Announcing the 2026 GADE Research & Mentoring Awardees
Join us in celebrating awardees at the GADE Annual Reception at SSWR on January 16.
On behalf of the Group of Advancement for Doctoral Education (GADE) Board of Directors and Awards Committee, we are pleased to announce the 2026 GADE Research & Mentoring Awardees.
The Donna Harrington Faculty Award for Excellence in Mentoring of Doctoral Students is given to a current or retired faculty member who has a sustained and demonstrable record of exemplary commitment to and achievement of excellence, innovation, and effectiveness in mentoring of doctoral students and creating an environment that is inclusive and supportive of diverse doctoral students from underrepresented communities. The 2026 Donna Harrington Faculty Award for Excellence in Mentoring of Doctoral Students is awarded to Dr. Margaret Adamek from the Indiana University School of Social Work.
The Faculty Award for Early Career Achievement in Social Work Doctoral Education is given to an early career faculty member at a member institution who has made significant contributions to doctoral education through teaching, mentoring, service, and/or leadership. The 2026 Faculty Award for Early Career Achievement in Social Work Doctoral Education is awarded to Dr. Moses Okumu from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign School of Social Work.
The Student Award for Social Work Research is given to a doctoral student or a collaborative group of students, whose published (or in press) scholarship advances scientific inquiry in social work or social welfare. The 2026 Student Award for Research in Social Work is awarded to Teresa Abrahamson-Richards from the University of Washington School of Social Work.
A new grant program, the Social Work Dissertation/Capstone Grant is given to two doctoral students who are conducting rigorous dissertation research and capstone projects addressing a significant substantive area relevant to social welfare and the field of social work, with potential to advance scientific inquiry and impact policy and practice in social work or social welfare. The 2026 Social Work Dissertation/Capstone Grantees are Christian Adeleke from the University of Texas at Arlington School of Social Work and Jeehae Kang from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign School of Social Work.
Sincere thanks to the Awards Committee for their careful review of the outstanding application pool and to all of the nominators for taking the time to elevate the work of social work faculty and doctoral students. The Awards Committee was extremely impressed by the quality of applications and the exciting work represented in the nomination packages.
Awardees will be recognized at the 2026 GADE Annual Reception hosted at the Society for Social Work & Research Annual Conference in Washington, DC on Friday, January 16, 2026 at 8:15-10:00pm PST. We hope you will join us for this opportunity to recognize and celebrate their accomplishments. All are welcome!
The Donna Harrington Faculty Award for Excellence in Mentoring of Doctoral Students is given to a current or retired faculty member who has a sustained and demonstrable record of exemplary commitment to and achievement of excellence, innovation, and effectiveness in mentoring of doctoral students and creating an environment that is inclusive and supportive of diverse doctoral students from underrepresented communities. The 2026 Donna Harrington Faculty Award for Excellence in Mentoring of Doctoral Students is awarded to Dr. Margaret Adamek from the Indiana University School of Social Work.
The Faculty Award for Early Career Achievement in Social Work Doctoral Education is given to an early career faculty member at a member institution who has made significant contributions to doctoral education through teaching, mentoring, service, and/or leadership. The 2026 Faculty Award for Early Career Achievement in Social Work Doctoral Education is awarded to Dr. Moses Okumu from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign School of Social Work.
The Student Award for Social Work Research is given to a doctoral student or a collaborative group of students, whose published (or in press) scholarship advances scientific inquiry in social work or social welfare. The 2026 Student Award for Research in Social Work is awarded to Teresa Abrahamson-Richards from the University of Washington School of Social Work.
A new grant program, the Social Work Dissertation/Capstone Grant is given to two doctoral students who are conducting rigorous dissertation research and capstone projects addressing a significant substantive area relevant to social welfare and the field of social work, with potential to advance scientific inquiry and impact policy and practice in social work or social welfare. The 2026 Social Work Dissertation/Capstone Grantees are Christian Adeleke from the University of Texas at Arlington School of Social Work and Jeehae Kang from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign School of Social Work.
Sincere thanks to the Awards Committee for their careful review of the outstanding application pool and to all of the nominators for taking the time to elevate the work of social work faculty and doctoral students. The Awards Committee was extremely impressed by the quality of applications and the exciting work represented in the nomination packages.
Awardees will be recognized at the 2026 GADE Annual Reception hosted at the Society for Social Work & Research Annual Conference in Washington, DC on Friday, January 16, 2026 at 8:15-10:00pm PST. We hope you will join us for this opportunity to recognize and celebrate their accomplishments. All are welcome!