School of Social Work News

Associate Professor Daphne Watkins was appointed to the 2020 American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Advancing Social and Emotional Development of Black Boys through Research, Advocacy and Community Engagement. The task force was recently appointed by President-Elect Erlanger Turner, with the goal of advancing research and advocacy efforts related to black boys. The task force is composed of researchers, clinicians and public policy advocates.

Associate Professor Daphne Watkins has been named Senior Scientific Advisor for the Campaign for Black Male Achievement, a national membership network that seeks to ensure the growth, sustainability and impact of leaders and organizations committed to improving the life outcomes of Black men and boys.

Associate Professor Daphne Watkins received the “Thought Leader Award for Peer-Reviewed Publications” at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation New Connections Capstone Symposium last month. Watkins was the recipient of a New Connections Initiative Award in 2007 for her project “Examining the Influence of Psychosocial Factors on the Mental Health of Black Men.” This recent accolade is in recognition of the impact she’s made in her field as well as the quantity and quality of the work she’s produced since receiving her initial award.

Daphne C. Watkins, associate professor of social work and faculty associate at the Research Center for Group Dynamics, Institute for Social Research was appointed the Director of the Curtis Center effective January 2019.  As director, Watkins will bring substance and leadership to advance the Curtis Center’s mission to produce knowledge that will reduce health disparities in the United States and around the world.

Watkins joined the School in 2009 and brings an accomplished record of research and leadership to this important role. Her research focuses on mental health, masculinities, and social support among  Black men uses a mixed method approach and integrates information technology. She founded the award-winning YBMen Project, which uses social media to provide health education and social support for young Black men.  

Watkins has a demonstrated record of leadership. She has served as President of the American Men's Studies Association (2013-2017), Director of the Joint PhD Program at Michigan Social Work (2017-2018), Founding Director of the Gender and Health Research Lab (GendHR Lab) and Founding Director of the Certificate Program in Mixed Methods Research. Watkins is currently a member of the Movember Foundation Global Men’s Health Advisory Committee and the editorial board for the International Journal of Men’s Social and Community Health. In 2018, she was recognized as an outstanding alumna at Texas A&M University.

The Curtis Center is named in honor and recognition of the generous support of Dr. James L. Curtis and his wife Vivian A. Curtis. James Curtis, MD ’46, and Vivian Curtis, MSW ’48 shared a lifetime of collaboration blending medicine and social work, and they provide ongoing inspiration to make positive change possible.

Associate Professor Daphne Watkins discusses her research on black men and boys and the YBMen Project with XXL Magazine. The feature explores hip-hop's complicated relationship with mental health and how a new crop of rappers are bringing the conversation to the forefront.

Associate Professor Daphne Watkins will be recognized for her professional achievements and college-wide impact at the 2018 Outstanding Alumni Awards Ceremony at Texas A&M University, College of Education and Human Development. The ceremony will be held on Friday, October 26 at the Thomas G. Hildebrand Equine Complex at Texas A&M University.

Associate Professor Daphne Watkins has been appointed to the Movember Foundation Global Men’s Health Advisory Committee. The Movember Foundation is the only charity tackling men’s health on a global scale. Since 2003, the Movember Foundation has provided over $850 million in funding toward more than 1,200 health projects in 21 countries. Movember invests in programs that focus on men’s mental health and suicide prevention, prostate cancer, and testicular cancer.

Associate Professor Daphne Watkins was awarded a grant from the My Brother's Keeper Detroit Innovation Challenge to launch a Young Black Men, Masculinities, and Mental Health (YBMen) Project for adolescents and young adults in Detroit.