Faculty and Staff
Term Assistant Professor, Social Work
Community Program Manager, Social WorkJeanne Booth joined the Social Work Department as Assistant Professor in the fall of 2019 after serving as Adjunct Professor since 2016. She joined the department with over 29 years of experience providing clinical and administrative social work practice in a variety of areas including housing, justice, mobile crisis intervention work, child welfare services, aging and developmental disability services.
Associate Professor, Social Work
Dr. Carol Cleaveland is an Associate Professor of Social Work at George Mason University. She teaches SOCW 674 Psychopathology, SOCW 645 Community Clinical Practice and SOCW 653 Immigration Policy. Dr. Cleaveland also serves as a training coordinator for Mason’s VA SBIRT grant.
Title IV-E Child Welfare Stipend Program Coordinator, Social Work
Katherine Cornejo joined George Mason University’s Social Work Faculty as the Child Welfare Stipend Program Coordinator in April, 2017. She has over 14 years of experience working with survivors of domestic violence and the child welfare system within community based nonprofit settings in Washington DC and New York City. Katherine received her MSW from Fordham University and holds a social work license from the District of Columbia.
Associate Director of Field Education, Department of Social Work, Social Work
Term Associate Professor, Social WorkDr. Molly Everett Davis is Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work. Davis’s research interests are diverse and include gerontology and geriatrics, trauma across the life course, disaster behavioral health and cultural competence models.
BSW Program Director, Social Work
Dr. Freedman is an experienced social work educator and licensed independent social worker. He has been involved in social work education for over fifteen years and is a term associate professor and BSW program director with the Department of Social Work at George Mason University.
Assistant Professor, Social Work
Dr. Michelle D. Hand is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work. Her research focuses on empowerment building approaches to address sexual violence and trauma among at-risk non-dominant populations, including in later life. Thus, she studies causes and impacts of violence and trauma as well as arts- and horticulture-based interventions (e.g., community gardens, farms and murals) to support healing, informed by extensive interdisciplinary research and clinical experience.
Associate Professor, Social Work
Dr. Denise Hines, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work, College of Health and Human Services at George Mason University. Dr. Hines’ expertise includes the causes, consequences, and prevention of family violence and sexual assault, with a particular focus on under-recognized victims of violence. As the former director of the Massachusetts Family Impact Seminars, she also has a specialization in translating university-based research for policymakers.
Chair, Department of Social Work, Social Work
Associate Professor, Social WorkDr. Emily S. Ihara is an associate professor and chair of the Department of Social Work. Ihara’s research interests focus on interventions, policies, and system changes necessary to eliminate health inequities for vulnerable populations across the life course.
Associate Professor, Social Work
Dr. Inoue is an Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work. Her research focus is primarily on older adults with declined health who are vulnerable to losing autonomy and dignity.
Postdoctoral Fellow, Social Work
Dr. Hyun Kang is a postdoctoral research fellow in the gerontology research team at the Department of Social Work. He earned his Ph.D. in social work from the University of Kansas. His doctoral dissertation examined how ageism affects productive engagement in later life and identified potential interventions for lessening the effects of ageism and supporting aging well.