
Dr. Adamek is the Director of the Ph.D. Program in Social Work at Indiana University in Indianapolis. As a member of the first cohort of Hartford Geriatric Social Work Faculty Scholars, Dr. Adamek conducted a study focusing on depression among long-term care residents. Her research interests center around mental health issues of older adults, particularly elder suicide. Dr. Adamek earned her BS in Social Work in 1982 from the University of Dayton, her MSW from Washington University in 1983, and her PhD from Case Western Reserve University in 1989. She completed a one year postdoc at the University of Michigan focused on applied issues in aging research.


Ivette Barbosa, MSW, is a native from the island of Puerto Rico where she grew up and completed her Bachelors and Masters Degree in the field of Social Work at the University of Puerto Rico. She was the recipient of the NASW Puerto Rican chapter scholarship to complete her studies. She joined the School of Social Work in January 2009 as the BSW Student Services Coordinator. Prior to her appointment, she taught in the BSW program as an associate faculty. Ivette Barbosa moved to the city of Indianapolis in 1993 and has worked with the Hispanic/Latino population since then. She was part of the first task force that developed the Hispanic Health Project at Wishard Hospital. She developed several Hispanic projects and initiatives at other agencies including Healthy Families and Children's Bureau Inc. She has provided trainings and made presentations at different organizations and agencies on Hispanic/Latino matters and is an active member of the Latino community.

As MSW Field Secretary, Dee Barnes coordinates the paperwork related to field placement agencies, student field records, faculty liaison assignments, and provides communication with faculty liaisons, and students.

Dr. William Barton received a B.A. and M.A. in Psychology from Swarthmore College and his M.S.W. and Ph.D. in Social Work and Psychology from the University of Michigan. He has been on the faculty of Indiana University School of Social Work since 1993. Dr. Barton teaches courses in juvenile justice policy, program evaluation research methods, executive leadership, and the philosophy of science. His research agenda combines the substantive areas of juvenile justice, delinquency prevention and youth development issues with the applied methodologies of program evaluation and needs assessment.


Dr. Robert Bennett received a B.A. from Southern Methodist University, a M.S.W. from Tulane University, and his D.S.W. from the University of Utah. He practiced clinical social work with children, adolescents and families prior to joining the IUSSW faculty in 1996. Dr. Bennett's interests are in the areas of mental health practice as well as with juvenile offenders. HIs research interests are currently focused upon treatment modalities for juvenile offenders and also in the evaluation of social work practice skills. Dr. Bennett teaches social work practice courses in the first year of the MSW program as well as in the mental health concentration.

Dr. Black has worked as a practitioner, supervisor and administrator in medical social work for more than 17 years. She received her doctorate in 1996 from Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her dissertation was on examining resource use by battered women treated in the emergency room and ambulatory clinics of a large, urban healthcare facility. Dr. Black has taught courses and workshops on the dynamics of domestic violence and continues to conduct research with battered women, focusing upon strengths and survival skills.

Dr. Lorraine Blackman's teaching, research and service are primarily focused on strengthening families to provide for the instrumental and expressive needs of their members across the lifespan. She earned her B.A. in Sociology from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, her M.S.W. from the University of Tennessee and her Ph.D. in Social Work from Florida State University. Dr. Blackman's work centers on family life education as a primary and secondary intervention method and advanced practice with couples and families as a tertiary method. A related focus is on shaping social policies to facilitate family functioning. See www.aafle.org for further information about Dr. Blackman's work.

Dr. Boys earned a J.D. from Indiana University-Bloomington, an MSW from IUPUI, and a PhD in Social Work and Political Science from the University of Michigan. She was an Assistant Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences at IU-East for two years before being appointed to the faculty of the IUSSW in 2007. She teaches a range of courses in research, policy, and leadership at the BSW and MSW level. Her research agenda combines legal studies with the substantive areas of juvenile justice, capital punishment, and welfare policy implementation.



In addition to being the School receptionist and assisting in the everyday operation of the Dean's office, Julia Carter is Administrative Secretary to the Director of the PhD program, Dr. Margaret Adamek. In working with the PhD program, Julia manages applications and admissions, and coordinates the annual PhD Symposium. As School receptionist, Julia is responsible for processing mail, managing conference room schedules, and working with Development databases. She has a BS degree in Business Management and Organizations.

