Faculty - Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis

Naseh receives William H. Danforth St. Louis Confluence Award

Myra — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 15:01:22 +0000

By Diane Toroian Keaggy April 21, 2026 When newcomers to St. Louis succeed, the entire region succeeds, says Blake Hamilton, president of the International Institute of St. Louis. That’s why he agreed to join with Mitra Naseh, an assistant professor at the 17�Թ� and founding director of the school’s Forced Migration Initiative, in her quest to foster belonging among the region’s large Afghan population and to find ways to better connect refugees to the services they need to thrive. “This work also reminds us that welcoming is not a measure of individual effort alone. It is a measure of whether our region is prepared to unlock talent, recognize credentials, support families and create pathways to mobility,” Hamilton told attendees at the 2026...

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Morrow-Howell authors guide to promote age inclusivity in higher education

admin — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 16:36:15 +0000

Nancy Morrow-Howell, the Betty Bofinger Brown Distinguished Professor of Social Policy at the 17�Թ�, has authored a new guide aimed at helping colleges and universities communicate more effectively about age and aging. The guide, “Age Inclusivity in Higher Education Quick Start Guide,” was released by the Gerontological Society of America (GSA). It builds on tools developed by the National Center to Reframe Aging and the Age lnclusivity Domains of Higher Education model. The guide presents strategies to enhance more age-inclusive messages and languages on campuses with the aim to promote more positive attitudes about age and more productive learning and work environments for people of all ages. The Age lnclusivity Domains of Higher Education model identifies seven institutional areas to focus on to create an age-inclusive...

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Guaranteed income improved artists’ finances, innovation

Roger — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 15:53:47 +0000

A guaranteed income program for artists led to improvement in financial stability and reduced debt, but also improved their motivation and artistic output, finds a new study from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. “Our main finding is that giving people cash not only helps them live a more secure life, it also provides a pathway toward personal, professional and artistic growth,” said Stephen Roll, an assistant professor and an expert on asset building and economic security. Roll is co-author of the paper “Empowering Artistic Labor: How Guaranteed Income Enhances Intrinsic Motivation and Fosters Human Flourishing,” published online in the journal World Development Perspectives. Roll and his co-authors examined data from the Creatives Rebuild New York (CRNY) Guaranteed Income...

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Marotta co-develops course to train pharmacy professionals for overdose prevention roles

admin — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 14:44:37 +0000

Phillip Marotta, an assistant professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, has co-developed a course that prepares pharmacy professionals who are training to become community health workers in harm reduction, overdose prevention and substance use care. The course, “Integrated Community Approaches to Overdose Prevention and Substance Use Health,” was created by interdisciplinary team of faculty from the Missouri Pharmacy Association, the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis and the University of Kansas School of Pharmacy. Brown School alumna Emily Palm, who earned an MSW and MBA in 2024, also helped develop the course. The training provides evidence-based instruction on infectious disease prevention, medications for substance use disorders and strategies to address underlying factors...

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Clark-Fox Policy Institute event bridges research, community voices to advance refugee well-being in St. Louis

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 20:04:35 +0000

A new initiative designed to accelerate the translation of academic research into actionable policy drew a full crowd for its first event April 1 at Delmar DivINe. The session, hosted by the 17�Թ�’s Clark-Fox Policy Institute Senior Policy Fellows program, brought together scholars, practitioners, and community members for a meaningful conversation about the experiences and well-being of refugees in St. Louis. In his opening remarks, Jason Jabbari, assistant professor at the Brown School and Clark-Fox Policy Institute (CFPI) faculty director, underscored the institute’s commitment to move research more quickly into policy impact. He emphasized supporting scholars who work closely with communities and are committed to translating evidence into action. “We’re here not just to share ideas, but to...

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New funding expands Brown School–linked suicide prevention initiative in Missouri schools

admin — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 22:06:45 +0000

A suicide prevention initiative that began at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis is expanding statewide under a new name, supported by new funding to strengthen how Missouri schools prevent and respond to student suicide risk. The program, now known as the Missouri Hope Policy Academy, has received support from the Missouri Suicide Prevention Network, in collaboration with the Missouri Behavioral Health Council, to develop curriculum and evaluate the scaled-up effort. The academy helps school districts build stronger suicide prevention, intervention and postvention policies. The initiative builds on work that began in 2019 at the Brown School, when faculty researchers sought to better understand how Missouri school districts approached suicide prevention and response at the policy level....

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Leadership award named for Barry Rosenberg

Roger — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 15:15:14 +0000

The Jewish Federation of St. Louis has renamed its annual professional leadership achievement award in honor of Barry Rosenberg, a professor of practice at the 17�Թ�. The award recognizes Rosenberg for his 37-year career in executive leadership within the Jewish community, 19 of which he served as president and chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of St. Louis. The Barry Rosenberg Professional Leadership Award recognizes outstanding professional leadership in a St. Louis Jewish organization. Recipients excel in their field, have introduced important innovations and are perceived as role models by other professionals and volunteers. This year’s winner is 17�Թ� alumna Jacqueline Ulin Levey, who has been the CEO of 17�Թ� Hillel since October 2009, enriching the lives and Jewish journeys of thousands of students and leading...

