Three New Tenure Track Faculty to Start August

We are excited to share that we have hired three tenure track faculty. The new faculty bring a wide range of social welfare expertise to the School, including domestic violence, poverty and inequality and the inequitable effects of climate change. They will be provided funding and resources to facilitate their research and scholarly agendas through their affiliation with the School of Social Welfare's Toni Johnson Center for Racial and Social Justice.

Please take a moment to read more about these remarkable individuals below, we are humbled and honored that they have decided to join our team.

Dr. Claire C. Willey-Sthapit (She/Her)

Claire Willey-Sthapit’s (PhD, MSSW) scholarship centers translations between domestic violence research, policy, and practice, both within the United States and across national borders. For her dissertation, Dr. Willey-Sthapit drew upon her family ties and previous work in Pokhara, Nepal, to examine how domestic violence service providers negotiate between international policy and knowledge acquired through local practice. She has also been involved in research examining family and community strategies to address domestic violence and men's gender equitable attitudes and behaviors. Dr. Willey-Sthapit earned her master's of science in social work from the University of Louisville and her doctorate from the University of Washington. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, cooking, hiking, and spending time with family and friends.

Dr. Sicong "Summer" Sun (She/They)

Dr. Sicong "Summer" Sun received their PhD and MSW from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. Her research interests broadly include financial capability and asset building (FCAB), poverty and inequality, and social determinants of health. Sun investigates the theoretical and empirical determinants and health effects of FCAB. Their research aims to inform asset building and financial inclusion policies and programs to advance racial, socioeconomic, and health equity in the U.S. and global contexts. Sun’s research has appeared in peer-reviewed journals, including Annual Review of Public Health, Children and Youth Services Review, Journal of Family and Economic Issues, American Journal of Public Health, PLOS One, and Journal of the International AIDS Society. Summer enjoys dancing, musicals, symphony, and museums.  

Dr. Joonmo Kang (He/Him)

Joonmo Kang (He/Him) recently received his Ph.D. from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. His research interests generally focus on the role of social work in responding to the disproportionate impact of climate change on marginalized communities as well as building a resilient, regenerative, and equitable society. Joonmo's recent research includes an ethnography on the disproportionate impact of extreme weather on the urban poor by working with one of the most marginalized communities in Seoul, South Korea. Joonmo's work has been featured in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Community Practice and Work, Employment and Society, and Journal, and the International Journal of Community Currency Research. Outside of his work, Joonmo enjoys cooking, watching movies, and camping with his family.