2022 Feminist Manuscript Award Recipients
The Feminist Manuscript selected this year had several authors. The title of the winning manuscript is “Barriers to Help-Seeking for Domestic Violence in Kyrgyzstan: Perspectives of Criminal Justice, Social, Health, and Educational Professionals.”
Saltanat Childress, PhD, MSW, is an Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Arlington School of Social Work. The major focus of Dr. Childress’s work is to better understand how to improve the behavioral, educational, and health outcomes associated with childhood exposure to trauma, particularly adverse childhood experiences and domestic violence, at both the local and global levels. Her research and practice seek to expand the scope of evidence-based approaches in prevention and implementation science, especially among populations in Central Asia and immigrants in the United States. Her work seeks to respond to child maltreatment and domestic violence as a system-wide issue involving responses across all levels of family and social institutions. Her work is generating a growing body of peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, and policy guidance in these areas.
Dr. Childress’s current research involves building formative theories about family and institutional dynamics to reduce childhood exposure to trauma, and the testing and evaluation of integrated evidence-based interventions using qualitative and mixed-methods in community-based, participatory approaches. Her social work practice background is in community development, economic empowerment and safety planning for intimate partner violence, and includes projects supported by USAID, the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, and European Commission in Central Asia. Her current studies are funded by the U.S. Department of State, Qatar Foundation International, and National Institutes of Health. Her award-winning manuscript is titled, “Barriers to Help-Seeking for Domestic Violence in Kyrgyzstan: Perspectives of Criminal Justice, Social, Health, and Educational Professionals.”
Co-author Nibedita Shrestha is interested in researching women in the labor force and violence including intimate partner violence, domestic violence, and workplace violence. She has work experience in the fields of girl child education, women entrepreneurship, and labor welfare.
Co-author Dr. Eusebius Small is an Associate Professor at the University of Texas at Arlington School of Social Work. His areas of interest are studying intimate partner violence, and substance use and sexual violence among youth.
Co-author Mary M. McKay is the Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Initiatives at Washington University in St. Louis. In this role, she works to enhance interdisciplinary research and education across the campus and to build the collaborations needed to ensure the successful implementation of the university’s strategic plan.
Dean McKay’s academic experience connects deeply to social work, public health, and social policy. She has received substantial federal funding for research focused on meeting the mental health and health prevention needs of youth and families impacted by poverty. She also has significant expertise in child mental health services and implementation research methods, as well as more than 30 years of experience conducting HIV prevention and care-oriented studies in the United States and nine other countries across the globe, supported by the National Institutes of Health. She has authored more than 200 publications on mental and behavioral health, HIV/AIDS prevention, urban poverty, and more.
Dean McKay is active in both the Washington University and St. Louis communities. At Washington University, she previously served as the Neidorff Family and Centene Corporation Dean of the Brown School for more than 5 years. Additionally, she serves on the University Council, is an Ambassador to Chulalongkorn University in the McDonnell International Academy, has been the Co-Chair of Day of Discovery & Dialogue, and is the 2019 Chair of the Washington University United Way Campaign. She is President of the American Academy of Social Work and Welfare and sits on the board of directors for the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health and the Grand Challenges for Social Work. Dean McKay is also an editor of Global Social Welfare: Research, Policy & Practice, and is a member of the Congressional Social Work Policy & Research Institute.
Prior to joining Washington University in St. Louis, Dean McKay was the McSilver Professor of Social Work and the inaugural director of the McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research at New York University's Silver School of Social Work. She previously served as the head of the Division of Mental Health Services Research at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Her prior academic appointments include Columbia University and University of Illinois at Chicago.