Faculty Directory

Karla Arenas-Itotia, MA, MSSW, LMSW

Associate Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

IPVE Taskforce Chair

Karla Arenas-Itotia

Research Interests: Social Work Education, online, interprofessional and experiential learning, school social work, student success and support services, education access, community outreach, interpersonal violence, trauma, mental health, social work direct practice, and issues of gender, family, race, and ethnicity.

Joshua Awua, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow – Addictions Research

Joshua Awua

Philip Baiden, PhD

Associate Professor

Personal Pronouns: He/Him

Philip Baiden

Research Interests: Suicide Prevention Research; Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs); Adolescent Substance Use Behaviors; Social Determinants of Health and Mental Health; Barriers to Health Service Utilization; International Social Work Research

LaShaunn Bold, LMSW

Associate Professor of Practice

Lashaunn Bold

Research Interests: Child Welfare, Domestic Violence, Victim Services, Community Development, Non-profit management, Volunteer Coordination

Saltanat Childress, PhD, MSW

Assistant Professor

Dr. Saltanat Childress

Research Interests: Family wellbeing, child wellbeing, parenting, prevention of family violence in global settings; economic empowerment; immigrant and refugee populations

Jandel Crutchfield, PhD , LCSW

Associate Professor

Jandel Crutchfield

Research Interests: Social work in traditional and charter schools, cultural competence of school social workers, colorism and social work practice.

Derek Falk, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow- Latino Health Research

Derek Falk - Postdoctoral Fellow- Latino Health Research

Sophia Fantus, PhD

Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Reproductive ethics, specializing in LGBTQ advocacy and inclusivity, moral distress, and clinical social work ethics.

Noelle Fields, PhD , LCSW

Associate Professor

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Noelle Fields

Research Interests: Aging in Place, Home and Community-based Services, Family Caregiving, Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia, Assistive Technology, Transportation Equity

Kirk A. Foster, PhD, MSW, MDiv

Dean of Social Work

Professor

Personal Pronouns: He/Him/His

Dr. Kirk Foster

Research Interests: Urban neighborhoods, social capital, collective action, political participation, policing

Mark Frazier, MSW, DSW Candidate

Assistant Professor of Practice

Mark Frazier

Research Interests/Clinical Practice Expertise: African American Male Ex-Offenders Perspectives on the Impact of Work Release Programs in Reducing Recidivism

Andrea Germany, DSW, MSW

Assistant Professor of Practice

Andrea Germany

Genevieve Graaf, PhD, MSW

Assistant Professor

Genevieve Graaf

Research Interests: Children's Mental Health Policy and Service Systems; Evidence-Based Practice in Community Settings; Implementation Science and Knowledge Translation in Social Work; Medicaid Home and Community-Based Service Policies; Medicaid and disparities in access to care

Tonya Hansel, PhD, MSW

Associate Dean for Research

Professor

Tonya Hansel

Hanna Haran, PhD, MSW, MPP

Assistant Professor

Hanna Haran

Research Interests: Economic justice among populations with histories of forced migration. The role of employment quality and wealth attainment processes on overall well-being. Entrepreneurship and economic inclusion. Workplace policies and economic mobility

Kiva Harper, MSSW, LCSW

Associate Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Kiva Harper

Research Interests: Military Social Work, Trauma Therapy (PTSD, Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Assault), Traumatic Grief

Danielle R. Harrell, PhD, LCSW

Assistant Professor

Danielle Harrell

Research Interests: Racial equity and inclusion in K-12 schools; school climate and culture; adolescent mental health; culturally responsive school-based and school-linked mental health services; school social work practice

Amanda Hassan, DSW

Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs

Assistant Professor of Practice

Amanda Hassan

Richard Hoefer, PhD

Professor

Research Interests: Program Evaluation; Nonprofit Management; Social Policy; Comparative Social Policy; and Nonprofit Advocacy

Hui Huang, PhD

Associate Professor

Hui Huang

Research Interests:: Child Welfare, Foster Care, Substance Use, Juvenile Justice, Dually-Involved Youth, Health Disparity, Administrative Data Research, Program Evaluation, Measurement Development

Ann Hunt-Rodgers, DSW, MSW, MA

Assistant Professor of Practice

Ann Hunt-Rodgers

Teaching Interests: Introduction to Social Work, Social Work Professionalism, Theories of Human Behavior and Diverse Population

Darlene Hunter, Ph.D., LMSW

Director of Undergraduate Programs

Associate Professor of Practice

Darlene Hunter

Research Interests: Disability; Disability and Sports

Pamela Johnson, MSW, LCSW

Associate Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Pamela Johnson

Research Interests: School Social Work, Children and family connections, Parenting, Behavioral Health Integration, Trauma and Impact of experiential learning student populations

Jaclyn Kirsch, PhD, MSW, M.P.H.