Dr. James Daley is Associate Professor and Editor of the Advances in Social Work Journal. He received his B.S. degree in Psychology from Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C., his M.S.W. degree from the University of South Carolina, and his Ph.D. in Social Work from Florida State University. With more than 24 years of clinical experience and18 years as a military social work officer in the Air Force, Dr. Daley teaches family and group practice classes and is Chair of the Families concentration. His research focus is on international military social work and families navigating chronic illness. He has completed a families and illness fellowship at the Chicago Center for Family Health and is currently completing training in Gottman Method Couples Therapy.


DeeEllen Davis is involved with MSW Student Services, including admissions and recruitment. She received her BSW from the University of Kansas and her MSW from West Virginia University. For a number of years she worked with women and employment issues in Appalachia. More recently she has done domestic and international adoption work. Her current areas of interest are ex-offender re-entry and immigration and refugee resettlement.

As a Field Coordinator for the MSW Program, Sheila Dennis facilitates the practicum placements for MSW students in the Schools and Child Welfare concentrations. Prior to her position at IUSSW, Sheila had worked in the public health and adoption fields. Sheila has taught social work courses at IUSSW, Anderson University and Royal Holloway University of London. She received her BSW from Anderson University in 1996, her MSW from Indiana University in 1999, and a Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning from Royal Holloway, University of London in 2005.


Dr. Gail Folaron's interests include teaching and research in the areas of child welfare practice and policy with special emphasis on children and youth and the foster care system. Her research efforts have been chiefly action research and qualitative methods. Dr. Folaron received her B.A. from State University of New York at Buffalo, her M.S.W. at Indiana University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois.


Professor Erika Galyean received her M.S.W. from IU School of Social Work in 1992 with specialization in mental health and addictions. Her professional experiences focused in the area of psychiatric social work, mental health, addictions, and crisis intervention. Currently, Professor Galyean coordinates all undergraduate social work practica at the IUPUI campus as well as internships for students pursuing the Certificate in Case Management. She teaches online and traditional classes for the BSW and MSW programs. In addition, Professor Galyean coordinates the Child Welfare Service Learning Initiative, a project that focuses on increasing student civic engagement with Child Welfare in Indiana through partnership with Children's Bureau, Family Services, and Department of Child Services.

Sherry Gass has been the Coordinator of MSW Admissions and Student Services since 1998. She received her B.S.W. and M.S.W. degrees from IU School of Social Work. She is active in the Leadership concentration where she teaches a course in financial management, marketing and resource development. Gass also teaches the Social Work Immersion course. Her areas of interest are community development, legal issues and ethics. She has worked in the HIV/AIDS service field, community organizations and juvenile justice. Gass is the past president of the Indiana Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.

Dr. Carolyn Gentle-Genitty received her PhD from Indiana University and her Bachelors and Masters degree from Spalding University in Louisville KY. She is originally from Belize and brings extensive leadership and programmatic experience from over 20+ years in the field of Youth Development locally and internationally serving as Executive Director of a YMCA and Chair of numerous volunteer, non-profit, and governmental organizations. Gentle-Genitty also served as a youth consultant for Belize and UNICEF. She taught at the University of Belize for 5 years prior to IU. Her areas of interests within the academic setting include teaching and teaching effectiveness, theory application, online learning, millennial, and student engagement. In the realm of research she focuses on exploring the school-to-prison pipeline trajectory, school competence, truancy, and social bonding. In the community she explores and offers service in prison/jail/community re-entry, cognitive tools for re-entry, case management, adjunct/associate faculty mentoring, and the cradle to career initiative by the Talent Alliance. Gentle-Genitty teaches both theory and practice at the Bachelor and Masters level and is the chair of the MSW Schools Concentration.

Ali Godby-Schwab is the Fiscal Affairs Coordinator for the School. She handles all payroll, purchasing, travel and reimbursement needs for the School. Ali also is responsible for Foundation check request and processing all E-docs. All fiscally related items should be routed through Ali's office, to make sure they are properly audited and processed.




Patricia Howes earned her B.S.W. from Alma College, Alma, Mich., in 1979. She received her M.S.W. from Michigan State University in 1993. She is currently employed at IUPUI as the IV-E Project Coordinator and works with current Child Welfare Workers who have returned to school to complete their MSW's. She teaches Child Welfare Policy classes and practice classes in the Child Welfare Concentration.




In her role as administrative support coordinator for the IV-E Program, Terresa Justus manages IV-E project fiscal affairs; maintains IV-E student records and child welfare library; and provides IV-E student services and administrative support for IV-E faculty.

