Doctoral Program

A study recently published in the Journal of Threat Assessment and Management, a publication from the American Psychological Association, examined the case of the sole perpetrator of Incel-related violence that took place in a Tallahassee, Florida yoga studio in 2018. The perpetrator opened fire on a Tallahassee yoga studio on November 2, 2018, injuring several and fatally wounding FSU student Maura Binkley and FSU faculty member Dr. Nancy Van Vessem.

As Florida State University welcomed back students to campus in August, student organizations and their new leaders are faced with the fun challenge of reconnecting with their peers in person. The FSU College of Social Work is excited to profile the amazing students leading the FSU Student Association of Social Workers (SASW) and the FSU Macro Social Work Student Network (MSWSN) who have dedicated themselves to the busy and ambitious lineup of social, networking and education events for students in the College of Social Work and across campus.

After graduating with her MSW in 1996 and her Ph.D. in 2006 from the Florida State University College of Social Work, Dr. Lisa Johnson returned in 2018 as an Assistant Teaching Professor and co-Program Coordinator for the College of Social Work at FSU Panama City.  In addition, she served as the area coordinator and faculty field liaison for the online MSW program. She returned to the College of Social Work in Tallahassee in 2020 as a Visiting Teaching Professor where she taught courses remotely due to the Pandemic.

The FSU College of Social Work celebrated its spring 2021 graduates with both an in-person and virtual event.  As the nation becomes more vaccinated and FSU’s campus opens up, the college wished to celebrate students in safe and accessible ways.

Dr. David Springer will step into the role as interim dean of the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) while UT conducts a national search for a new dean. More than two decades as a professor and academic leader at UT Austin have prepared him for this new leadership role.

The FSU College of Social Work (CSW) celebrated its 2020 Distinguished Alumni Award and Student Scholarship recipients through a virtual event on Thursday, November 5, 2020. The event was hosted by Dean Jim Clark and faculty members who serve on the college’s Student Affairs Committee.

The event honored 90 outstanding student scholars. Scholarship awards totaling more than $97,000 were given in support of CSW students, including those studying international programs, child welfare, social policy, and veterans.

The five CSW Alumni Award recipients included:

Two Florida State University faculty members received a $16,000 grant from the Mental Research Institute to launch their project, “Family Therapy and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Telehealth Response.” Dr. Michele Parker of the FSU College of Human Sciences and Dr.

Although the Fall 2020 semester looks very different from previous fall semesters due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the FSU College of Social Work is proud to welcome its newest cohort of doctoral students. Each comes to FSU with a wealth of previous experience in social work and a desire to make a difference in social work research and academia. Meet our Fall 2020 Doctoral Cohort:

Florida State University celebrated its Summer 2020 graduates with a virtual celebration on July 31st at 7:30 pm. The College of Social Work along with the other colleges across campus provided virtual celebrations for their graduates.

Recent graduate R. Lane Forsman was able to successfully defend his dissertation on February 28th before the U.S. had seen the full impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Despite all the current uncertainties surrounding the pandemic, Lane is excited to join the faculty of Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville (SIUE).

His dissertation titled, “Queer College Sexual Violence: The interaction of gender identity and sexual assault on campus” (Major professor: Lisa Schelbe) highlights his research interest in LGBTQ+ issues and sexual assault.