Columbia University’s School of Social Work has inducted Murali Nair, a clinical professor at the USC School of Social Work, into its Hall of Fame for his exemplary leadership in social work education and his exceptional professional achievements.

The Hall of Fame Awards, established by Columbia’s Social Work Alumni Association, annually recognize alumni who have made significant contributions to the theory or practice of social work and have added distinction to the profession.

“When I went back to Columbia a few years ago, I saw my mentor professor Alfred Khan’s name engraved in the Hall of Fame, and I wished then to have my name placed next to his,” said Nair, who received his doctorate from Columbia in 1978. “It’s a great honor to be chosen. Columbia selects nationally and internationally known scholars in the field of social work, and to know I was even nominated makes it a very humbling experience.”

Prior to USC, Nair was a professor at Cleveland State University for 20 years, which included serving as the co-director of the Center for Healing Across Cultures and director of the School of Social Work. He also received the Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching, the Distinguished Faculty Award for Service and the Multicultural Leadership Award.

Nair has written, edited or co-authored 10 books, in addition to more than 100 refereed journal articles, book chapters and invitational paper presentations at state, national and international conferences. He currently serves as a consultant for the Commission on National and Community Service. The Fulbright Scholar has also produced eight short documentaries based on his cross-national field studies on disaster management and healing across cultures, some of which profile communities ravaged by the tsunami in Kerala, India and Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.

Nair is currently writing Engaged Learning, a book that will advise educators on how to captivate students in the classroom.