Pitt Social Work is pleased to announce that two of its faculty will be recognized with named chairs.  A named chair is a unique opportunity to enhance the meaningful work of a distinguished faculty member while simultaneously paying tribute to community leaders and inspirational figures whose work and support motivates the field to achieve greatness. James J. and Noel W. Browne Chair The James J. and Noel W. Browne Chair was generously funded by alumnus James “Jim” Browne (MSW ’73) and alumna Noel Browne (MSW ’74).  The Browne Chair is the first endowed chair in the 100 year history of Pitt Social Work to be fully funded by alumni of the school.  Jim and Noel have been active both in their community and as alumni of the school for years, with Jim serving on Pitt Social Work’s Board of Visitors.  Jim and Noel also generously fund the Browne Leadership Fellows Program, a unique interdisciplinary fellowship aimed at preparing students to be engaged civic leaders working for economic and social justice. Dr. Shaun M. Eack James and Noel Browne Endowed Chair and Professor Dr. Shaun M. Eack has distinguished himself in the field of social work and psychiatry. His innovative work in the development, implementation, and evaluation of psychosocial treatment methodologies to improve the care of people with schizophrenia and related disorders has brought him national acclaim. He and his colleagues have worked for over a decade to develop and establish the evidence base for Cognitive Enhancement Therapy for people living with schizophrenia.  It is now one of the only federally-recognized cognitive rehabilitation treatments for this population and is very effective. Dr. Eack and his team are now translating this approach for adults with autism.  In addition, they have partnered with a provider network and Medicaid managed care organization to develop an online training and technical assistance portal for training psychiatric rehabilitation providers in CET.  With input from front-line providers, consumers, and the scientists who developed CET, the portal aims to dramatically cut down on the training time and costs required to implement CET, broadly enhancing its capacity to be disseminated and available to the many people who could benefit from it throughout the nation. It is his commitment to rapidly and effectively disseminating these treatments that lead him to found the Center for Interventions to Enhance Community Health (CiTECH) where he currently serves as Director. CiTECH is a unique partnership between the School of Social Work and Department of Psychiatry that is dedicated to the improvement and implementation of evidence-based practices in community behavioral health services. Dr. Eack earned his Bachelor of Science and Master of Social Work from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and his Ph.D. in Social Work from the University of Pittsburgh. He also serves as Associate Dean for Research. Read more about Dr. Eack’s work on his webpage. David E. Epperson Chair The David E. Epperson Chair is named in memory of former Dean Emeritus and Professor Emeritus of the School of Social Work David E. Epperson (Ph.D. ’75, MSW ’64), who led Pitt Social Work for nearly 30 years.  When Dean Epperson retired in 2001, he was the longest serving dean in Pitt’s history and the longest serving dean of social work in the country.  Dr. Epperson was lauded for his work in the Pittsburgh community, including significant work with the YMCA, both locally and abroad.  The Epperson Chair is generously funded by the Office of the Provost in Dr. Epperson’s memory. Dr. John Wallace David Epperson Chair and Professor Dr. John Wallace has been a dedicated advocate for the community of Homewood and its residents. Dr. Wallace has committed his life and work to racial and economic justice. As a founder of the Homewood Children’s Village (HCV), Wallace has devoted his work to community-based participatory research that aims to effect immediate change in the lives of some of our society’s most vulnerable members. Wallace worked diligently for almost six years to make the HCV a reality. The HCV is a place-based, child-centered, comprehensive community initiative. The vision of the project is, “Homewood is a community where every child succeeds!” and its mission is, “to simultaneously improve the lives of Homewood’s children and reweave the fabric of the community in which they live.” The idea for the HCV emerged out of a search to identify a replicable, evidence-based strategy to address the myriad problems that confront the children and families who live, learn, work and worship in Homewood.  Over time, the partnership has grown to include a diverse group of Homewood residents, directors of Homewood non-profits, and public, private and non-profit leaders from around the greater Pittsburgh community. Most recently, Wallace and Co-PI James Huguley have been awarded a grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation to support the Pitt Assisted Communities and Schools (PACS) Project. PACS’s goal is to harness the resources of the University of Pittsburgh to conduct research and design, implement and evaluate interventions that support university-assisted community schools and other strategies to improve outcomes for low income children, their families and the communities in which they are nested. John M. Wallace Jr. earned his PhD and master’s degree in sociology from the University of Michigan and his BA in sociology from the University of Chicago. Wallace was recently named a 2018 Fellow of the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare. Read more about Dr. Wallace’s work on his webpage.