School of Social Work News

The School of Social Work winter commencement at Hill Auditorium on Saturday, December 15, 2018, featured an inspirational keynote address from Assistant Professor and co-director of the Gender and Health Research Lab, Jamie Mitchell. Mitchell encouraged graduates to pursue continual growth through resistance, resilience, relationships and reflection; to give back and to be change agents in their local communities. Student speakers Kristina "K" Agbebiyi and Gabriela Santiago-Romero each gave stirring addresses. At the ceremony, 220 graduates received their MSW degrees (including 14 graduates who earned dual degrees).

The following day, the University of Michigan community, families and friends gathered for the University’s December graduation. Kavitha Lobo, MSW ‘18, introduced computer scientist, inventor and transgender activist Lynn Conway as the featured speaker. Lobo, joined by engineering graduate Jiten Parbhoo, from the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, encouraged graduates and guests to treat all their experiences as learning opportunities and always to be true to themselves and their values. Allie Vansickle,  MSW ‘18, a student facilitator at the University’s Office of Student Conflict Resolution, carried the School banner for the ceremony.

Kathryn Berringer, Joint PhD student in Social Work and Anthropology was named a Dow Sustainability Doctoral Fellow. Each new Fellow will receive up to $15,000 to help support their research in the coming year. Dow Sustainability Fellows Program at the University of Michigan supports full-time graduate students at the university who are committed to finding interdisciplinary, actionable and meaningful sustainability solutions on local-to-global scales. The program aspires to prepare future sustainability leaders to make a positive difference in organizations worldwide.

Lisa Young Larance, Joint PhD student Social Work and Sociology, article “Understanding and Addressing Women’s Use of Force in Intimate Relationships: A Retrospective” was published recently in Violence Against Women.

A new study by the University of Michigan Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation (IHPI) finds that nearly half of people covered by Healthy Michigan Plan– the state’s expanded Medicaid program – felt their physical health improved within the first year or two after they enrolled in the program. Almost 40% reported that their mental or dental health had improved. See key findings below.

Edith Kieffer, Professor of Social Work, who serves as the study’s co-investigator on the evaluation team, led the qualitative and dental data analyses. Renuka Tipirneni, Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine, is the lead author of this study. John Z. Ayanian, IHPI director, leads the interdisciplinary evaluations team, which includes 17 U-M faculty members from across multiple schools and departments.

The SSW DEI Office established a new award to recognize individuals and groups in the School of Social Work who have made significant contributions to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in the School or in the community. Congratulations to the following individuals and groups selected as the 2018 recipients of the Impact Award in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Staff Member, Randall Bilby; Student, Cuauhtemoc Salinas Martell; Faculty Member, Shanna Kattari and Organization, Association of Black Social Work Students. Awardees were recognized at an awards ceremony at the School on December 10. Lauren Davis, Assistant Director of SSW DEI Program, said about the awards: “While there is still much work to be done to advance the efforts of the DEI strategic plan, we wanted to take a moment to celebrate the incredible work that members of the SSW community have made to advance diversity, equity and inclusion, and to acknowledge the commitment and progress we have made as a School.”

The University of Michigan School of Social Work celebrated World AIDS Day with talks on science and policy, personal testimonials--including words from Jeanne White-Ginder, the mother of Ryan White--awards to prominent local AIDS activists, including members of the Michigan HIV/AIDS Council, a social justice exhibit drawn from the School's fine art collection, and an impromptu AIDS "quilt," created by attendees (out of paper, not cloth).

The event, sponsored by the office of the Associate Dean for Research, also featured Dawn Lukomski of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, telling a generally optimistic story of the state of HIV/AIDS in southeast Michigan, but stressing the need for, among other things, wider acceptance and understanding of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to limit the spread of the disease. Associate Dean for Research Rogerio M. Pinto followed Ms. Lukomski and outlined an ambitious new research agenda around PrEP.

The day also featured words from Dean Lynn Videka and a performance by Unified Field Theory, a jazz combo from Ann Arbor's Community High School.

Joint PhD student Yun Chen and Kathleen Pottick, visiting scholar and professor of social work at Rutgers University, are both recipients of an honorable mention for the 2019 Society for Social Work and Research Excellence in Research Award. The award recognizes the article “Conceptualizing Culturally Infused Engagement and Its Measurement for Ethnic Minority and Immigrant Children and Families, Clinical Children and Family Psychology.” In conferring the honorable mention, the Society recognized outstanding social work research that represents the highest of scientific standards and advances social work knowledge.

Lindsey Crandle, Jill Schaefer and Ariel Kennedy (left to right), ‘18 MSW graduates were selected as 2019 Presidential Management Fellows Finalists. The Presidential Management Fellows Program is administered by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. The Presidential Management Fellows Program attracts to Federal service outstanding graduate students who have a commitment to excellence in the leadership and management of public policies and programs. The U-M School of Social Work had more finalists than any other school of social work.