PhD Candidates
Author(s)
GSSW
Communication Team
Graduating University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work PhD candidates are ready to put their doctoral training to work as teachers and scholars who advance social work knowledge and social justice.
Katie Calhoun, MSW
Doctoral candidate Katie Calhoun holds a BSW and an MSW from the University of Nevada, Reno. After completing her MSW she worked as a school social worker and at an inpatient behavioral health hospital in assessment and referral. Her direct practice experience influenced her interest in studying poverty and homelessness through a critical lens, particularly how poverty discourse influences the resources available to individuals and, in turn, the health and well-being of individuals and communities. Katie is a research associate at the University of Denver Center for Housing and Homelessness Research, where she has studied innovative and community-led responses to homelessness. She is currently a research associate for the Denver Basic Income Project, where she is helping to lead the study of direct cash transfers to unhoused individuals in Denver.
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Research Interests/Areas of Emphasis
- The influence of stigma on policy implementation
- Innovative responses to homelessness and housing instability
- Poverty and homelessness as social determinants of health
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Dissertation
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Guaranteed Income as a Structural Social Work Response to Homelessness
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Select Grants, Fellowships & Awards
- 2021–22, Community-Engaged Fellowship, University of Denver Center for Community Engagement to Advance Scholarship & Learning, $6,500,
- 2020, University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work Summer Mentored Scholar Award, $3,500
- 2019–21, University of Denver Graduate Education Doctoral Fellowship, $9,000
- 2015, John & Louise Semenza Memorial Scholarship, $6,000
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Select Presentations
- Calhoun, K. H., Brisson, D., & Bacon, B. (2022, January). Promoting safety through safe lots for people sheltering in their vehicles: A mixed methods study [Poster presentation]. Society for Social Work and Research 26th Annual Conference, Washington, DC.
- Calhoun, K. H., Wilson, J. H., & Brisson, D. (2022, January). Examining the longitudinal impacts of residing in a tiny home village addressing homelessness [Poster presentation]. Society for Social Work and Research 26th Annual Conference, Washington, DC.
- Calhoun, K. H., Littman, D., Wilson, J. H., Walls, E., & Bender, K. (2021, November). Centering social justice by teaching nontraditional research and evaluation methods [Presentation accepted but withdrawn due to COVID-19]. Counsel on Social Work Education Annual Program Meeting, Orlando, FL.
- Calhoun, K. H., Wilson, J. H., Chassman, S., & Sasser, G. (2021, October). Tiny home villages: An innovative response to homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic [Presentation]. American Public Health Association Conference, Denver, CO.
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Select Publications
- Calhoun, K. H., Wilson, J. H., Chassman, S., & Sasser, G., (2022). Tiny homes: An innovative response to homelessness during COVID-19. Journal of Human Rights and Social Work, 7, 236–245. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41134-022-00217-0
- Chassman, S., Calhoun, K. H., Bacon, B., Rucobo, S. C., Goodwin, E., Gorgens, K., & Brisson, D. (2022). Correlates of acquiring a traumatic brain injury before experiencing homelessness: An exploratory study. Social Sciences, 11(8), 376. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11080376
- Calhoun, K. H., & Chassman, S. (2021). Sleep quality and quantity among adults experiencing homelessness: An ecological systems approach. Journal of Human Behavior and the Social Environment, 32(6), 798–811. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10911359.2021.1968556
- Brisson, D., McCune, S., Wilson, J., Speer, S., McCrae, J., & Calhoun, K. H. (2020). A systematic review of the association between poverty and biomarkers of toxic stress. Journal of Evidenced-Based Social Work, 17(6), 696–713. https://doi.org/10.1080/26408066.2020.1769786
Annie Zean Dunbar, MA
Doctoral candidate Annie Zean Dunbar is a researcher and artist whose practice centers Black feminist theory traditions to examine interstitial experiences of displaced peoples. Her research interests include racialization and identity, organizational theory, mutual aid and community care, and long-term newcomer belonging in the United States. Zean’s creative writing centers conceptions of truth and omission, liminality, temporality, memory and the effusive nature of healing. Zean identifies as a “1.5 generation newcomer” whose ancestry spans Liberia and the United States. Her dissertation project looks at the personal and professional lives and experiences of Black newcomers who work with other newcomers in the United States. The study also aims to elucidate practices, values, benefits and actions practiced within Black newcomer communities. Zean holds a master’s in social services administration from the University of Chicago and a BA from Simmons University.
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Research Interests/Areas of Emphasis
- Immigrants/refugee life
- Mutual aid and community care practices
- Organizational theory and leadership
- Temporalities, place and belonging
- Critical theories
- Racism and societal inequalities
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Dissertation
- The Role of Care Practices, Mutual Aid, and Racial Formation in Black Newcomer Practitioners’ Lived Experience within Organizations: A Critical Qualitative Inquiry
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Select Grants, Fellowships & Awards
- 2021–23, University of Denver Graduate Education Doctoral Fellowship for Inclusive Engagement, $9,000
- 2020–22, University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work Summer Mentored Scholars Award, $7,000
- 2019–21, University of Denver Graduate Education Doctoral Fellowship, $9,000
- Knowledge Cluster Project: Connecting Emerging Scholars and Practitioners to Foster Critical Reflections and Innovation on Migration Research, SSHRC-CRSH Connection Grant, $3,300 CAD
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Select Presentations
- Kuntzelman, C. C., Dunbar, A. Z., Noor, A., Garcia, A. E., & Badran, M. (2022, August 1–5). Filling in the gaps: Care work, refugee institutional actors, and racialized organizations. In C. C. Kuntzelman & A. Z. Dunbar (chairs), Knowledge and meaning-making in exile: Constraints and opportunities [Oral presentation]. International Association for the 2022 Study of Forced Migration Annual Conference (virtual conference).
- Dunbar, Z., Milligan, T., Littman, D. M., & Bender, K. (2021, June 28). “Because it’s not going to be pretty unless we work together:” Where does mutual aid fit into the future of social work? [Panel presentation]. Social Work Futures? What social work does the world need now? Glasgow Caledonian University, United Kingdom.
- Dunbar, A. Z. (2021, April 15–16). Integration and racialization of Black immigrants in the United States [Paper presentation]. Memories in Transit, Centre for the Study of Global Human Movement, Cambridge University, United Kingdom.
- Dunbar, A. Z. (2020, November 16–20) Cultural interpretation: A phenomenological study of refugee service providers with migration experiences [E-poster presentation]. Council on Social Work Education 2020 Annual Program Meeting (virtual conference).
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Select Publications
- Dunbar, A. Z. (2021, March 9) Opinion: Why we need immigration reform, and why Biden’s policies are a good start. Colorado Sun. https://coloradosun.com/2021/03/09/immigration-reform-opinion/
- Littman, D. M., Boyett, M., Bender, K., Dunbar, A. Z., Santarella, M., Becker-Hafnor, T., Saavedra, K., & Milligan, T. (2021) Values and beliefs underlying mutual aid: An exploration of collective care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research, 13(1), 89–115. https://doi.org/10.1086/716884
- Beltran, R., Alvarez, A., Colón, L., Alamillo, X., & Dunbar, A. Z. (2020). La Cultura Cura: An exploration of enculturation in a community-based culture-centered HIV prevention curriculum for Indigenous youth. Genealogy, 4(1), 17. https://doi.org/10.3390/genealogy4010017
- Dunbar, A. Z., Lloyd, J., Ramirez, L., & Taylor, S. (2016). Outcome evaluation of an international diversity curriculum. Advocates Forum. University of Chicago.
Pilar Ingle, MSW, LCSW
Doctoral candidate Pilar Ingle holds a BA in psychology from the University of Colorado Boulder and an MSW from the University of Michigan, where she was an Integrated Health Scholar. She has several years of professional research experience in shared decision-making for individuals with serious illness in cardiology, palliative care and hospice settings. Her current research focuses on access to palliative and end-of-life care for adults experiencing homelessness in Colorado. Pilar’s scholarship is aimed at addressing systemic factors that influence health inequities for people living with chronic and serious illness.
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Research Interests/Areas of Emphasis
- Health care access, equity and justice
- Palliative and end-of-life care
- Health care policy
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Dissertation
- Provider Perspectives on Access to Palliative and End-of-Life Care for Adults Experiencing Homelessness: A Mixed-Methods Study
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Select Grants, Fellowships & Awards
- University of Denver Knoebel Institute for Healthy Aging Student Research Award
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Select Presentations
- Ingle, M. P. (2022, October). Provider perspectives and satisfaction on access to palliative and end-of-life care for adults experiencing homelessness [Plenary oral presentation]. University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus 2022 Palliative Care Research Day, Aurora, CO.
- Ingle, M. P., Check, D., Slack, D. H., Cross, S. H., Ernecoff, N. C., Matlock, D. D., & Kavalieratos, D. (2022, February). Use of theoretical frameworks in the development and testing of palliative care interventions [Virtual poster presentation]. American Association of Hospice and Palliative Medicine State of the Science in Hospice and Palliative Care.
- Ingle, M. P., & Calhoun, K. H. (2021, October). Barriers to health management among people experiencing homelessness with life-limiting illness: A secondary data analysis [Virtual oral presentation]. University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus 2021 Palliative Care Research Day, Aurora, CO.
- Ingle, M. P., Knoepke, C. E., Carroll, A., Gama, K., Valle, J., Carroll, J, Allen, L. A., Doermann Byrd, K., & Matlock, D. D. (2018, April). The big question: Characteristics of treatment decisions for severe aortic stenosis [Oral presentation]. Rocky Mountain Interprofessional Research & Evidence-Based Practice Symposium, Denver, CO.
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Select Publications
- Ingle, M. P., Carroll, A. M., Matlock, D. D., Gama, K. D., Valle, J. A., Allen, L. A. & Knoepke, C. E. (2022). Decision support needs for patients with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 65(6), 589–603. https://doi.org/10.1080/01634372.2021.1995095
- Ingle, M. P., Check, D., Slack, D. H., Cross, S. H., Ernecoff, N. C., Matlock, D. D., & Kavalieratos, D. (2021). Use of theoretical frameworks in the development and testing of palliative care interventions. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 63(3), e271–e280. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2021.10.011
- Ingle, M. P., Lammons, W., Guigli, R., Kini, V., Matlock, D. D., Brereton, E., & Scherer, L. D. (2021). Patient perspectives on the benefits and risks of percutaneous coronary interventions: A qualitative study. Patient Preference and Adherence, 15, 721–728. https://doi.org/10.2147/PPA.S302146
- Ingle, M. P., Valdovinos, C., Ford, K. L., Zhou, S., Bull, S., Gornail S., Zhang, X., Moore, S. L., & Portz, J. D. (2021). Patient portals to support palliative and end-of-life care: A scoping review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 23(9), e28797. https://doi.org/10.2196/28797
Jin Yao Kwan, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow Jin Yao Kwan holds a PhD in social welfare from the University of California, Los Angeles Luskin School of Public Affairs and a Master in Public Policy from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. Having worked in social work and nonprofit settings with young people from low-income backgrounds, Kwan’s overarching research goal is to improve the positive development and well-being of underserved adolescents, youth and emerging adults who face disadvantages and marginalization. He explores how families and communities use institutional supports and examine the factors and processes perpetuating poverty and inequality.
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Research Interests/Areas of Emphasis
- Kwan’s interest in youth development and well-being has led to two research trajectories centered on familial and community contexts. By examining structural factors and contextual processes, his work reinforces the notion that collective systems — not individual identities — determine systemic inequities.
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Dissertation
- Singled Out: Household and Family Structure, Social Capital, and the Well-Being of Low-Income Single-Parent Households in Singapore
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Select Grants, Fellowships & Awards
- Social and Family Research Fund (PI), Ministry of Social and Family Development of Singapore, U.S. $69,700
- National Youth Fund (PI on two grants), National Youth Council of Singapore, U.S. $10,900 and U.S. $6,500
- Dissertation Year Fellowship, UCLA Graduate Division
- Dissertation Fieldwork Fellowship, UCLA International Institute
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Select Presentations
- Kwan J. Y. (2022, November). Exploring podcasts’ potential for greater synchronicity across social work education, practice, research, and policies. Council on Social Work Education Annual Program Meeting, Anaheim, CA.
- Kwan J. Y. (2022, November). Singled out: Household and family structure, social capital, and the well-being of low-income single-parent Singaporean households. National Council on Family Relations, Minneapolis, MN.
- Kwan J. Y. (2021, April 8). Youth civic engagement under COVID-19 lockdown: A thematic analysis of mobilization, action, and future orientation in Singapore. Society for Research in Child Development 2021 Biennial Meeting (virtual conference).
- Kwan J. Y. (2020, November 13). Volunteering across the life course: From compulsory school-based volunteerism in adolescence to voluntary community-based volunteerism in young adulthood [Session chair]. ARNOVA Annual Conference (online).
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Select Publications
- Kwan J. Y. (2022). Youth civic engagement under Singapore’s COVID-19 lockdown: Motivations, online mobilization, action, and future civic and political orientation. Journal of Community Practice, 30(3), 234–254. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705422.2022.2108952
- Kwan J. Y. (2022). “Democracy and active citizenship are not just about the elections”: Youth civic and political participation during and beyond Singapore’s nine-day pandemic election. YOUNG, 30(3), 247–264. https://doi.org/10.1177/1103308821105
- Wray-Lake, L., Wilf, S., Kwan, J. Y., & Oosterhoff, B. (2022). Adolescence during a pandemic: Examining U.S. adolescents’ time use and family and peer relationships during COVID-19. Youth, 2(1), 80–97. https://doi.org/10.3390/youth2010007
- Kwan, J. Y. (2021). Family structure, the quality of family ties, and the positive development of adolescents: The family social capital of grandparents in low-income Singaporean families. Asia Pacific Journal of Social Work and Development, 31(3), 220–235. https://doi.org/10.1080/02185385.2020.1859409
Danielle Maude Littman, AM, LCSW
Doctoral candidate Danielle Maude Littman uses place-based, arts-based and participatory methods to explore (and reimagine) supportive settings and care practices for young people at the margins. Her current research explores third places (community settings) and sense of community among young people in permanent supportive housing, mutual aid during the COVID-19 pandemic, peer support among young people experiencing homelessness, and the impacts of prison arts programming for those who participate in and witness it. She was a 2020–2022 fellow with the Social Work Health Futures Lab funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Prior to her doctoral studies, Danielle worked as a clinical social worker, teaching artist and community-engaged facilitator across Chicago, often traveling to every corner of the city to teach theatre classes, facilitate community meetings at local parks and hold clinical sessions. She received her BA in theatre and creative nonfiction writing from Northwestern University and her AM (MSW equivalent) from the University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice.
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Research Interests/Areas of Emphasis
- Young people
- Third places (community settings) and sense of community
- Arts-based, place-based and participatory research methods
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Dissertation
- Sense of Community and (Third) Place Among Young Adults in Permanent Supportive Housing: A Mixed-Methods Inquiry
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Select Grants, Fellowships & Awards
- University of Denver Public Good Grant (Co-investigator): “Deepening Understanding of Young People’s Sense of Community and Security in Permanent Support Housing”
- Fellow, Social Work Health Futures Lab, Portland State University and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
- 2020–22, University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work Summer Mentored Scholars Award
- Human Rights Internship Award, University of Chicago Pozen Family Center for Human Rights
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Select Presentations
- Littman, D. M. (2022, November). Geographic interviews as a qualitative geographic method for understanding experiences of place [Accepted presentation]. Council on Social Work Education Annual Program Meeting, Anaheim, CA.
- Littman, D. M., Hostetter, C. R., Holloway, B., & Bender, K. (2022, November). Conceptualizing mutual aid in a pandemic (and beyond): Crisis response or ongoing practice? [Accepted presentation]. Council on Social Work Education Annual Program Meeting, Anaheim, CA.
- Littman, D. M., & Sliva, S. (2022, January). Can a virtual prison arts event begin to bridge the distance between incarcerated and non-incarcerated communities? [Accepted oral presentation; shifted to virtual poster due to COVID-19]. Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference, Washington, DC.
- Littman, D. M., Bender, K., & Marvin, C (2021, April). Power and values mapping for participatory action research (PAR) teams [Zoom workshop]. Society for Social Work and Research post-conference series.
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Select Publications
- Littman, D. M., Boyett, M., Bender, K., Dunbar, A. Z., Santarella, M., Becker-Hafnor, T., Saavedra, K., & Milligan, T. (2022). Values and beliefs underlying mutual aid: An exploration of collective care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of the Society of Social Work and Research, 13(1), 89–115. https://doi.org/10.1086/716884
- Littman, D. M. (2021). Third places, social capital, and sense of community as mechanisms of adaptive responding for young people who experience social marginalization. The American Journal of Community Psychology, 69(3–4), 436–450. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajcp.12531
- Erangey, J., Marvin, C., Littman, D. M., Mollica, M., Bender, C., Lucas, T., & Milligan, T. (2020). How peers initiate relationships with youth experiencing homelessness. Child and Youth Services Review, 119, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105668
- Littman, D. M., Bender, K., Mollica, M., Erangey, J., Lucas, T., & Marvin, C. (2020). Making power explicit: Using power and values mapping on power-diverse participatory action research (PAR) teams. The Journal of Community Psychology, 49(2), 266–282. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.22456
Pari Shah, MSW, LCSW
Doctoral candidate Pari Shah has a BA in human service studies from Elon University and a MSW from Washington University in St. Louis. Her post-MSW experience includes working as a clinical social worker in health care settings, including working in hospitals and long-term care with folks coping with chronic illness and end of life. She continues to practice therapy with individuals coping with depression, anxiety, trauma, transition, chronic illness, end of life and grief. As a health systems researcher, Pari’s focus is addressing health systems gaps to better improve patient care and outcomes. She believes that to create improved and accessible health care, a well-supported and cared for health care workforce is essential, and that the pressures of caring for health care workers must shift from an individual responsibility to systems-level solutions. Pari critically examines how health care workers’ well-being is impacted by their work. Additionally, Pari spends substantial time applying to internal and external grants to support her independent research, and she curated time in her doctoral program to sharpen her grant writing skills. During her doctoral training, she has supported randomized controlled trials on improving health care workforce well-being, conducted secondary data workforce analyses and led analyses for projects related to integrated health care.
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Research Interests/Areas of Emphasis
- Integrated health care
- Health care systems
- Workforce well-being
- Prevention and intervention research
- Moral injury
- Mental health
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Dissertation
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Measuring Moral Injury Amongst Clinical Social Workers in Healthcare: A Mixed Methodology Scale Development Study
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Select Grants, Fellowships & Awards
- Outstanding Dissertation Award, University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work
- Inclusive Excellence Award, University of Denver Office of Graduate Education
- The Walter F. LaMendola Pre-Doctoral Assistantship, University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work
- National Institute of Mental Health, R36 Award (scored, not funded)
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Select Presentations
- Shah, P. T., Fainstad, T., Mann, A., Dieujuste, N., Thurmon, K., & Jones, C. (2022, November). Better Together: A novel online physician group-coaching program to improve wellbeing in trainees [Accepted oral presentation]. Council on Social Work Education Annual Program Meeting, Anaheim, CA.
- Shah, P. T. (2022, April). What is moral injury and how is it impacting your wellbeing [Oral presentation]. 13th Annual Palliative Care Social Work Conference, Denver, CO.
- Shah, P. T., Park, I. Y., Dunbar, A. Z., & He, A. (2022, January). The impact of preparation for work and professional development on learning culture in child welfare [Oral presentation]. 26th Annual Conference of the Society for Social Work and Research, Washington, DC.
- Shah, P. T., Greenfield, J., Roybal, K., Klawetter, S., Levek, C., Scott, J., Brown, K., Neu, M., Bourque, S., Palau, M., Hall, A., & Hwang, S. (2021, January). Financial strain as a predictor of maternal mental health among mothers of preterm infants [Poster presentation]. 25th Annual Conference of the Society for Social Work and Research (virtual conference).
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Select Publications
- Mann, A., Fainstad, T., Shah, P. T., Dieujuste, N., Thurmon, K., & Jones, C. (In Press). “We’re all going through it”: Impact of an online group coaching program for medical trainees: A qualitative analysis. BMC Medical Education.
- Fainstad, T., Mann, A., Suresh, K., Shah, P. T., Dieujuste, N., Thurmon, K., & Jones, C. D. (2022). Effect of a novel online group-coaching program to reduce burnout in female resident physicians: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA, 5(5), e2210752. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.10752
- Rosten, T., Gaitan, G., Shah, P. T., & Walls, N. E. (2022). Social work practice in the time of quarantine: A photo elicitation study of experiences of remote work during COVID-19. Advances in Social Work, 22(1), 110–132. https://doi.org/10.18060/25561
- Albright, K., Shah, P. T., Santodomingo, M., & Scandlyn, J. (2020). Dissemination of information about climate change by state and local public health departments: United States, 2019–2020. American Journal of Public Health, 110(8), 1184–1190. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305723