Dr. Khadija Khaja, grew up in Africa, but has worked in Canada and the United States. She received her B.A., B.S.W., and M.S.W. degrees from Canada, and her PhD. in the United States. Her interests include international social work practice and curriculum development, Islamic social service delivery, impact of terrorism on Muslim communities, refugees, peace building, ethnographic qualitative research, female circumcision, ritual practices, cultural competency, child welfare, children of war, human rights, international curriculum development, women's health and rights, cultural competency, multicultural teaching pedagogy, and teaching clinical practice using technology. She is a board member of Exodus Refugee Center of Indianapolis, and was appointed to serve on the Council of External Relations-Global Commission of Social Work for North American Council of Social Work Educators. Her work has been presented in numerous countries around the world, she also has numerous publications and has been invited to give keynote addresses on global human rights and social work issues in different continents. She has received numerous awards for her civic engagement activities, and in 2008 received the Indiana University Women's Newcomer Faculty Leadership Award.


Dr. Hea-Won Kim received a B.A. from Younsei University, Korea, and her M.S.S.W. and Ph. D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She teaches research methods courses and a community-based mental health practice course. Her research interests focus on evidence-based practices and family's role in the recovery process for people with severe mental illness. She also is a consultant of the Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) Center of Indiana, a state-funded technical assistance center for implementation of ACT and other evidence-based practices in the area of severe mental illness.



Susan Glassburn Larimer has worked in the areas of health care, hospice and mental health. Her primary jobs involve student recruiting and advising. Prior to joining the Indiana University School of Social Work in 2004, she was an IUSSW adjunct faculty member for 5 years.

Dr. Kathy Lay has a Ph.D. in social work from the University of Louisville with a Certificate in Women's Studies. She has been a clinical practitioner and has worked in mental health and substance abuse with families as well as individuals for over twenty years. Her areas of interest include women's issues, abuse, and theory for social work practice.

Mary E. Lindop, Executive Secretary to the Associate Dean, BS degree in Organizational Leadership. As a project manager, Ms. Lindop utilizes her organizational and communication skills to bring cross-functional areas together, coordinating special projects as needed. Her responsibilities include managing the Associate Dean's schedule, working with the School of Social Work's Promotion and Tenure Committee to facilitate the P&T process and third year reviews, and coordinating the IUSSW Search & Screen recruitment and hiring process. Additionally, Ms. Lindop assists with the coordination of required documentation for the IUSSW reaccreditation process by the North Central Association, Commission on Accreditation of the Council of Social Work Education (CSWE).

Dr. Carmen Luca Sugawara is an Assistant Professor with Indiana University School of Social Work at Indianapolis. Dr. Luca Sugawara has more than 10 years of experience in international social development. She was a former Program Officer with the Academy for Educational Development, responsible for AED's Eastern European civil society strengthening portfolio, and consultant for UNICEF/Romania, working on developing partnership programs between governments, schools, and child welfare NGOs. Dr. Luca Sugawara is committed to promoting international social work practice, especially in the area of community organizing and school social work. Her current research interests include: civil society, civil society networks, civil society program evaluations, and the role of schools in rebuilding communities in countries affected by war. Dr. Luca-Sugawara holds a BSW degree from Universitatea " Al.I.Cuza" Iasi, Romania, a MSW, from the University of Kentucky, and a Ph.D. from Catholic University of America, Washington, DC (2005).

Virginia Majewski, PhD serves as professor and associate dean of the Indiana University School of Social Work. She holds a Master of Arts in Hispanic Languages, Master of Social Work, and doctorate in Public and International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh. Previous academic appointments include Chairperson of the Division of Social Work at West Virginia University, Associate Professor at the University of Wyoming, and Associate Professor and Department Chair of Social Work & Gerontology at California University of Pennsylvania. Her areas of teaching include: Community organizing, social policy, research, program evaluation, group work, and cross-cultural practice. She co-designed and -taught four service-learning courses on American Indian reservations in South Dakota. Dr. Majewski's research and scholarship include service and experiential learning to enhance the social work curriculum; hunger and food insecurity; American Indian issues; rural social work practice; and, applied ethnographic research. She has received grants for implementing service learning in the curriculum and building co-curricular volunteer opportunities for social work students. In 2007, she co-edited a book on Social work and service learning: Partnerships for social justice.

Heather A. McCabe is an Assistant Professor of Social Work at Indiana University. She served as a medical social worker at a pediatric tertiary care hospital for several years before returning to school for her law degree. She also served as the Director of the Public Health Law Program and then Executive Director for the Hall Center for Law and Health at the IU School of Law – Indianapolis before coming to her current position. Professor McCabe’s research is primarily in the areas of public health, health policy, health disparities, health reform, and disability related policy. She is particularly interested in exploring the effects of multidisciplinary education and collaboration in her work.

