Application Deadline
The deadline for applications for Cohort 2010 (with classes starting in August 2010) is
January 15, 2010. We encourage applicants to submit materials prior to the
deadline.
All resources for online applications can be found at:
http://www.applyweb.com/apply/cwrug/menu.html.
It is strongly recommended that you review the
Instructions / Application Guide page.
Federally Funded Research
MSASS faculty have recently been awarded four federal funded longitudinal research
projects. New projects span the areas of: Alzheimer's disease, substance use, autism, and
co-occurring mental and substance use disorders. Faculty research grants, especially
multi-year grants from the National Institutes of Health, offer excellent learning opportunities
for doctoral students as research assistants or research interviewers as well as opporunities for
doctoral dissertations.
Based on current projects at the school, we are particularly interested in applicants with the
following research interests: early childhood intervention, mental health, substance abuse, dual
disorders, urban poverty and community development, violence prevention, and gerontology.
Recent Doctoral Student Honors and Awards
Moon Jeong Choi
(Cohort 2005) is one of the top five finalists in the "Social Work and Aging YouTube Contest"
sponsored by the John A. Hartford Foundation and the Association for Gerontology Education in
Social Work. Her video creatively showed why gerontology is important to the field of social
work. The video was highlighted at the 2008 Council on Social Work Education's Annual
Program Meeting in Philadelphia.
Mandy Fauble
(Cohort 2005) is the second recipient of the Arol Shack Dissertation Award. Her
dissertation research is "Intergenerational Processes of Risk for Child Maltreatment: How Maternal
Childhood Maltreatment Negatively Impacts Children's Mental Health Outcomes." Her
dissertation chair is Elizabeth Tracy. This award was established through donations from
alumni, students, faculty, staff and the family and friends of Arol and a
matching gift from Dr. Gigi Nordquist. The fund honors the many years of work and dedication
Arol Shack devoted to the doctoral program and its students and faculty. Students with an
approved prospectus are eligible to apply.
Molly Irwin
(Cohort 2003) was awarded a Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) Executive
Branch Policy Fellowship for 2009-2010. These fellowships provide opportunities for
researchers to come to Washington, DC with the goals of: (1)contributing to the effective use
of scientific knowledge about child development in the formation of public policy ; (2)
educating the scientific community about the development of public policy; and (3)establishing
a more effective liaison between developmental scientists and the Federal policy-making mechanisms.
SRCD Fellows are members of the Science and Technology Fellowship Programs of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
.
Derrick Kranke
(Cohort 2006) was a first place poster winner at Research ShowCASE, April, 2009. His
poster, “Stigma Experience amount Adolescents Prescribed Psychiatric Medication” was co-authored by
Jerry Floersch and Lisa Townsend (MSASS Ph.D., August 2008)
.
Derrick Kranke
(Cohort 2006) was the recipient of the Eli Lily Reintegration Scholarship for the 2008-2009
academic year.
Heehyul Moon
(Cohort 2006) is a finalist in the 2008 Gerontological Society of America's Social
Gerontology Award competition. Her winning paper "Refining the Activity Theory of Aging
and Well-Being" was co-authored with Dr. Kathryn Betts Adams and Dr. Sylvia Leibbrandt.
Heehyul Moon
(Cohort 2006) was awarded an honorable mention at the 2009 Research ShowCase for her poster, “
Predictors of Perceived Benefits and Drawbacks of using Paid Service among Daughter and
Daughter-in-law Caregivers of Older Adults with Dementia with co-authors Dr. Aloen Townsend and Dr.
Mary Ann Stephens.
R. Thomas Sherba ( Cohort 2004
) presented his
dissertation findings at the 21st National Symposium on Doctoral Research in Social Work at
The Ohio State University.
Ken Stoltzfus
(Cohort 2005) was awarded a Fulbright Senior Scholar award to teach and do research in Russia
for 5 months next academic year. He will be teaching at the Russian American Christian
University (RACU), and English-speaking University in Moscow. His research will focus on the
role the spirituality and religion played in the development of the social work profession in post
Soviet Russia and on the role that spirituality and religion play in the current practice of
Russian social work
.
