Advisor
Mary Katherine O'Connor
Biographical Sketch
Mary Katherine O'Connor is a Professor in the School of Social Work at Virginia Commonwealth University where she teaches in the MSW and Ph.D. programs. She received her M.S.W. and Ph.D. from the University of Kansas. Prior to entering academics, Dr. O'Connor was a member of the Peace Corps, working in community organizing and public health education for seven years and had extensive direct and administrative practice experience in child welfare both in State government and the non-profit sector.
As a Fulbright scholar in Brazil she conducted research with street children, and helped to develop a masters program in social work. She worked with Ambassador Richard Melton, Ambassador to Brazil, in a planning consultation for a Juvenile Justice Project in Rio de Janeiro. This consultation continued with USAID/Brazil. Dr. O'Connor also consulted with Ambassador Gorge Ramon Hernandez, Honduran Embassy, in the development of a national plan for child abuse and neglect prevention and the development of a non-governmental organization for child abuse and neglect prevention in Honduras.
Dr. O'Connor has written numerous book chapters and journal articles with a particular focus on child welfare issues, social justice, research methods, and collaborative or alternative models of organization practice. She has completed many program evaluations using qualitative methods that include assessments using formative and summative evaluations. She has just completed a research project funded by the Pew Charitable Trust investigating best practices of organizations serving the urban poor. Her present research involves identifying and assessing various models of human service organizing with a particular focus on child welfare.
As of 1998, name change from Rodwell to O'Connor