CSW General

Distinguished Graduates: A New Tradition

The fall 2013 semester marked the beginning of a new tradition recognizing five distinguished graduates from the College of Social Work at the annual student scholarship dinner.  The College’s commitment to service lives on through its students and alumni, exemplified by the five special people acknowledged at this year’s dinner, including the Distinguished Emeritus Alumni Award (Joyce Laidlaw), Distinguished Young Alumni Award (Dana Morris-Brooks), Distinguished Field Educator Award (Sharon Maxwell-Ferguson), Distinguished Alumni in Social Work Practice Award (Jeanene J

Doctoral student’s Three Minute Thesis wins People’s Choice Award

Florida State’s Graduate School held its first Three Minute Thesis competition on February 25th in front of a live audience on the main Tallahassee campus.  Developed by The University of Queensland in Australia, this research communication competition challenges doctoral student competitors to present a comprehensive and captivating oration on their dissertation topic and its significance in three minutes or less.  Popularity for the competition has spread across the globe and is held in numerous graduate schoo

Rushing to prescribe: Antidepressants and grieving parents

Some doctors are too quick to prescribe antidepressants to parents who have suffered the death of a child either during pregnancy or within the first month of life, according to a study conducted by Florida State University researcher Jeffrey R. Lacasse.

In a study of 235 bereaved parents participating in an online support community, Lacasse found that 88 — or 37.4 percent — of them were prescribed a psychiatric medication to help them cope. Some women received prescriptions within a week of losing their children.

Domestic violence resources made available to Puerto Rico’s law enforcement

The Institute for Family Violence Studies in Florida State University’s College of Social Work has partnered with the Center for Public Safety Innovation at St. Petersburg College to create a Spanish-language version of an online training program to prevent domestic violence in the homes of law enforcement officers.

The Spanish-language online training went live March 17 and is free to all law enforcement agencies in Puerto Rico.

Alumna Maxine Thurston-Fischer’s legacy lives on at FSU

Dr. Maxine Thurston Fischer quietly made history at FSU in 1964 when she became the first African-American student to receive a degree from the University, graduating with her Master’s in Social Work.  But her contributions to the University and the College of Social Work didn’t stop there. Her degree was a catalyst for a lifetime dedication to social work and social activism.

Leymah Gbowee is “impolitely angry:” Social worker & Nobel Peace Prize winner tells us to transform our anger for social change

“It’s time to stop being politely angry,” said Leymah Gbowee, the Liberian social worker and peace activist who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011. Leymah spent a weekend at Florida State this month, helping students and teachers learn how to harness their personal difficulties and anger at injustice into positive energy towards change.

Doctoral student receives esteemed Child Well-Being Fellowship

Leah Cheatham will be among the 15 doctoral students nationwide to receive the Doris Duke Fellowship for the Promotion of Child Well-Being. Through an annual national competition these students were selected to be the, “new generation of leaders interested in and capable of creating practice and policy initiatives that will enhance child development and improve the nation’s ability to prevent all forms of child maltreatment.”