Assistant Professor

Jaclyn Kirsch

Catherine LaBrenz, PhD, LMSW

Associate Professor with Tenure

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Catherine LaBrenz

Research Interests: Child Welfare; Reunification; Permanence; Family Engagement

Kathy Lee, PhD, LCSW, CDP

Associate Professor with Tenure

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Research Interests: Health and well-being of older adults with cognitive impairment, non-pharmacological interventions, social engagement, minority older adults and family caregivers, home- and community-based services, and health disparities.

Melissa Lewis

Professor

Melissa Lewis

Dana Litt

Professor

Dana Litt

Karen Magruder, LCSW-S, DSW Candidate

DSW Program Director (project lead for creating new program)

Associate Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Karen Magruder

Research Interests: Aging, mental health, health promotion, long-term care, hospice, dementia, sustainability, environmental justice

Rebecca Mauldin, PhD, LMSW

Assistant Professor

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Rebecca Mauldin

Research Interests: Aging, Social Integration/Isolation, Social Network Analysis, Social Support and Generosity

Diane Mitschke, PhD, MSW

Professor

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Diane Mitschke

Research Interests: Health and Mental Health of Vulnerable Populations; Refugee and Immigrant Health and wellness

Jennifer Murphy, PhD, MSW, MS

Assistant Professor

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Jennifer Murphy

Research Interests: Child and adolescent mental health, Mental health service utilization, School of social work practice, Interprofessional mental health practice in schools, and Adverse Childhood Experiences

Marcela Nava, PhD, MPP, MSSW

Assistant Professor

Marcela Nava

Research Interests:: Health Equity, Community Based Participatory Research, Immigration, Policy Advocacy

Anne Nordberg, PhD, MSW

Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs

Associate Professor

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Anne Nordberg

Research Interests: Problem-Solving Courts, Forensic Social Work, Populations At-Risk for Criminal Justice Involvement, Structural Violence, Qualitative Methodologies, Innovative Approaches to Reduce Recidivism

Jennifer O'Brien, PhD, MSW

Associate Professor

Jennifer O'Brien

Tiara Okoruwa, PhD, LMSW

Assistant Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Dr. Tiara Thomas

Research Interests:: Social Work Faculty Preparedness; Controversial Conversations in the Classroom; Qualitative Methodology

Tracy Orwig, MSSW, LCSW, FNAP

Director of Interprofessional Education

Associate Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Tracy Orwig

Research Interests: Health Interventions, Health Disparities, Health Literacy and the Impact of Interprofessional Education on Health Students

Yangjin Park, PhD

Assistant Professor

Yangjin Park

Morgan PettyJohn, PhD

Assistant Professor

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Morgan PettyJohn

Research Interests: Sexual violence, Intimate partner violence, Social Media, Masculinities, Couple and Family Therapy

Vijayan Pillai, PhD

Professor

Research Interests: Adolescent social problems , Reproductive health , National and International social policy, Population, Community Planning, Demographic Techniques, Zambia, Social Policy, Reproductive rights, Development

Regina T. Praetorius, PhD, LMSW-AP

Associate Dean for Academic & Student Affairs

Professor

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Regina Praetorius

Research Interests: Trauma, Suicide, Maternal Well-being, Suicide Bereavement, Qualitative Interpretive Meta-Synthesis (QIMS), and Social Work Education

Kathleen Preble, PhD, MSW

Associate Professor

Kathleen Preble

Maryam Rafieifar, PhD

Assistant Professor

Maryam Rafieifar

Research Interest: Targeted at serving disenfranchised children and families with community-based participatory methods.

Kelli Rogers, PhD

Assistant Professor of Practice

Kelli Rogers

Research Interests: : Advancing racial equity in public and higher education; social work practice in schools; intersection among child welfare, juvenile justice, and education; disproportionality and disparities in child welfare and juvenile justice systems; social policy for children and families; culturally responsive practice; and community-based social work

De’An O. Roper, PhD, LCSW

Associate Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

De’An Roper

Research Interests: Sexual and gender minority health disparities, the intersection of behavior change and technology, health risk behaviors, substance abuse, mental health and criminal justice.

