Daphne Watkins Appointed New Curtis Center Director

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.