School of Social Work News

Associate Professor Shanna Kattari is quoted in USA Today on the recent negative attention and laws in the U.S. targeting transgender people. "All of this anti-trans rhetoric is absolutely about power and control, though some people may also hate trans people," says Kattari, "We are seeing the pendulum swing back in response to all the progress towards equity and justice that has been made over the past decade or so."

PhD student Olivia Chang is the recipient of the ResilienceCon 2023 Life Paths Promising Scholars Award. This competitive award is presented to a small number of current students attending ResilienceCon who are conducting high-impact resilience-focused research that focus on under-served or disadvantaged communities.

MSW student Kevin Nguyen has been appointed to the Michigan Asian Pacific American Affairs Commission by Governor Gretchen Whitmer. “As the only student and youngest commissioner to ever serve on MAPAAC, I am humbled and honored to represent the growing APIA population in Michigan.” ENGAGE Program Manager and Lecturer Ayesha Ghazi Edwin serves as chair of the commission.

MSW student Cassandra Kelly has been selected as the 2023 University of Michigan National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Student of the Year. NASW selects students for this honor based on criteria that includes demonstrated leadership qualities, contribution to the positive image of a social work program, commitment to political and community activities, success in academic performance and the student’s representation of the NASW Code of Ethics.

Online Award Ceremony

Friday, April 14, 2023, 6-8 PM

RSVP »

Professor Emeritus John Tropman’s new book, “Fixing Broken Meetings: A Manual on Meeting Rotten-osity, Deleterious Decisions, and Ineffective Implementation,” examines the myriad ways in which meetings regularly fail and how individuals and organizations can produce efficient meetings that lead to effective decision making. The book serves as a resource for courses and programs in business and organizational behavior, as well as for anyone interested in improving the functionality of meetings within their organizations.

Professor Luke Shaefer spoke with Marketplace about the recent report showing that only 25 percent of those who were out of work in 2022 applied for unemployment benefits.  “There is undoubtedly a set of people who actually are eligible for benefits and should be getting them,” said Shaefer, who calls unemployment benefits “the most arcane and complicated” government program.

Lauren Whitmer, Joint PhD in Social Work and Anthropology, has successfully defended her dissertation entitled "Ay Amiga, ¿Qué Puedo Hacer? Oh Friend, What Can I Do?: An Ethnographic Analysis of How Socio-Cultural and Structural Factors Shape Help-Seeking Relationships for Intimate Partner Violence in Lambayeque, Peru." Her committee included Beth Glover Reed (co-chair) and Richard Tolman.

Assistant Professor Rebeccah Sokol has been named a 2023 Public Engagement Faculty Fellow. The university launched its Public Engagement Faculty Fellowship program in 2020 to help faculty bolster their knowledge and skills, and also reflect on how public engagement aligns with their scholarly identity. The effort includes creating an interdisciplinary, intergenerational learning community, as well as encouraging recognition of and experimentation with all forms of public engagement.