Dr. Lisa McGuire is interested in issues facing children and families, both in Indiana and across the nation. She is the Principal Investigator for IUSSW's Title IV-E collaboration with public child welfare and teaches in the child welfare concentration, in the area of community-based interventions for children and families as well as practice with involuntary clients. Dr. McGuire's other teaching interests are focused in the areas of human behavior theory and groupwork theory/practice and she is very interested in teaching techniques that facilitate reflective learning and the integration of theory with practice.






Akanke Omorayo Adenrele worked in child welfare areas for more than 10 years, which lead to her interest in socio-acculturation of women immigrants and global discourse in social work. Prior to coming to IUPUI, Akanke severed in positions at the University of Michigan organizing several domestic and international women initiatives. Akanke earned her MSW from Hunter College, NY and her BSW from Fairleigh Dickinson University, NJ.


Dr. Philip Ouellette has an interest in Technology and Social Work Education, Oppositional Teens, Family Intervention, International Social Work, Trauma Victims, and Children's Mental Health Services. He earned his B.S.W. from the University of Southern Maine, his M.S.W. from Our Lady of the Lake University, and his Ph.D. from Laval University in Quebec, Canada.

Michael A. Patchner is Dean and Professor of the Indiana University of Social Work. He has held faculty and administrative positions in schools of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, West Virginia University, and the University of Pittsburgh. He was a member of the Commission on Educational Policy for the Council on Social Work Education, which along with the Commission on Accreditation, was responsible for developing new educational policies and accreditation standards for BSW and MSW programs nationally. He later became Chairperson of the Commission and also served on the Board of Directors for the Council on Social Work Education. He was appointed by Indiana's governor to serve as Chairperson of the Indiana Commission on Abused and Neglected Children and their Families.

Katrina Patterson is the BSW Student Services Secretary and Recorder. She serves as the initial contact for the Bachelor of Social Work Program to current and prospective students. Her assignments include providing coordination between the Office of the Registrar, using the SIS system to manipulate student records, verifying graduation requirements, assisting with drop/adds, and submitting forms to remove incompletes. She also is responsible for the coordination of the Certificate in Case Management Program and Certificate in Family Life Education.

Dr. Cathy Pike received a B.A. in social work from Auburn University and her M.S.W. and Ph.D. in social work from the University of Alabama. Before joining the faculty of IUSSW, she taught at Auburn University, in Auburn, Alabama and at the University of South Carolina, in Columbia, South Carolina. Dr. Pike teaches practice research methods in the MSW program and statistics courses in the Ph.D. program. Her research focus is education assessment, specifically the development and psychometric testing of instruments designed to assess educational climate and outcomes. To date, Dr. Pike has conducted research for instruments that measure adherence to core social work values, teaching effectiveness, racial climate in schools of social work, and students' perceptions of the quality of field instruction.


Dr. Irene Queiro-Tajalli received her B.S.W. from Argentina, her M.S.W. from Iran, and her Ph.D. in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her areas of practice and teaching are generalist social work practice with a focus on community practice. Since 2001 she has developed and taught online courses. She has extensive experience in working with clients from diverse backgrounds including Latinos, Native Americans, and Iranians. Her volunteer positions have been at the local, state, and national levels. Dr. Queiro-Tajalli serves as the Chair of the Latino Social Worker/Human Services Providers Network of Indiana. She is the President of the DANESH Institute; a certified site visitor for the Commission on Accreditation; member of the Editorial Board of ACOSA, and member of the Committee on Racial and Ethnic Diversity, NASW Indiana Chapter. Her current presentations and writings focus on community organizing, aging, online teaching, and Latino issues.


Dr. Theresa Roberts specializes in alternative paradigms of macro practice, particularly related to Executive Leadership development, program planning and development; African Centered social work; cultural competency transformational models; and qualitative research models. Her current research includes organizational diversity models, community-based HIV/AIDS and syphilis prevention and advocacy, African-Centered teaching models, and the history of African-American Social Workers in Indianapolis.



Carol Satre earned her B.S.W. from Bemidji Sate University in 1990 and her M.S.W. from the University of Minnesota in 1992. She coordinates field practicum for the MSW program. Her interests include Mental Health and Addictions, Families, and Chronic Illness. Satre teaches clinical practice classes, integrative field seminars both in person and online, and maintains community support for practicum internships.

