Specialty Areas | About | School of Social Work

Areas of Expertise

BUSSW offers exciting opportunities for students to gain knowledge and apply skills in many current and emerging areas of practice:

Children, Youth, and Families
Communities, Organizations, and Development
Gerontology
Health and Disability
Social Work in the Global Community
Substance Abuse and HIV/AIDS
Trauma and Mental Health

We hope you explore these specialty areas to learn about our faculty’s expertise, current research projects, and program specializations and course electives for graduate and post-graduate students. Our Field Education department provides students with internship opportunities in these areas of practice. Our faculty are nationally and internationally recognized for their contributions to research, practice, and policy in these contemporary areas.

Area	Faculty	Program Options	Projects
Children, Youth, and Families	Clay Collins Curtis Delgado Devoe Gianino Gonyea McLaughlin Paris Shin Spencer	Family Therapy Certificate Group Work Specialization Trauma Certificate Program Child Welfare Workers Training Program Social Work and Education Dual Degree Clinical Work with Children, Adolescents, and their Families(Post-Graduate Advanced Certificate Program) Course Electives: CP 762 Advanced Group Work CP 764 Group Dynamics CP 785 Family Therapy CP 787 Clinical Practice w/ Couples CP 791 Seminar: Family Therapy CP 794 Clinical Practice w/ Children CP 798 Advanced CP w/ Adults CP 801 CP w/ Adolescents in Social Contexts HB 732 Perspectives on the Family & Diversity HB 741 Family Violence in Society WP 706 Social Welfare Policy & Family WP 707 Social Welfare Policy & Programs on Children WP 710 Family Law & Children’s Rights	The Catalyst Project: a National Center to Improve Financing of Care for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs The Effect of Incarceration on Fathers’ Health Explaining Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Access to Mental Health Services by Children involved with Child Welfare Planning a National Center For Family Care Initiatives Professional Education for Current Public Child Welfare Agency Workers Self Efficacy Enhancement and Alzheimer's Disease Caregiver Intervention Understanding the Mentoring Process: A Longitudinal Study of Mentoring Relationships between Adolescents and Adults
Area	Faculty	Program Options	Projects
Communities, Organizations, and Development	Cooney Curtis Delgado Staples	Macro Sub-specialization Certificate Human Services Management Certificate Course Electives: MP 770 Poverty in America: Macro Interventions for the 21st Century MP 774 Seminar: Community Planning MP 775 Strategic Management MP 776 Financial Management in Human Service Organizations MP 785 Program Evaluation MP 795 Applied Macro Skills, Groups & Systems WP 713 State Legislative Processes & Policy	Evaluation of the Urban Medical Group House Calls Program La Voz: HIV Mobile Prevention and Clinical Care for Latino Injection Drug Users The Men's HIV Prevention Health Project Planning a National Center For Family Care Initiatives Bridge Program Somali Program
Area	Faculty	Program Options	Projects
Gerontology	Bachman Geron Gonyea Hudson	Gerontological Social Work Certificate Boston Geriatric Education Model (GEM) Course Electives: CP 807 CP w/ Older Adults WP 704 Social Policy and Programs on Aging	Institute for Geriatric Social Work The Boston Geriatric Education Model (GEM) Consortium Planning a National Center For Family Care Initiatives Self Efficacy Enhancement and Alzheimer's Disease Caregiver Intervention
Area	Faculty	Program Options	Projects
Health and Disability	Amodeo Bachman Curtis Freedman Hahm Lopez Lundgren Merighi Ruth	Social Work and Public Health Dual Degree Course Electives: CP 809 Alcohol & Drug Abuse WP 704 Social Policy and Programs on Aging WP 705 Mental Health & Social Policy WP 711 Substance Abuse Policy	The Catalyst Project: a National Center to Improve Financing of Care for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs The Effect of Incarceration on Fathers’ Health Evaluation and Support Center on Innovations in Oral Health Evaluation of the Urban Medical Group House Calls Program La Voz: HIV Mobile Prevention and Clinical Care for Latino Injection Drug Users La Voz: HIV Prevention and Substance Abuse Treatment for Latino Injection Drug Users The Men's HIV Prevention Health Project A Nationwide Survey of Kidney Transplant Social Workers' Job Roles, Responsibilities and Occupational Well-being
Area	Faculty	Program Options	Projects
Social Work in the Global Community	Delgado Geron Hahm Lopez Lundgren Merighi Muroff Shin Staples Reynoso	MSW/MPH with focus in International Public Health Travel/Study: Puerto Rico Mali Costa Rica (PEP) Visiting Scholars Somali Program Bridge Program Course Electives: HB 732 Perspectives on the Family & Diversity HB 743 Social Work w/ Refugees & Immigrants Puerto Rico Travel/Study Course Elective Mali Travel/Study Course Elective	Epidemiology, Etiology, and Consequences of Alcohol Use among Asian American Adolescents Explaining Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Access to Mental Health Services by Children involved with Child Welfare La Voz: HIV Mobile Prevention and Clinical Care for Latino Injection Drug Users La Voz: HIV Prevention and Substance Abuse Treatment for Latino Injection Drug Users
Area	Faculty	Program Options	Projects
Substance Abuse and HIV/AIDS	Amodeo Bachman Clay Delgado Hahm Lopez Lundgren Reynoso	Course Electives: CP 809 Alcohol & Drug Abuse WP 711 Substance Abuse Policy	Center for Addictions Research and Services Epidemiology, Etiology, and Consequences of Alcohol Use among Asian American Adolescents La Voz: HIV Mobile Prevention and Clinical Care for Latino Injection Drug Users La Voz: HIV Prevention and Substance Abuse Treatment for Latino Injection Drug Users The Men's HIV Prevention Health Project The Relapse Prevention Initiative: Trauma Counseling Services to Drug Users Training Technology to Enhance Addiction Counseling Skills (TEACH-CBT)
Area	Faculty	Program Options	Projects
Trauma and Mental Health	Clay Devoe Gianino Lopez Muroff McLaughlin Paris Ruth Shin Steketee	Family Therapy Certificate Group Work Specialization Trauma Certificate Program Clinical Social Work and Behavioral Medicine Certificate Social Work and Theology Dual Degree Treatment of Psychological Trauma EMDR Therapy (Post-Graduate Advanced Certificate Programs) Course Electives: CP 795 Cog. & Behavioral Treatment CP 799 Brief & Time-Effective Treatment CP 802 Crisis Intervention with Urban Poor Populations CP 803 Clinical Practice and Trauma HB 723 Adult Psychopathology HB 727 Child Psychopathology HB 744 Spirituality & Social Work Practice WP 705 Mental Health & Social Policy	Community Response to Compulsive Hoarding in Older Adults Delivery of Internet Treatment for Compulsive Hoarding (D.I.T.C.H.) Explaining Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Access to Mental Health Services by Children involved with Child Welfare Psychopathology of Compulsive Hoarding The Relapse Prevention Initiative: Trauma Counseling Services to Drug Users Suicide Education enhancement project Training Technology to Enhance Addiction Counseling Skills (TEACH-CBT)

Boston University School of Social Work

Areas of Expertise