News Archive
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Two years ago, Allison Chapman decided she was no longer going to put off earning an advanced degree. The daughter of a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and granddaughter of a clinical psychologist, she grew up in a family who volunteered together in the community.
“I was always at a shelter or other service organization, always raised to do something for someone else,” Chapman said. “I feel like I’ve been a social worker my whole life.”
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Each year, the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work honors students who have made significant achievements in their academic careers and contributions to the community. We are proud to recognize the following students for their outstanding accomplishments.
Gladys M. Salit Award
Recognizes outstanding potential to contribute to the profession of social work. This award honors the professional life of distinguished alumna Gladys Salit.
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In March of 2023, Nicole Carson found herself driving across the island of Guam in a total blackout at two o’clock in the morning. Electricity across most of the island was out following a super typhoon that had hit the previous week. A mere three weeks earlier she had arrived on the island with her husband and four-year-old daughter. It was an unexpected change of assignment for her husband, a chief navy diver in the U.S. Navy.
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In May 2025, Lisa Whealy receives her Doctor of Social Work (DSW) from the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work. Her path to completing this degree, however, was a journey of discovery.
At the beginning of 2020, Lisa Whealy was in her final semester to complete a master’s degree in communication management from USC Annenberg, and self-employed as a music journalist and publicist. Then, the pandemic hit.
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The USC PhD Achievement Awards recognize six doctoral candidates, and their primary faculty advisor, from across the university, with exceptional academic profiles. Among the recipients for 2025 are PhD candidate Lucinda Adjesiwor and Associate Professor Julie Cederbaum of the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work.
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Professors María Aranda and Yuri Jang were honored by the university at the 44th Annual Faculty Academic Honors Convocation ceremony in Town and Gown on April 16, 2025, in recognition of their induction into the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare (AASWSW), one the highest honors bestowed in the social work profession.
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The history of social work practice has followed alongside the quest for women’s rights. In fact, Jane Addams, widely considered “the mother of social work,” was only the second woman — and the first American woman — to win a Nobel Peace Prize, in 1931. Her work set the stage for advocacy on many of the issues that remain central to the practice and research of the social work profession today, including homelessness, immigration and the needs of children and families. Addams’ leadership also established social work as a viable professional alternative for women.
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The health issues associated with social determinants among individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or transgender (LGBT) have long been known, including increased risk for suicidal ideation, homelessness, substance use and adverse childhood experiences. What has been unknown is whether those increased risks translate into actual mortality outcomes. That is because sexual orientation is not included in the routine data collected when a person dies in the U.S., such as gender, race and a host of other important information that can inform preventive care measures.
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During the COVID-19 pandemic, Mercedes Tiggs, MSW ’12, was living in a one-room apartment with her dog, experiencing significant anxiety and depression.
“I was very fortunate to bring myself out of that rut by coming up with weekly activities in the kitchen,” Tiggs said.
She found planning meals and cooking to be therapeutic, and reasoned that if it helped her it may also help others. So, Tiggs fused her passion for mental health with her passion for cooking to create a nontraditional therapy intervention.
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At the tender age of six, Shobana Powell, DSW ’20, decided to be a light amidst the darkness in the world, and to build community. Nestled in her grandmother’s lap, she heard countless inspiring stories of how her mother, grandparents and many others in her family and the Tamil community survived the Sri Lankan civil war in the 1980s. Her family later emigrated to the United States, where Powell was born.
At age 12, while learning about human rights around the world and civil rights across the U.S., she suddenly realized something about herself.