YEAR IN REVIEW 2019 - 2020
2 | Year in Review 2019-20
Dear Friends, Summarizing this year is not an easy task. The Brown School community was certainly tested as we grappled with multiple pandemics, including the health and economic threats associated with COVID-19, as well as the urgency to advance racial justice. Faculty and staff came together and took swift action to carry forward our commitments to providing outstanding graduate education in social work, public health and social policy via a full range of alternative learning platforms. The high impact research of our faculty, staff and students continued in critically important areas, while simultaneously expanding to address the serious consequences of the challenges that rapidly emerged. Finally, as a visible anchor for our partners in the St. Louis region, across the nation and the globe, I am proud to report that we responded to the emerging need for information, connection and support with new collaborations and innovation. We remain steadfast that we will not let this crisis go to waste…..we will do all that we can to elevate education, research and partnership to emerge more impactful as a school and to draw on our students, alumni, faculty, staff and resources to advance social, economic, health and racial equity. We want to highlight some specific ways that innovation was facilitated by the expressed needs of our community partners and the listening capacity of our faculty and staff. In many of these initiatives, our students, alumni and school champions contributed in critically important ways. First, by mid March, many of our community partners expressed a clear wish to support their staff as so many service organizations switched to remote operations. Thus, the school launched our “Open Classroom” initiative, opening the virtual doors to our school and offering free panels, lectures and webinars that featured our faculty, students, alumni
and community partners. Check out our current offerings at brownschool.wustl.edu/Open-Classroom. COVID-19 also so clearly defined the need for increased support and health care for so many of our vulnerable populations. Our special series COVID-19 and Race explored economic injustice, health disparities and the need for educational equity among other topics. Learn more about the series bit.ly/cfpi-covid-19-andrace. Our faculty also continued to elevate the effects of the pandemic in their work, publishing on topics like how school closures will impact childhood obesity; the social, emotional and health effects of COVID on older populations; the additional social needs (housing, food) that were a bi-product of the crisis; and the effects of social isolation. The brutal deaths of George Floyd, Tony McDade, Breonna Taylor, Sean Reed, and Ahmaud Arbery ignited renewed calls for policing and justice reform. Our Race and Opportunity Lab elevated scienceinformed accountable policing recommendations in “Accountable Policing: Policies to Advance the Personal Safety of Black Boys and Young Men”. Read the report bit.ly/csd-accountable-policing-report. In addition, the Center of Social Development and the School were cosponsors for an impactful congressional briefing titled Social Work and the Future of Policing. This year also culminated in a new 10-year strategic plan for our school, which centers a commitment to driving equity. The planning process will continue to refine this plan. We will have more to share soon. bit.ly/brown-strategic-plan Thank you, as always, for your support of our school, our students, and our mission and vision toward equity. Never have we all been faced with more challenges, more uncertainty, and yet more need for the work we do. Sincerely,
Mary M. McKay Neidorff Family and Centene Corporation Dean of the Brown School
Brown School | 1
Research and Innovation A COLLECTION OF INSIGHTS FROM SOCIAL WORK SCHOLARS
“Toward a Livable Life: A 21st Century Agenda for Social Work ” was released in December 2019. Including the insights of more than 30 leading social work scholars from the Brown School and beyond, and edited by Mark Rank, Herbert S. Hadley Professor of Social Welfare, the text grapples with 13 key areas in the profession in an effort to identify innovative transdisciplinary solutions toward achieving a “livable life — a life in which individuals are able to thrive and reach their full potential.” Topics include alleviating poverty, reforming incarceration, health disparities, engagement over the life course, and more. bit.ly/liveablelife
PAIRING PARENTING AND NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS
Associate Professors Lora Iannotti and Patricia Kohl received a $3.2 million NIH grant for their work in Haiti, which pairs a nutrition intervention with a parenting intervention to study the effect on stunted growth and development of Haitian youth. Estimates show 250 million children less than five years of age are not reaching their developmental potential, and 151 million have stunted growth in the country; this study will add to the scant evidence base regarding integrated approaches to tackle the issue.
