School of Social Work

Professor Brad Zebrack has been named a 2019 Association of Oncology Social Work Fellow. The fellowship recognizes and honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the science and practice of psychosocial oncology.

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

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.

The School of Social Work winter commencement at Hill Auditorium on Saturday, December 15, 2018, featured an inspirational keynote address from Assistant Professor and co-director of the Gender and Health Research Lab, Jamie Mitchell. Mitchell encouraged graduates to pursue continual growth through resistance, resilience, relationships and reflection; to give back and to be change agents in their local communities. Student speakers Kristina "K" Agbebiyi and Gabriela Santiago-Romero each gave stirring addresses. At the ceremony, 220 graduates received their MSW degrees (including 14 graduates

Kathryn Berringer, Joint PhD student in Social Work and Anthropology was named a Dow Sustainability Doctoral Fellow. Each new Fellow will receive up to $15,000 to help support their research in the coming year. Dow Sustainability Fellows Program at the University of Michigan supports full-time graduate students at the university who are committed to finding interdisciplinary, actionable and meaningful sustainability solutions on local-to-global scales. The program aspires to prepare future sustainability leaders to make a positive difference in organizations worldwide.