Zhe Yang is a doctoral student at Florida State University College of Social Work. Her research interests include pediatric healthcare, medical social work, and program evaluation. She particularly focuses on the influence of social determinants of health (SDoH) on children with severe diseases, mental health challenges among pediatric patients, and healthcare utilization in pediatric settings.
Michaé D. Cain, M.S.W, is a doctoral candidate and an adjunct lecturer in the College of Social Work. She is also a graduate research assistant with the Florida Institute for Child Welfare. Her research broadly focuses on Children, Adolescents, and Family well-being; her current research examines issues impacting the child welfare workforce. Michaé is interested in research surrounding domestic violence, youth development and well-being, and women's issues such as women empowerment and intimate partner violence.
Tracy McDade is an assistant teaching professor with extensive experience in the public and private sectors, primarily with nonprofit child welfare organizations. She supports undergraduate and graduate social work students in child welfare internships, particularly in Flagler, Putnam, St. Johns and Volusia counties.
Klika, J.B., Haboush-Deloy, A., & Linkenbach, J. (accepted). Hidden protections: Identifying social norms associated with child abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect.
Lisa Johnson is an Associate Teaching Professor at the College of Social Work in the Online MSW program. She has extensive experience teaching traditional, hybrid, synchronous, and asynchronous online courses. Her experience in social work practice focuses on child welfare. She received a university award for Excellence in Online Teaching (2021-2022).
Shalay Jackson is an associate teaching professor with expertise in macro social work and bridging the gap between research and practice in school social work. Her areas of expertise include social policy, resilience, community practice and adolescent behavioral health. She was voted Professor of the Year at the College of Social Work twice (2021 & 2019) and received a Community Engaged Teaching Award from FSU (2020).
Ellen is a graduate of the University of Kansas and has led the Center for the Study and Promotion of Communities, Families, & Children since its inception. Under her leadership, the Center successfully implemented the Save the Children's Journey of Hope program following Hurricane Michael, and it created a revolutionary new disaster mental health intervention aimed at VPK students.
In addition, the Center has also received a grant from SAMHSA to update substance use curriculums across disciplines in Florida.
Machelle Madsen Thompson is a research and teaching faculty member with expertise in trauma, resilience, and child welfare. She is a Licensed Clinical Social worker and Qualified Supervisor for CSW and MFT. She has 12 years of non-accidental trauma intervention experience at Primary Children's Hospital affiliated with the University of Utah serving the intermountain region. She earned her Ph.D. from FSU from the College of Social Work with an Educational Psychology Statistics & Measurement certification. She became a U.S.
Jessica Pryce is a research faculty member and works directly with child welfare leaders through the Florida Institute for Child Welfare on organizational change through the Alliance for Workforce Enhancement under the institute’s GROW Center. She previously served as the institute's director from 2017 to early 2023. An alumna of the College of Social Work and a Florida native, she completed her MSW in 2009 and worked as a child protective investigator with DCF before transitioning to Washington, DC, to pursue her doctorate degree from Howard University.
Rachel is a doctoral candidate in the College of Social Work at Florida State University (FSU) and a graduate research assistant in the Center of Population Sciences for Health Empowerment, also at FSU. Her research is focused on socially vulnerable populations, with a special interest in Maternal and Child Health (MCH) populations in relation to health and social service delivery and engagement and social determinants of health.
