This Veterans Day, UT Social Work will welcome its Fall 2025 Distinguished Speaker, Dr. Nathan Keller, LCSW, for a conversation on military social work and the application of social work values in the U.S. Armed Forces.
Keller, who is a retired colonel in the U.S. Army and now serves as the director of the student counseling center at Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, Maryland, is widely recognized for his research and clinical expertise. His focus areas include resiliency, trauma, combat stress operations, corrections, military social work education, and mental health programs related to military and veteran populations.
He will lecture about the role of social work in the military, as well as its history and practical applications of social work values and interventions. He will then participate in a Q&A session with Dr. Elisa Borah, director of the Institute for Military and Veterans Family Wellness.
“A social work education offers a range of applications, including work with active military personnel, veterans, and their families. We are excited to have one of our nation’s leaders in military social work on campus to speak on how this work changes and improves people’s lives,” said Allan Cole, dean of UT Social Work.
“Social work practitioners are essential to supporting our military service members, military families, and, through their work, ensuring the strength of our nation’s defense,” said Borah. “Dr. Keller is a long-time advocate for research, training, and education among military social workers, and brings extensive experience that our community can benefit from at UT Social Work.”
Keller’s lecture will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 11, from noon to 1:30 p.m. in Walter Webb Hall. He will also provide limited office hours for faculty, staff and students to discuss research opportunities.
ABOUT COL. DR. KELLER, LCSW
Col. Dr. Nathan Keller is a highly accomplished clinical social worker with a distinguished career in both military and academic settings. He holds a Ph.D. in social work from The University of Texas at Arlington, an MSW from the University of Georgia, and a B.A. from Gettysburg College. Keller is a Board Certified Diplomate (BCD) in clinical social work by the American Board of Examiners and possesses an Advanced Clinical Social Work License (LCSW).
He dedicated 28 years to active duty as a United States Army Social Work Officer, serving from 1994 to 2022 including multiple deployments to combat and peacekeeping operations. During his military service, his assignments included chief of community mental health at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri; deputy commander 85th combat stress control at Fort Hood, Texas; director for the Army-University of Kentucky MSW Program at the U.S. Army Medical Center of Excellence (MEDCoE) in Fort Sam Houston, Texas; and director of treatment programs for the United States Disciplinary Barracks (USDB) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
Currently, Keller serves as the director of the student counseling center at Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, Maryland. He is widely recognized for his research and clinical expertise in areas such as, resiliency, trauma, combat stress operations, corrections, military social work education, and mental health programs related to military and veteran populations.