Social Work Alum and Board of Visitors Chair Alice Thompson received the WSU Alumni Association 2021 Homer D. Strong Award

The Wayne State University Alumni Association annually bestows The Homer D. Strong Award on an individual who encourages alumni participation and benefit to the University through volunteer leadership. Congratulations to this year's recipient, Wayne State School of Social Work alumna and Board of Visitors Chair Alice Thompson '81, of Detroit.

Congratulations to Assistant Professor Jason Carbone, PhD for his Journal of Forensic Sciences (JFS) article, "Homicidal Ideation and Forensic Psychopathology: Evidence From the 2016 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS)," which was selected as a 2020 Noteworthy Article. The article is featured in a special 2020 JFS Noteworthy Articles collection and will be promoted at the 2021 AAFS Virtual Exhibit.

Grant Victor, CBHJ Postdoctoral fellow invited to participate in JCOIN LEAP investigator program

Grant Victor, a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Behavioral Health and Justice at Wayne State University's School of Social Work, has been accepted to participate in the Justice Community Opioid Innovation Network (JCOIN) Learning Experiences to Advance Practice (LEAP) program, as part of the Investigator Track. Through the two-year program, Victor will be immersed within the JCOIN ecosystem to collaborate with JCOIN researchers and develop as an independent investigator, with the overall goal of improving access to high-quality, evidence-based addiction treatment in jail settings.

The School of Social Work is proud to announce that Makayla Payne will serve as the new Student Records Clerk Senior for the Office of Admissions and Student Services. Makayla joined the SSW in April 2019 as a Student Assistant and served as the Professional Technician for Admissions and Student Services prior to this promotion. In her new position, Makayla will support student application processing, complete academic progress and eligibility requests, facilitate reporting requests, support fellow OASS staff and train student assistants. 

CBHJ's Tamarie Willis begins new role as Re-entry Projects Manager

The Center for Behavioral Health and Justice (CBHJ) at the Wayne State University School of Social Work is pleased to announce the promotion of Tamarie Willis to Re-entry Projects Manager. Tamarie has served as a coordinator on the Michigan Re-entry Project (MI-REP) since 2018, providing project coordination and support to Monroe County stakeholders. During her time on the MI-REP project, she proved to be very insightful and solutions-focused, building strong relationships with project partners and community stakeholders.

Wayne State PhD student receives award for highlighting the correlation between serious mental illness and wrongful capital punishment convictions

According to Wayne State University School of Social Work PhD student Alexis Carl, the addition of a serious mental illness (SMI) for defendants may heighten their risk of being wrongfully convicted and consequently dealt a capital sentence. Carl explores this correlation in her recently published article "Dead Wrong: Capital Punishment, Wrongful Convictions, and Serious Mental Illness," which has earned her the Student Paper Gold Prize award from the Wrongful Conviction Law Review (WCLR).

Congratulations to Sarah Mountain, PhD, who successfully defended her dissertation "Resiliency in Adolescents, Risk Taking Behaviors and Protective Factors: Examining the Relationship among African American Adolescents in Chicago's Southside" on March 5, 2021.

Congratulations to Markus Whitehead, PhD, who successfully defended his dissertation "The Military Promotion Process: The Lived Experiences of African - American Women In The Military" on February 16, 2021.