2 | Year in Review 2019-20
THE IMPORTANCE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
A report from the Clark-Fox Policy Institute focused on the impact high-quality early childhood care and education can have on children, families and communities, an issue amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Launching Lifelong Success: Ensuring St. Louis’ Kids are Ready by Five proposed three evidence-based policy recommendations: increase access to ECE through sustainable public and private investment; prioritize the funding for children most affected by poverty; and increase the quality of care and education through a coordinated system supported and administered by a single regional entity. bit.ly/cfpi-launch-lifelong-success
TRAINING TO ADDRESS HIV/AIDS IN AFRICA
A $1.5 million NIH grant will provide state-of-the-art training for 18 earlycareer researchers in Uganda to strengthen the capacity of research institutions in the country to address HIV/AIDS and its burden on child and adolescent mental health. The five-year program will be led by Fred Ssewamala, William E. Gordon Distinguished Professor. ichad.wustl.edu/capacity-building
TACKLING CANCER IN RURAL COMMUNITIES
In partnership with the School of Medicine and the Siteman Cancer Center, Ross Brownson, Lipstein Professor of Public Health, was awarded a $7.6 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to co-lead the Washington University Implementation Science Center for Cancer Control (WU-ISCCC), investigating cancer in rural communities. bit.ly/nci-grant-impsci
RESEARCH FUNDING AND OPPORTUNITIES & PUBLISHING PROWESS TOTAL AWARD DOLLARS 2019-20 $22.7M
440+ JOURNAL ARTICLES PUBLISHED BY FACULTY
2014-15 $11.8M
The Brown School faculty has published ground-breaking, field-defining work. Our publications range in issues across the broad spectrum of social work, public health and public policy. View our 2019-20 published faculty authors at: bit.ly/brown-faculty-publications Brown School | 3
Student and Alumni Impact
MPH ALUMS RECEIVE PHI/CDC GLOBAL HEALTH FELLOWSHIPS
Two recent Brown School graduates were selected for a highly competitive Public Health Institute and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Global Health Fellowship, and will be working in Nairobi, Kenya. Christina Moore, MPH ’18, (pictured left) will be working on HIV epidemiology with the CDC’s Monitoring and Evaluation team in Kenya; and Mackenzie Robinson, MPH ’19, will be serving as a Strategic Information Fellow with the Health Systems & Evaluation Branch, working on HIV testing.
4 | Year in Review 2019-20
ADVOCATING FOR WOMEN’S HEALTH IN UGANDA
Alice Emasu Seruyange, MSW ’10, has opened the Specialized Women’s Hospital in Soroti, Eastern Region, Uganda to focus on the treatment, surgical correction and rehabilitation of obstetric fistula. The hospital is owned by Emasu’s nonprofit, TERREWODE. During her time at WashU, Emasu established skills, resources and relationships with both organizations and individuals who were instrumental to the evolution of the hospital.
FIELD EDUCATION INNOVATION ADAPTATION The Covid-19 pandemic presented particular challenges for the Office of Field Education, but the flexibility and creativity of students, faculty, and community partners ensured valuable learning for all students alongside professionals in the field.
RECOGNIZING CSWE MINORITY FELLOWS
Doctoral student in social work Autumn Asher BlackDeer, and Kyliah Thompson, MSW '21, were selected as 2019 CSWE Minority Fellows. BlackDeer’s research focuses on behavioral health and sexual violence within American Indian populations. Thompson hopes to use theater and therapy to help those fighting generational stress and trauma. The fellowship program aims to increase the number of individuals trained to work with underrepresented and underserved racial/ethnic minority persons with or at risk for mental health and/or substance abuse disorders.
Most field sites offered remote learning opportunities, including contact with clients in virtual meetings. Some faceto-face experiences, such as in hospital settings, were accomplished with strict social distancing guidelines and personal protective equipment. Students developed new skills in remote learning, and several completed contact tracing to track the spread of the virus during practicums with the St. Louis County Department of Public Health. An ongoing regional collaboration with social work faculty at Fontbonne University, St. Louis University, and the University of Missouri-St. Louis helped to troubleshoot and offer solutions to common communication and policy challenges in field education.
