SSW Teaching Awards

The 2004 recipients of the School of Social Work's Excellence in Teaching Awards are Dr. Carol Wilson Spigner (standing faculty), and Mary Cavanaugh (part-time faculty).

The awards were presented at the School's commencement ceremony on May 17. Recipients of the Excellence in Teaching Awards are selected by graduating students and must demonstrate the following: a high level of scholarship in the course(s) taught; a teaching style that stimulates the students' interest; a commitment to student learning; respect for students' personal differences; and a significant and lasting impact on the professional development of students.

Dr. Spigner received her undergraduate degree from the University of California at Riverside and her masters and Ph.D. from the University of Southern California. She joined the Penn School of Social Work faculty in July, 1999 as a visiting professor and joined the faculty permanently in September, 2000 when she was named the Kenneth L. M. Pray Distinguished Professor. Prior to her arrival at Penn, Dr. Spigner had been the Associate Commissioner of the Children's Bureau at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families (ACF). As Associate Commissioner, Dr. Spigner was responsible for the administration of federal child welfare programs.

Mary Cavanaugh, MFT, MS, is a joint doctoral student in Social Welfare and Criminology at Penn. At the School of Social Work she has taught courses on Intimate Violence, Developmental Theory, and Social Policy. She has been involved with numerous research projects on violent offenders that have been submitted to the National Institute of Justice and the National Institute of Mental Health. Ms. Cavanaugh is also a consultant to the National Institute of Justice Violence Against Women and Family Violence Research and Evaluation Program.