Lisa Townsend
(Cohort 2004) was selected to participate in a competitive program CHIPS.(Child Intervention, Prevention and Services Award) CHIPS is a dynamic
interdisciplinary training consortium, created to enhance career development for early career
scientists pursuing research careers in the areas of intervention, prevention, and the provision of
services for children and adolescents. CHIPS is funded through the NIMH Division of Services
and Intervention Research. Acceptance in CHIPS provides new faculty mentoring and
training
.
Diwakar Vadapalli
(Cohort 2006) has been selected as the recipient of the 2008-2009 Lenore A. Kola Graduate
Student Community Service Award. His extensive service work within the school, University and
Cleveland community is being recognized. The award was created to recognize Dr. Kola’s
contributions to the School of Graduate Studies. We are very pleased to have one of our own
MSASS doctoral students receive this award named in honor of one of our own faculty.
Doctoral Internship
Doctoral internships for third year students have been established with Alcohol, Drug
Addiction and Mental Health Services Board of Cuyahoga County, the Adoption Network, and The
Cuyahoga County Board for Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. We are currently
recruiting students with research interests in these areas.
Brief Findings from the 2007-2008
External Review of the MSASS Doctoral Program
MSASS - A TOP TEN SCHOOL
"
This program is wonderful; it is both internally supportive and
externally competitive. I have learned to think critically and examine policy and practice on
a deeper level"
- MSASS is ranked #1 in Ohio and #10 out of 182 schools nationwide in U.S. News & World
Report
- A survey of NASW members ranked MSASS as #3 nationally (Green, Baskind, Fassler, Jordan
2006).
- MSASS also has been ranked #7 in faculty scholarly productivity by Academic Analytics
- The MSASS doctoral program retention rate is 88%; we support students along the way so they can
complete the degree
- A recent evaluation of the MSASS doctoral program showed that nearly half (46%) of all our
doctoral students publish while they are in the program
- On average, MSASS doctoral students conduct 2.6 research presentations at regional, national,
and international conferences; 48% of currently enrolled students received travel funds from
the program to present at and attend conferences
- During the 2007-2008 academic year, MSASS doctoral students presented at the Council on Social
Work Education Annual Program Meeting, the Gerontological Society of America, and Society for
Social Work and Research Conference, among others
- 72% of currently enrolled MSASS doctoral students gain teaching experience by teaching in the
MSASS master degree program
- Over three fourths of students are highly satisfied with the availability/accessibility of
faculty
- Most doctoral students in the MSASS doctoral program complete cousework and dissertation in 5
or 6 years
- 21% of recent graduates completed their degree in 4 years or less
- Three fourths (76%) of MSASS doctoral program graduates are employed in university-based tenure
track faculty, research or administrative positions; other students are in post doctoral work, or
non profit organizations
- Responses to an on-line doctoral student survey reveal that quality of faculty and faculty
research are by far considered to be the greatest strengths of the MSASS doctoral program; current
doctoral students chose to come to the MSASS doctoral program due to MSASS school ranking,
financial support and quality of doctoral faculty
*An external review of the MSASS doctoral program is conducted every 8 years. The next
review will take place in 2014-2015.
Doctoral Student Research
The
2008 "Value of
Research" publication highlights
Leslie Strnisha's (Cohort 2004) dissertation research on low-income housing tax
credits.
Recent Graduates: Where are they now?
- Assistant Professors at California State University - Fullerton, Cleveland State University,
University of Missouri - Columbia, Minnesota State University, University of North Carolina -
Charlotte, University of Nebraska - Omaha, Long Island University - Brooklyn, Rutgers University
- Associate Professor at Simmons College, School of Social Work, Boston, MA, Chinese Culture
University - Taiwan
- 2008 Hartford Faculty Scholar, University of Missouri
- Social Work Department Chair and Program Director, Eastern Nazarene College - Quincy, MA
- Deputy Director for the Department of Human Services, Arlington, VA
- Postdoctoral Fellow, Yale University, New Haven, CT
- Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
- Research Scientist, Veteran's Administration
- Senior Research Associate, George Washington University, Washington DC
- Senior Policy Associate, National Center for Cultural Competence, Georgetown University Center
for Child and Human Development - Washington, DC
- Director, Social Work Program, University of Tennessee
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