Callahan Award from distinguished NAADAC members. My main contribution to the addiction profession...[the book, "Counseling the Deaf Substance Abuser]...has made a difference. It?s used as a manual or guideline in counseling to set up programs that are culturally affirmative for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People. This was the first published book in the field of addiction profession for deaf substance abusers," said Lala.

Dr. Lala received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Community Health Education, his Master of Education degree in Deaf Education from McDaniel College in 1980, a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Health and Human Services, and a certification in Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counseling from UCLA. He lectures on substance abuse and has authored many publications in the field of deafness, a poem "A Credo for Deaf Americans," along with his published book, "Counseling the Deaf Substance Abuser". He's a recent recipient of Gallaudet University's Laurent Clerc Award.

Dr. Lala received his black belts in tang soo do karate and ju-jitsu. His karate instructor was UFAF Chief instructor Ron Pohnel at Chuck Norris' Sherman Oaks Karate Studio. He was featured in Black Belt magazine (August 1994) and Chuck Norris' UFAF newsletter, "The Octagon" (Spring 1994), congratulated him for "Karate Athlete of the Year Award in 1993". He was instrumental in having the International Martial Arts Federation of the Deaf accepted as a member of the CISS (Comite International des Sports Sourdes) for Deaflympics. Dr. Lala is currently the Director/Clinical Supervisor for the Northwest Deaf Addiction Center, an alcohol and drug treatment program designed to meet the needs of deaf and hard of hearing individuals who use sign language as their primary mode of communication, in Vancouver, Washington.