Christopher J. Ward

Christopher J. Ward (Chris) joins the University of Kansas School of Social Welfare this fall as an associate professor of the practice and director of the Master of Social Work program.

Ward comes to KU from Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina, where he was graduate director in the Department of Social Work. He has extensive teaching experience at the graduate and undergraduate levels with instruction in face-to-face, hybrid, and online formats. He has developed graduate courses as well as online student and faculty resource hubs. Chris regularly contributes to social work educational knowledge dissemination presenting at CSWE APM, SSWR, BPD, and SWDE. He has published in the Journal of Social Work Education, Journal of Baccalaureate Social Work, and Journal of Teaching in Social Work. 

Ward completed a Doctor of Social Work degree from the University of Alabama. He also holds a master’s degree in social work from the University of South Carolina and a bachelor’s degree in social welfare from the University of Kansas. He completed CSWE’s Program Director Academy and Leadership York County through the York Regional Chamber of Commerce. After earning his MSW, Ward was a health planning analyst with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.

As MSW program director, Ward is responsible for providing leadership and oversight for the Master of Social Work program, including academic planning, program development, curriculum design, and assessment.