Scott Ryan, PhD, MSW, MBA

Director of Title IV-E

Professor

Dean Scott Ryan

Jessica Sánchez, PhD, LMSW, MED

Assistant Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

 Jessica Sánchez

Research Interests: Sexual subjectivity, Latinas, and Women of Color and Pleasure after Violence

Donald Schuman, PhD, LCSW, LCDC

Associate Professor of Practice

Donald Schuman

Research Interests: Substance use disorders, addiction treatments and suicide prevention in the general population with emphasis on veterans and service members; Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) treatment, group psychotherapy, developing interdisciplinary health treatment teams, and measuring the impact and relevance of feedback on the treatment experience.

Donna Schuman, PhD, LCSW, MAC, LPC

Assistant Professor

Donna Schuman

Research Interests: Military social work; psychosocial and psychophysiological effects of war trauma and disaster; digital health interventions; heart rate variability biofeedback; social work education; systematic review methodology

Eusebius Small, PhD

Professor

Eusebius Small

Research Interests: International Social Work, The Intersection of HIV and Contextual Social Norms, Adolescent Risk Behaviors, Comparative Social Policy

Christine Spadola, PhD, LMHC

Assistant Professor

Christine Spadola

Research Interests: : Sleep Health, Mental Health, Substance Misuse, Health Promotion and Health Disparities and Mind/Body Interventions

Allison Tomlinson, Ph.D., LCSW-S

MSW Program Director

Associate Professor of Practice

Allison Tomlinson

Research Interests: Maternal incarceration, stress theory and non-normative family stress, couple and marriage dynamics in African American families, and mental health.

Elisha Tones, DSW, LCSW-S

Assistant Professor of Practice

Elisha Tones

Research Interests: Racial disparities in mental health, decolonizing social work education, and equitable access to higher education

Traneika Turner-Wentt, DSW, MSW

Assistant Professor of Practice

Traneika Wentt

Research Interests: Health Equity, Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Social Drivers of Health, Healthcare System Solutions

Christian Vazquez, PhD, MSW

Assistant Professor

Christian Vazquez

Research Interests:: Health Disparities, Latino Populations, Cardiovascular Health, eHealth, Obesity, Socioeconomic Status

Rachel Voth Schrag, PhD, LCSW

PhD Program Director and Associate Professor

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

IPVE Taskforce Development Subcommittee Chair

Rachel Voth Schrag

Research Interests: Violence Against Women, Trauma and Mental Health, Convergence of Poverty and Interpersonal Trauma, Violence Against Women in Diverse Educational Settings; Interpersonal Violence Prevention and Intervention

Yao Wang, PhD, MSW

Assistant Professor

Yao Wang

Micki Washburn, PhD, LMSW, MA, LPC-S

Associate Professor with Tenure

Personal Pronouns: She/Her

Micki Washburn

Research Interests: Health disparities related to mental health and substance misuse in historically underserved communities, applications of technology in behavioral health assessment and treatment, mindfulness based clinical interventions for women with co-occurring mental health and substance use concerns, social policy related to SOGIE for child welfare involved youth and families.

Joyce White, DM, LMSW

Assistant Professor of Practice

Joyce White

Research Interests: Qualitative & Mixed Methods Approaches focused on: Public and nonprofit leadership, Local and regional public/private partnerships to address human service needs, and Affordable housing and homelessness prevention/remediation innovative solutions.

Dianna Woods-Jones, EdD, MSW

Assistant Professor of Practice

Personal Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Dianna Woods-Jones

Research Interests: Social Welfare Policy; Educational Policy and Decision-Making in Education; Co-Occurring Disorders of Mental Health and Substance Use in Communities of Poverty

Debra Woody, PhD

Director, Center for Addiction and Recovery Studies (CARS) and Associate Professor

Debra Woody

Research Interests: Substance Abuse, School Based Social Work Services

Ling Xu, PhD

Associate Professor

Research Interests: Aging, grandparents, ethnicity (Chinese), assistive technology, Intergenerational Support and Healthy Aging, Health Disparity, Health Care Utilization, Acculturative Stress, Social support and Well-being of Older Adults, Asian American Older Adults

Weiwen Zeng, PhD, MSW, BSW

Assistant Professor

Weiwen Zeng