Rob Schneider is the Coordinator of External Affairs for the School of Social Work. He joined the staff of the school in 2008 after spending 33 years at The Indianapolis Star. He writes stories about students, faculty and staff for the School's web site and other venues and oversees the production of the School's news and alumni magazine, the Network that comes out twice a year.




As Director of Fiscal Affairs, Celisa Snyder is responsible for overseeing the accuracy of financial statements, ensuring adherence to university policies and procedures, and the approval of accounting transactions for the School of Social Work. She also oversees all financial reports, handles budget projects for the Dean of Social Work, and assists faculty in the development of budgets for grant proposals.

Dr. Patrick Sullivan has served at the IU School of Social Work since 1993. During his tenure at the School he also served as the Director of the Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction from 1994-1998. He has over 50 professional publications in the areas of mental health, addiction, and philosophical frameworks for practice and policy. Dr. Sullivan is nationally known for his work in case management and the strengths perspective. He also is on the editorial board of Families in Society and Advances in Social Work and is consulting editor for Social Development Issues. He has taught in all three IUSSW programs.

Dr. Jeffry Thigpen's research interests include childhood sexual behavior, sexual development, sexual culture within families, and sexual health. His most recent work examined the sexual behavior of prepubescent African-American children and the developmental and familial contexts in which this behavior emerged. Dr. Thigpen earned a B.S. in Public Health from Indiana University, a M.S.W. from Wayne State University, and a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He teaches graduate courses in human behavior theory and research.

Dr. Robert Vernon has interests in technology and social work, social welfare policy, aging, and social work education. He earned his M.S.W. from San Diego State University and his Ph.D. in Urban, Technological and Environmental Planning from the University of Michigan. He was a recent member of the CSWE Commission on Accreditation. Dr. Vernon is the webweaver for the national Baccalaureate Program Directors (BPD) association plus the BPD listserv. He is currently exploring the virtual world of "Second Life" for online teaching and research. This includes research "inworld" on how "Second Life" may help people with disabilities. His avatar is "Gabrielli Rossini" and he manages the group "Social Work Educators of SL" if you'd like to join. He also researches the origins of modern social welfare from 1534 until 1601.

Steve's teaching, research and practice interests are focused on infant and toddler mental health and social-emotional development and on family-centered partnerships, particularly children with special health care needs and their families. He also is an Associate Director of the IU School of Medicine – Riley Child Development Center’s Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disorders (LEND) interdisciplinary training program and he serves as Managing Director of IUPUI Chancellor Bantz’ Translating Research Into Practice initiative. Steve is the Founding Chair of the Indiana Association of Infant and Toddler Mental Health, the Founding President of Family Voices Indiana and a Past President of the Indiana Chapter, National Association of Social Workers.


Dr. Walker has been with the IUPUI School of Social Work in the Labor Studies Program since August, 2008 and is responsible for teaching and coordination of credit and training classes within the Labor Studies Program. Dr. Walker holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Missouri -- Columbia, an MA in Public Affairs from the Harry Truman School of Public Affairs, University of Missouri, Columbia , an MA in English from Southwest Missouri State University in Springfield , Missouri , and a BS in English from Drury University in Springfield , Missouri . Dr. Walker’s research interests lie in issues involving state and federal policies concerning workers and workers' education, social stratification, poverty, and e-learning in a distributed learning environment.

Dr. Betty Walton provides consultation and support to the Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction. Dr. Walton has a doctorate from Indiana University, MSW from The University of Iowa and Bachelors degree from the University of Illinois. Over the past ten years, she has helped build capacity for effective community based behavioral health services, including the development of systems of care and wraparound services for youth and families with complex needs. Since 2005, she has partnered with multi-agency teams to implement common functional assessments for children and adults across Indiana’s public service systems. Prior to joining the state –university team, Dr. Walton worked in community mental health in Ohio and Indiana as a clinician and manager. Currently, she is the Director for CANS and ANSA Training and Support in Indiana and state Principal Investigator for Indiana’s Community Alternative to Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility Medicaid grant evaluation.

Prior to coming to the IUPUI campus, Bob Weiler was a full-time lecturer for nine years at Indiana University Northwest, Division of Social Work, where he served as a field liaison for many students. His practice experience includes work in the fields of child welfare, developmental disabilities, and mental health and addictions. He has also done research and community service related to homelessness. Bob has a BA from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, and an MSW from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

