University of Georgia School of Social Work

09/03/2026

09/02/2026

The School of Social Work is proud to partner with the Fontaine Center at the UGA Health Center and The Ralston Institute to host two in-person recovery-oriented events.
Register at https://linktr.ee/ugasocialwork

These interactive sessions bring together community members, professionals, and individuals with lived experiences to have open conversations about substance use, recovery, and support systems. "The Power of Lived Experience" on Sept 9 from 11:30AM-1:30PM in Room 215, University of Georgia School of Social Work Building. "Compassionate Conversations" on Sept 22 from 2:20PM-4:20PM in Room 242, University of Georgia School of Social Work Building.

08/31/2026

The Savannah Bananas are known for their entertaining, high-energy style of baseball at stadiums across the country, but one of our alumni is ensuring their impact extends beyond the diamond.

Lexie Callahan, a 2026 Bachelor of Social Work graduate, turned an internship with Bananas Foster, the official nonprofit organization of Banana Ball, into her first job out of college.

“Being so passionate about something and getting to share it on a field in front of 40,000-plus people is such an insane, surreal feeling,” Callahan said. “It’s something that needs so much light shed on it. There are so many kids in foster care that are just forgotten about and left behind, and it’s just such a dream to be able to tell people about it.”

Bananas Foster Banana Ball

08/31/2026

Associate Professor Sharon Parker recently participated in the UGA New Faculty Tour, which is designed to introduce faculty to Georgia’s geography, demographics, economy, history and culture while familiarizing them with UGA’s land-grant and sea-grant missions and longstanding commitment to serving the state. Coordinated by UGA Public Service and Outreach, the immersive experience takes faculty beyond Athens to meet the people and visit the communities, industries and landscapes shaping Georgia.

08/27/2026

At our annual faculty/staff retreat last week, we honored Constance Wooden-Smith, LCSW, who will be retiring on August 31. For the past 9 years, Constance has been an Academic Professional and Coordinator of our MSW programs at the Gwinnett Campus and Online.

As an educator, Constance has been deeply committed to preparing the next generation of social workers through high-quality teaching, and has taught across the MSW curriculum, including courses in generalist social work practice, child abuse and neglect, foster care and adoption, social welfare policy, and integrative capstone practice.

Constance is widely recognized for her student-centered leadership and unwavering commitment to student success. She provides comprehensive academic advising, career coaching, and professional mentoring while leading recruitment, curriculum development, and program improvement initiatives. Her contributions have been recognized with the UGA School of Social Work Gwinnett Campus Full-Time Teacher of the Year Award and multiple Career Success Influencer Awards from the University of Georgia Career Center.

We congratulate Constance on her retirement and celebrate her extraordinary career of compassion, leadership, mentorship, and service. We will miss you, Constance.

08/27/2026

08/26/2026

The decision to crack open a beer on a hot summer day may be about more than refreshment, according to a new University of Georgia School of Social Work study.

The new research found that adverse childhood experiences, particularly negative relationships between a child and parent, were linked to more frequent drinking during periods of extreme heat.

08/26/2026

We are excited to announce that Clinical Assistant Professor Naynette Kennett is starting as our new Online MSW Program Coordinator. Kennett brings a wealth of clinical and academic experience to this role, and we are confident that her expertise will greatly benefit our program and students.

Kennett is a licensed clinical social worker and a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Georgia School of Social Work. Her research interests include cultural competence, trauma, racial trauma as it relates to clinical practice, infant mental health, sports performance and mental health, and perinatal mental health. Her commitment to applying her clinical, research, and instructional expertise to lead our Online MSW Program aligns closely with our school’s mission and will further strengthen our efforts to support students and the broader community.

08/25/2026

We'd like to welcome Catherine (Cady) Carlson to our faculty as Associate Professor, as part of the Presidential Hiring Initiative in Digital Health and Mental Health.

Carlson brings nationally recognized expertise in global mental health, implementation science, and violence prevention. Her research examines the intersection of violence and mental health, with a particular focus on implementing evidence-based interventions in low-resource settings. Drawing on community-engaged research and implementation science, her work advances innovative approaches to improving access to mental health services, including the use of digital technologies and other scalable interventions for underserved populations.

08/24/2026

We're pleased to announce that Assistant Professor Gaurav Sinha will serve as our Director of Global Engagement starting this academic year. At the same time, we recognize and thank Associate Professor Jane McPherson for her extensive contributions in this role over the past ten years.

Sinha's research and teaching are informed by 16 years of post-MSW experience in designing, implementing, and evaluating organizational and systems-level change initiatives that aimed at building economic resilience among women, indigenous communities, and underrepresented populations in India, Tanzania, and the United States.

Sinha’s research agenda focuses on leveraging emerging technologies and strengths-based approaches to advance financial and mental health equity. Currently, he is leading two global research projects examining mental health among emerging adults in low-resource settings. In parallel, he is investigating how AI-driven chatbots and LLMs can serve as adjuncts/peers to traditional interventions to expand access to financial and mental health care and address gaps in service delivery.