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X YZ
Brown School by the Numbers
MSW | MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK CONCENTRATIONS | TOTAL MSW POPULATION
198 FALL 2019 COHORT
10
COUNTRIES REPRESENTED
Mental Health Social & Economic Development (Domestic) Children, Youth & Families Social & Economic Development (International) Violence & Injury Prevention Health Older Adults & Aging Societies American Indian & Alaskan Native Undeclared Individualized
129 69 67 42 39 18 18 15 13 9
SPECIALIZATIONS | TOTAL MSW POPULATION Management Policy Research Sexual Heath & Education System Dynamics Social Entrepreneurship
27 53 33 30 20 14
MPH | MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH SPECIALIZATIONS | TOTAL MPH POPULATION
57
Epidemiology/Biostatistics Global Health Generalist Health Policy Analysis Urban Design
63 27 14 10 3
FALL 2019 COHORT
MSW | MPH
10
COUNTRIES REPRESENTED
6 | Year in Review 2019-20
41% 16%
ARE FIRST-GEN UNDERGRAD OR GRADUATE STUDENTS HAVE SERVICE CORPS EXPERIENCE
Student Diversity: Race & Ethnicity
JOINT DEGREES
MSW/MPH MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH DUAL-DEGREE STUDENTS
46
MSP MASTER OF SOCIAL POLICY
JOINT-DEGREE STUDENTS
29*
STUDENTS TOTAL
JOINT DEGREES OFFERED
7
FALL 2019 COHORT
31
STUDENTS TOTAL
MSW
MPH
Architecture Business Divinity Law Education Pastoral Studies Urban Design
Anthropology Business Medicine Occupational Therapy
MASTER’S STUDENTS
644
STUDENTS TOTAL
424 MSW
122 MPH
7
CHINESE PARTNER UNIVERSITIES
* Includes current MSW and MPH students opting to add the MSP degree with an extra year of course work.
PHD STUDENTS
31
MSW/MPH
29
38
JOINT DEGREE
MSP
295
72
STUDENTS TOTAL
53
SOCIAL WORK
19
PUBLIC HEALTH SCIENCES
28
5
10
136
11 16 37
KEY White
71 41
1 3 5
24 14
International
Multi-Racial Minority
Undeclared
Hispanic American
African American
Asian American
Native American or Alaska Native
Multi-Racial Non-Minority
Brown School | 7
Our Program and Values THE NEXT BLUEPRINT FOR THE BROWN SCHOOL
In 2019, we embarked on a five-phase strategic planning process, which featured 30 interactive sessions with more than 400 identified stakeholders to assess the School’s current position and develop our strategic priorities and core commitments. The work continues as teams refine related goals and objectives and prepare to implement our finalized plan, Driving Equity 2030, next fiscal year. bit.ly/brown-strategic-plan
MAKING AN IMPACT FOR NATIVE POPULATIONS
The Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2020 and its preeminence as a center for the academic advancement and study of American Indian issues related to social work, public health and social policy. The Center offers support for American Indian scholars, develops curriculum, conducts research, and engages in policy development that has a positive influence on Native populations. Alumni represent 77 tribes in the U.S. sites.wustl.edu/budercenter
PROVIDING LEADERSHIP AND ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS
Beginning in the fall of 2020, Social Impact Leadership, an innovative social work concentration, will be offered to master of social work students. The Innovation & Social Entrepreneurship track, led by Heather Cameron, the Michael B. Kaufman Professor of Practice in Social Entrepreneurship, will teach students to design, test and launch new ventures that address social and human needs. The track of Organizational Leadership & Management, led by Professor of Practice Barry Rosenberg, will prepare students for leadership roles in organizations or in organizational capacity building.
