By Allan Hugh Cole Jr. It’s bedtime for our young daughters, Meredith and Holly. They have taken baths, put on pajamas, and brushed teeth. Their mom Tracey and I have read a nightly lineup of books to them. The smell of lavender baby shampoo, lingering on still damp brown bangs that fall just above sleepy […]
Current Issue
Mapping out your social work career
Strategic career planning involves identifying opportunities in your current situation that will propel your career to the next level. Jennifer Luna, director of the DiNito Career Center, shares six strategies to ensure that your next career move will contribute to a clear and logical career trajectory when you put it on your résumé. 1. Explore […]
How to notify victims when sexual assault kits are tested
Many communities and police departments across the country are clearing their caches of untested sexual assault evidence kits. They face a challenging question: how best to notify the victims in those cases that require the investigation to be re-opened. How to reengage victims is critical to their well-being and to the investigation and potential prosecutions. […]
Mapping veteran service organizations
The Institute for Military and Veteran Family Wellness has partnered with the nonprofit Combined Arms to conduct a comprehensive mapping of veteran service organizations in the Greater Austin area– Bastrop, Hays, Caldwell, Williamson, and Travis Counties. This project is in partnership with the nonprofit Combined Arms. The information, collected through surveys, will help veterans identify […]
Substance use in Texas
In her latest report about Texas substance use trends, professor Jane Maxwell shares the following findings: Methamphetamine is the top DEA-reported drug threat. The Texas Prescription Monitoring Program has led to a decrease in prescriptions of opiate, synthetic narcotic, and benzodiazepine drugs. Texas’ response to the opioid epidemic has resulted in additional outreach and training […]
Twitter and mental health
What do health providers and patients tweet about schizophrenia? Professor Mercedes Hernandez is a co-author on a study that answered this question by exploring trends in health information about schizophrenia exchanged by patients, doctors, and health organizations through tweets posted using the hashtag #schizophrenia. Study results indicated that most tweets focused on improving schizophrenia literacy, […]
On the TED stage
In addition to leading the Steve Hicks School of Social Work, Dean Luis H. Zayas is a proud active mental health practitioner. In this role, he is an expert in the mental health evaluations of immigrant families facing deportation as well as refugee and asylum-seeking mothers and children in detention centers. Last September, Dean Zayas […]
Older adults and marijuana
The latest surveys and research indicate that marijuana acceptance and use among older adults are increasing. Explanations for this trend include the aging of the Baby Boomers—whose attitudes toward psychoactive drugs are more relaxed than those of their predecessors—and the growing number of states with medical and recreational marijuana use laws. And yet, despite this […]
Being first-gen
The transition from high school to UT Austin wasn’t easy for social work major Grace Farley. As a first-generation college student, the application process was a challenge in itself. But becoming a full-time student brought even more stress and pressure. Farley eventually learned that adjusting to college life isn’t an overnight process. She is now […]
American dream at stake
Master’s student Anayeli Marcos was one of four Dreamers interviewed by USA Today last November, when the U.S. Supreme Court took up the Trump administration’s plan to end DACA. This program (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, DACA) was established during the Obama administration. It has provided a reprieve for some undocumented immigrants who, like Marcos, […]
