Dr. Ahearn has an international reputation in the area of psychosocial issues of forced migrants, particularly refugees and persons displaced by disasters. He has served on international missions in the aftermath of disasters and consulted with state and local mental health agencies in designing a mental health response in the case of disaster. He has an appointment as Research Associate at the Refugee Studies Centre of Oxford University where he has been a regular faculty tutor during the summer session. Fluent in Spanish, Dr. Ahearn taught in Chile, Nicaragua, and Peru. He was a member of the Advisory Board of Washington's Spanish Catholic Center for 17 years. Dr. Ahearn has been a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Social Work, the National Council on Aging, Catholic Charities USA, and the National Center for Social Policy and Practices. For four years he was a member of the Commission on Accreditation of the Council on Social Work Education, and has chaired many accreditation visits to other schools of social work. Currently he is Editor of the Journal of Religion and Spirituality in Social Work: SOCIAL THOUGHT, a former member of the Editorial Board of Social Work, and an editorial board member for the Journal of Refugee Studies and the Journal of Immigration and Refugee Studies. In October 2008, as recognition of his outstanding scholarship and leadership in the field of international social work, Dr. Ahearn was granted the Global Commission Award by the Council on Social Work Education. In the same year, the National Association of Social Work (NASW) gave him its Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2010, he was honored by Columbia University School of Social Work, his Alma Mater, for their Hall of Fame Award in recognition of his major contributions to social work. Dr. Ahearn teaches courses in the areas of social planning, social development, and community practice and often is the liaison for students who do field placements in the areas of planning, community organization, social policy, advocacy, or management.