By Valerie Fields Hill
School of Social Work
Dr. Debra Woody, a senior School of Social Work administrator, will be honored this weekend at a national meeting of researchers and peers in higher education.
Dr. Woody will receive the Established Faculty Service and Leadership in Social Work Education Award at a presentation ceremony Sunday, Nov. 13, in Anaheim, Calif.
The award comes during the Council on Social Work Education’s 68th Annual Program Meeting Nov. 10-13 at the Hilton Anaheim in southern California.
Dr. Woody, the School’s senior associate dean, is being recognized for advancing and promoting Social Work education and providing a significant contribution to “extend its reach.”
“The award acknowledges extraordinary leadership contributions that affect Social Work education locally, nationally, or globally,” according to CSWE.
Social Work Dean Scott Ryan, in announcing the recognition to faculty and staff members, said Dr. Woody’s selection for the honor was “unanimously supported by the CSWE Board of Directors.”
“Well done!” Dean Ryan wrote of Dr. Woody, who is among a growing group of female Social Work education administrators in the nation. Dr. Woody is senior associate dean in the UTA School of Social Work.
The Council on Social Work Education is a national group of more than 800 accredited university Social Work programs and individual Social Work educators. CSWE accredits bachelors and master’s academic programs in the United States.
Dr. Woody is among three educators from Texas and across the nation whom CSWE will recognize this weekend.
Along with Dr. Woody, fellow Texan Dr. Michael Daley also will be honored. Dr. Daley is chair of the Department of Social Work at Texas A&M University–Central Texas.
Daley will receive CSWE’s 2022 Distinguished Recent Contributions to Social Work Education Award.
Dr. Rosalyn Denise Campbell, an associate professor of Social Work at the University of Georgia, will be recognized as CSWE’s 2022 Early Career Faculty Service and Leadership in Social Work Education honoree.
Campbell is a scholar, educator, and advocate of mental and behavioral health.
At UTA, Dr. Woody is credited with building the school’s Social Work doctoral program from a “local part-time program into a national full-time program.”
Woody led the faculty in creating and broadening the number and availability of online classes. She also developed a support center to assist students in completing their degrees.
“This work is based on Dr. Woody’s philosophy of making education widely available and to assist students with the tools to remove barriers to completing their degree,” CSWE leaders said in a statement on her.
Woody has earned millions of dollars in grant funds for UTA’s Center for Addiction and Recovery Studies, where she has provided stipends, scholarships and field and research opportunities for faculty and students.
“Regardless of her role, Dr. Woody has served as a champion and leader of social justice,” CSWE wrote in the release.
Meanwhile, nearly two dozen Social Work professors and doctoral students will present research during the four-day program meeting.
See the list of presenters here:
