Increased research and scholarship productivity boosts Mizzou School of Social Work rankings.

Mizzou is one of the best places to earn a master’s degree in social work, according to U.S. News and World Report, which released its Best Health Schools rankings this week. Parallel to the recent increase in these national rankings, the MU School of Social Work has also seen dramatic increases in grant-funded research and scholarship.

Academic Analytics, a national data service that tracks faculty research and scholarly productivity (grants, grant expenditures, articles, citations, books/chapters, awards, etc.), ranks the MU School of Social Work No. 21 out of 154 schools of social work in the US. This achievement is even more impressive considering the relatively small number of faculty at the MU School of Social Work compared with peer schools in the database with similar or higher productivity.

“Out of our 23 excellent faculty members, 12 faculty are tasked with both teaching and producing externally funded scholarship — but our 12 scholars are mighty,” said Aaron Thompson, director of the MU-School of Social Work. “The schools above us have large endowments and double or sometimes triple the number of research faculty, which makes the efforts of our small group that much more impressive.”

The past two years have seen the externally funded scholarship in the School of Social Work double, one of the metrics in the Academic Analytics database.

Another strategy that has helped the school earn national recognition is the work of a faculty awards committee focused on increasing the awareness of faculty accomplishments. The extra work is paying off, with several faculty members receiving national awards this year. Many also serve on national boards, leading efforts to advance gerontological social work, human trafficking prevention, school social work, and criminal and juvenile justice.

National Awards

• 2024 Mansoo Yu, Ewha University Global Fellow (Seoul S. Korea)
• 2024 Danielle Easter, Pearson Excellence in Higher Education Award
• 2024 Aaron Thompson, Gary Lee Shaffer Award, School Social Work Association of America
• 2023 Rachel Bailey, Pearson Excellence in Higher Education Award
• 2023 Kelli Canada, Council on Social Work Education’s Community Action Partnership Award
• 2023 Danielle Easter, Council on Social Work Education’s Community Action Partnership Award  
• 2023 Andy Frey, Fellow, American Academic of Social Work and Social Welfare

National service

• 2024, Mansoo Yu, Associate Editor, Journal of the Society for Social Work & Research
• 2024, Dale Fitch, Editor at Large, Journal of Technology in Human Services
• 2024, Clark Peters, National Advisory Council for Court Appointed Special Advocates (NCASA)
• 2024, Andy Frey, Associate Editor, School Mental Health; Editorial Board, Children & Schools
• 2024, Alex Lewis, Editorial Board, Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care
• 2023, Kelli Canada, Society for Social Work & Research Board Member
• 2023, Erin Robinson, Vice President, Association for Gerontology Education in Social Work
• 2023, Aaron Thompson, Chair, School Social Work SIG, Society for Social Work & Research