School of Social Work News

U-M researchers from a wide variety of disciplines are working to address the global HIV epidemic by developing interventions and searching for cures. The U-M Interprofessional Collaboration Implementation Group is working on both behavioral and structural interventions. Read about their work in the January issue of Michigan Research.

Associate Professor Andrew Grogan-Kaylor's meta-analysis of 50 years of research on corporal punishment was key in the recent American Academy of Pediatrics policy update on corporal punishment. The Academy - the largest professional organization for US pediatricians - is taking a strict stance against parents, caregivers and other adults using spanking, hitting or slapping to discipline children. The updated policy statement is the first major revise since 1998.

The Michigan Road Scholars have selected Assistant Professors Shanna Kattari and Ashley Lacombe-Duncan and Field Educator Rachel Naasko to participate in the 2019 program. This 5-day educational tour exposes participants to the state’s economy, government and politics, culture, educational systems, health and social issues, history and geography.

Designed to increase mutual knowledge and understanding between the university and the people and communities of the state, the tour introduces participants to locations the majority of U-M students call home. It also encourages university service to the public and suggests ways faculty can address state issues through research, scholarship and creative activity.

Associate Professor Robert Ortega has been selected as a National Child Welfare Workforce Institute Advisory Board member. The institute’s mission is to increase the equity and effectiveness of child welfare practice.

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.