8 | Year in Review 2019-20
OPEN CLASSROOM
Covid-19 Response
N BROW OL SCHON OPETRACKING OPEN CLASSROOM SOCIAL NEEDS OPEN CLASSROOM BREAKDOWN ASS L C The free online series, launched to help people build OMthe rise of the pandemic, Matthew OWith skills and engage with scholars during the pandemic, R Kreuter, the Kahn Family Professor of Public has provided enormous value to attendees under the leadership of Janet Gillow, director of BROWN professional development SCHOOL programs. As of 12/4, the program has: OPEN
CLASSROOM
OPEN CLASSROOM
78 offerings 29,643 registrations live views (Zoom and YouTube) 10,083 15,967 recordings viewed
PANDEMIC PREPARATION CLASS
Health, and his team have been tracking requests for hundreds of needs, as captured by 2-1-1 help lines across the country. They established a web presence, FOCUS-19, to report new findings daily. Analyses examined cities and states OPEN nationwide and charted the total number of requests CLASSROOM to 2-1-1 for food pantries, home-delivered meals, and rent assistance and many more social needs. bit.ly/hclr-focus-19
In response to COVID-19, the Brown School launched The Foundations of Pandemic Preparedness & Response, a five-part, 20-hour program that provides OPEN a self-paced, online curriculum and toolkit designed to OPEN CLASSROOM build basic understanding and skills in epidemiology, CLASSROOM surveillance and response, communication, mitigation and recovery, and public health and policy. The asynchronous modules can be taken singularly or together, and offer expertise from Brown School faculty members focused on a wide range of disciplines. The goal is to provide professionals with the best possible ways to prepare evidencebased, transdisciplinary responses to the pandemic, while also applying an equity lens. CEUs are offered and the price point is accessible.
PROGRAM RANKINGS U.S. News & World Report, 2019
#2
in Social Work
#17
in Public Health (highest-ranked program among a field of schools)
SUPPORT OF STUDENTS FALL 2019 COHORT:
SUPPORTING OUR COMMUNITY’S HEALTH
Spurred by a desire to help their Brown School colleagues during the early stages of the pandemic in the U.S., our Chinese students, faculty and staff community collected more than 1,500 masks from a then-surplus in China for free distribution to those in need in our community. The program was initiated by Linyun Fu, manager of global programs, along with Assistant Professor Ruopeng An and Zizi Xu, a second-year MSW student, who solicited donations of masks from the Brown School Chinese community.
$9.6m
in need and merit-based scholarships awarded to master’s students
100% of students requesting scholarship receive an award
$34,000 average master’s student award ($30,000 is median award number)
100% tuition support and stipend for living expenses for all doctoral students Brown School | 9
Faculty Additions and Accolades THE BROWN SCHOOL WELCOMED 11 NEW EXCEPTIONAL FACULTY SCHOLARS IN FALL 2020
Mari Acri, associate professor on the research faculty track
Ellis Ballard, assistant professor on the practice faculty track
Dan Ferris, assistant professor on the practice faculty track
brownschool.wustl.edu/Acri
brownschool.wustl.edu/Ballard
brownschool.wustl.edu/Ferris
Elizabeth Fuchs, lecturer (equivalent to an assistant professor on the teaching faculty track) brownschool.wustl.edu/Fuchs
Erika Gonzalez, lecturer (equivalent to an assistant professor on the teaching faculty track)
Jennifer Harpring, professor on the teaching faculty track and assistant dean of field education
brownschool.wustl.edu/Gonzalez
brownschool.wustl.edu/Harpring
Phillip Marotta, assistant professor on the tenure track
Alison Rico, lecturer (equivalent to an assistant professor on the teaching faculty track)
brownschool.wustl.edu/Marotta
brownschool.wustl.edu/Rico
10 | Year in Review 2019-20
Barbara Levin, professor on the teaching faculty track brownschool.wustl.edu/Levin
Ragini Maddipati, lecturer (equivalent to an assistant professor on the teaching faculty track) brownschool.wustl.edu/Maddipati
Jewel Stafford, professor on the teaching faculty track brownschool.wustl.edu/Stafford
Douglas Luke, Irving Louis Horowitz Professor in Social Policy, received the Distinguished Faculty Award and delivered the Convocation address.
brownschool.wustl.edu/Luke
Margaret Sherraden, professor on the research track, was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare brownschool.wustl.edu/Sherraden
Associate Professor Jason Purnell was selected to head St. Louis’ COVID-19 Regional Response Team and has been named vice president of community health improvement at BJC HealthCare. brownschool.wustl.edu/Purnell
Professor Vetta Sanders Thompson was appointed to a three-year term on the St. Louis County Health and Hospital Advisory Board. brownschool.wustl.edu/Thompson
Maura Kepper, assistant professor on the research track received the Diversity Institute & Mentored Training Award by the Society of Behavioral Medicine. brownschool.wustl.edu/Kepper
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Founded in 1925, the George Warren Brown School was named with a generous gift from Betty Bofinger Brown in memory of her late husband.
12 | Year in Review 2019-20