School of Social Work News

Associate Professor Trina Shanks has been elected to serve as a member of the Grand Challenges for Social Work Executive Committee. Shanks will contribute perspectives and energy to one of the most important social agendas in the history of the social work profession.  She will be joining a group of highly respected and influential colleagues who are committed to achieving social change around some of the deepest and most persistent problems of our age.

Associate Professor Cristina Bares will serve as a co-chair for the 2019 National Hispanic Science Network Conference. The network promotes interdisciplinary and translational research across a broad range of disciplines on a national and international front. Since its inception in 2001, the network – in partnership with the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the National Eye Institute – has made great strides to advance the field of Hispanic drug use research.  

The Faculty Allies for Diversity Committee hosted a networking event to celebrate diversity in our school and prepare students for the job market. The faculty shared networking tips, strategies for job talks and how to navigate barriers in academic spaces. Professor Rogério M. Pinto and Assitant Professor Addie Weaver chaired the event. More than 20 professors and PhD students attended.

Todd Herrenkohl, Marion Elizabeth Blue Professor of Children and Families is named a 2019 Society for Social Work and Research Fellow.

The Society for Social Work and Research Fellows are members who have served with distinction to advance the mission of the Society — to advance, disseminate, and translate research that addresses issues of social work practice and policy and promotes a diverse, equitable and just society.

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.