Faculty & Research

Amy Ai, a distinguished research professor at the Florida State University College of Social Work, has been selected as a fellow of the Society of Behavioral Medicine (SBM).

As a first-generation American, Erika Cuffy calls Florida home after her parents immigrated to the United States from Cuba in the 1970s. She discovered at an early age how much she loved people and finding ways to connect and help them.

Following a national search, Florida State University has named three-time alumnus David W. Springer as dean of the College of Social Work. Springer will begin his new role on August 1, 2023.

A recent study led by Beren Crim Sabuncu, an FSU College of Social Work doctoral student explored how spiritual and social support can be related to the long-term impacts of trauma. One source of trauma on the rise is natural disasters, Crim noted.

Crim, PhD candidate Wenyi Li, and FSU Distinguished Research Professor Dr. Amy L. Ai were particularly interested in the relationships between these protective factors and hurricane-related trauma for volunteers responding after a storm.

Dr. Qiuchang Cao, who also goes by Katy, learned first-hand as a clinical intern during her Master of Social Work program the challenges faced by older adults in vulnerable situations and was also deeply impressed by the resilience they demonstrated. While providing mental health counseling to minority/minoritized students, international scholars, and transnational families in a graduate housing community she gained more perspective on the experiences of minority/minoritized populations across the lifespan.

On March 30-31, 2023, the Rural Opioid Technical Assistance Regional Center (ROTA-RC) hosted a symposium on Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) and Rural Resiliency.

For more than 25 years, Pamela (Pam) W. Graham MacDill served as a dedicated faculty member and administrator with the FSU College of Social Work before retiring in 2020. After a battle with lung cancer, she passed away in 2023.

Children who need life-changing heart transplants in Florida will be able to receive free support to help improve medication adherence, which can potentially reduce the frequency of organ rejection over the next two years, thanks to a National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award for $1.67M to Scene Health (formerly emocha Health), a leading video medication adherence platform.

Citation metrics provide a potentially useful tool to quantify and measure the scholarly impact  a research article, a given scholars impact and even the development of research and ideas. A recent article in Research on Social Work Practice identified the Top 100 contributors to social work journal scholarship worldwide.

With educational, research and social work practice experience across three continents, including Africa, Europe and North America, Gashaye (Gash) Melaku Tefera considers himself an international social work researcher with a mission to improve the lives and representation of underserved populations. His research addresses concerns of immigrant, refugee and indigenous populations, focusing on underserved women and older adults.