School of Social Work News

Professor Andy Grogan-Kaylor has been chosen as this year’s recipient of the Doctoral Student Organization Faculty Award. Since 2019, doctoral students have collectively selected one professor to honor with the recognition. "Andy has taught and mentored many doctoral students. His approach to teaching methods courses is engaging for students across a range of methodological backgrounds. His courses help us see how methods can be leveraged as a tool to advance social justice. In addition to supporting students through teaching, Andy provides a great deal of support outside the classroom. Throughout my years in the program, I have consistently noticed that doctoral students go to Andy with complex methodological questions. We always come away better equipped to move forward with our research."

PhD student Lauren Whitmer is the 2021-22 recipient of the U-M Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (LACS) Alfredo D. & Luz Maria P. Gutierrez Dissertation Award. The award will support Whitmer in the writing of her dissertation, “Finding a Way Through the Violence: How Mujeres Abusadas in Lambayeque, Peru Navigate Formal and Informal Help-Seeking.” The selection committee specifically cited the high quality of Whitmer’s scholarly work. “I am very thankful for this support, which will allow me to dedicate myself, fully, to writing my dissertation in the coming academic year. Additionally, it is so gratifying to have my work recognized as an important and valuable contribution to the field of LACS,” says Whitmer.

MSW student Cassie Elder is a mother and U.S. Marine Corp veteran. In a webinar this week for mothers serving in the armed forces, Elder shared her experiences to help female veterans searching for resources and support. “I hope that more folks will begin to acknowledge, recognize, and understand the complexities of being a veteran and service member while also being a mom,” she said. “I also hope to bring more visibility to women in the military and our unique experiences.”

PhD student and Reverend Charles Williams of Detroit’s King Solomon Baptist Church is featured in a HuffPost article about closing the COVID-19 vaccine race gap. Citing accessibility and hesitancy, Williams thinks it could be a year or more before citywide vaccination rates in Detroit catch up to the rest of the country. “There’s a sincere concern about the care that many of us get when we go to the doctor’s office, end up in the hospital,” Williams said. “You talk to any Black family, we all have the same strategy ― somebody is going to have to be there around the clock, in the room, to stay on top of these nurses and to make sure the doctor comes by, because if we don’t practice that strategy, the system will let our loved one down.”

A team of Michigan Social Work researchers’ new paper, “Computerized Clinical Training Simulations with Virtual Clients Abusing Alcohol: Initial Feasibility, Acceptability, and Effectiveness,” used computer simulations to teach clinical skills to MSW students. Students reported that the clinical skills learned from the simulations translated into successful interactions with real-world clients during their field placements.  Associate Professor Matthew Smith is the lead author; co-authors include Postdoctoral Research Fellow Shannon Blajeski, Assistant Professor Lindsay Bornheimer, TIDR Lab Manager Kathryn Check, Clinical Assistant Professor Daniel Fischer, Clinical Assistant Professor Barbara Hiltz and Professor Mary Ruffolo.

PhD students Joonyoung Cho and Rita Hu have been selected as Karl Ma Endowed Scholars for 2021. The Karl Ma award supports students from Asia who wish to pursue careers in public service, particularly those in the schools of social work, education and nursing. 

“As an international student studying social work, which requires me to not only do research on campus but also commit to social work practices in our local communities, I face many unique challenges when wanting to engage with communities outside of U-M (i.e. limits on work hours and additional applications and justifications for off-campus work),” says Hu. “The Karl Ma Award will provide me the opportunities to focus on research and social work fieldwork. I plan to use the scholarship to participate in intervention and program evaluation projects, headed by our social work faculty, to further explore how to best serve older adults. 

“I am immensely grateful for the scholarship,” adds Cho. “For the first time, I will be able to focus exclusively on my research, and I will do my best to spend my time wisely and productively.”

Assistant Professor Katie Schultz’ research project, Tribal Reservations Adolescent Connections Study, has been funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. This mixed methods study will explore peer and family relationships of American Indian (AI) youth, and how they factor in substance use, exposure to violence and suicide among youth living on a Northern Plains reservation. "This is my first foray into prevention research,” said Schultz, “so I’m excited about developing a line of research to prevent substance use and associated outcomes among AI youth and using the data to design a culturally grounded intervention.”

Katie Schulz’ research project, Tribal Reservations Adolescent Connections Study, has been funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. This study will explore peer and family relationships of American Indian youth, and how they factor in substance use, exposure to violence and suicide among youth living on a Northern Plains reservation.

Joyce Lee, PhD ’21, co-authored the book "Young, Proud, and Sung-jee: A Children's Book on Fighting Anti-Asian Racism During COVID-19." It is featured by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) in their Educator|Resource of the Month and generate meaningful discussions between adults and children about anti-Asian racism.