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Font testifies on adoption programs before House subcommittee

admin — Mon, 30 Mar 2026 18:09:32 +0000

Sarah Font, professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis and an expert on the child welfare system, testified March 26 before the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies on the topic of federal funding for adoption programs. The hearing, titled “Advancing Permanency in Child Welfare: Leveraging Federal Funding for Adoption Programs,” focused on improving adoption outcomes for children in foster care. Font told the subcommittee that states routinely fail to facilitate timely, safe and stable adoptions. She cited federal data showing children spend a median of 31 months in foster care before adoption, with some states averaging more than 45 months. According to the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting...

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Morrow-Howell, Halvorsen appointed to organizations for older adults

admin — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 15:51:01 +0000

Nancy Morrow-Howell and Cal J. Halvorsen, faculty members at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, have been appointed to serve on local organizations that support older adults. Morrow-Howell, the Betty Bofinger Brown Distinguished Professor of Social Policy and co-director of the Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging at the Brown School, has been named to the board of directors of the St. Louis City Area Agency on Aging. Funded through federal, state, local and private sources, the agency coordinates community-based services for older adults and their caregivers in the city. She also has been appointed as a commissioner on the St. Louis County’s Older Adult Commission. The commission advises the county executive and County departments on matters relevant...

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17�Թ� Experts: Trump accounts must have auto enrollment

Roger — Tue, 10 Feb 2026 15:48:25 +0000

Widespread promotion has started for so-called Trump Accounts, including an ad during the Super Bowl. The accounts allow parents to opt in to claim investment seed money of up to $1,000 for their children. But that opt-in part is problematic, say two experts on child development accounts at Washington University in St. Louis. “Automatic enrollment is the difference between Trump Accounts functioning as a truly universal wealth-building policy and a policy that unintentionally leaves out many children,” said Michael Sherraden, the George Warren Brown Distinguished University Professor. “In the field of early wealth-building, automatic enrollment is the gold standard for achieving full participation.” The strongest U.S. evidence comes from the SEED for Oklahoma Kids (SEED OK) experiment conducted by Sherraden and the...

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Halvorsen, Jovanovich receive Bauer Leaders Academy grant

admin — Tue, 10 Feb 2026 12:36:00 +0000

Cal J. Halvorsen, associate professor, and Joe Jovanovich, lecturer, both at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, have received a curricular innovation grant from 17�Թ�’s Bauer Leaders Academy. The grant will support Halvorsen and Jovanovich as they update the “Social Work Practice with Organizations and Communities” course, also known as “Practice 2,” to include new leadership learning components. The pair will revise the course syllabus over the summer, incorporating input from fellow instructors, students, and community partners, in preparation for the spring 2027 semester. The Bauer Leaders Academy, in partnership with the Bauer Leadership Center, offers selective grants to help faculty incorporate purpose and leadership themes into their courses.

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CFPI launches Senior Policy Fellows pilot to accelerate research-to-policy impact

Mon, 09 Feb 2026 22:45:43 +0000

The Clark-Fox Policy Institute (CFPI) at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis has launched its inaugural Senior Policy Fellows pilot program, a new initiative aimed at accelerating the translation of academic research into actionable public policy that improves child and family wellbeing. While universities produce a wealth of policy-relevant research, many scholars lack the training, time, or institutional support to move their findings into policy arenas. CFPI’s Senior Policy Fellows model is designed to address that gap by providing structured support for faculty to engage directly with policymakers, communities, and practitioners. “Researchers are generating powerful evidence every day, but too often that knowledge doesn’t reach the people shaping policy,” said Jason Jabbari, assistant professor and inaugural faculty director...

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Guaranteed income improves food security for Black households in Georgia, study finds

admin — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 17:41:32 +0000

Guaranteed income programs may reduce food insecurity and improve nutrition among low-income Black households in Georgia, according to a new study led by the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. The study evaluated the “In Her Hands” pilot program, launched in 2022, which provided $20,400 over two years to 654 randomly selected low-income women in three majority-Black Georgia communities. Participants reported higher household food security and better diet quality than women who did not receive the payments. Stephen Roll, assistant professor and research director at the Brown School’s Center for Social Development and the study’s lead author, said 40% of the women in the program reported high or marginal food security, compared with 14% of women in the...

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Jonson-Reid, Drake co-author new book on child welfare systems

admin — Tue, 20 Jan 2026 18:10:45 +0000

Melissa Jonson-Reid, the Ralph & Muriel Pumphrey Professor of Social Work Research, and Brett Drake, Professor of Data Science for the Social Good in Practice of Washington University’s Brown School, are co-authors of a new book that examines the processes and outcomes of child welfare services in the United States, with global comparisons highlighting both challenges and opportunities in the field. “Understanding Child Welfare,” was released in January 2026 by Edward Elgar Publishing as an open access publication. It is part of Edward Elgar’s “Understanding” series, which features works authored or edited by leading scholars. The book helps to shed light on which child welfare system reforms may be most likely to benefit at-risk and maltreated children and families. Chapters address key and...

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Rank wins book award

Roger — Fri, 16 Jan 2026 17:16:04 +0000

Mark Rank, the Herbert S. Hadley Professor of Social Welfare, received the 2026 Independent Press Award in the category of sociology for his book “The Random Factor: How Chance and Luck Profoundly Shape Our Lives and the World Around Us.” Rank, who teaches at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, went to Stockholm in October to discuss his book in front of a live audience with bestselling author, and Duke University professor, Kate Bowler for her podcast, “Everything Happens.”

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