Wendy L. Haight, Ph.D.
Gamble-Skogmo Chair in Child Welfare and Youth Policy
Dr. Haight completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at Reed College and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago where she studied developmental cultural psychology. She served on the faculty of the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign for 16 years and joined the U in 2011. Her research focuses on understanding and supporting vulnerable children and families in diverse cultural contexts. She uses mixed methods and works within teams to design, implement and evaluate interventions. She has co-authored 10 books and over 50 articles in peer-reviewed journals.
Ruth Soffer-Elnekave, Ph.D.
Student (3rd year)
Ruth received her BSW and MSW from The Ben-Gurion University in Be’er Sheva, Israel. She worked in Israeli Foster Care Services, both as a case worker and a supervisor, with different minority populations and developed foster care services in the Bedouin community in the south of Israel. She is interested in cross-cultural social work, Indigenous practices and social work with communities in areas of political conflict. Ruth wishes to create knowledge that will have an impact on the social work profession and on welfare services delivered to these populations.
Ndilimeke Nashandi, Ph.D.
Student (3rd year)
Ndilimeke received her BSW from the University of Namibia; BAdmin from Namibia University of Science and Technology, and an MA in Development Studies from the University of the Western Cape in South Africa. She has 14 years of experience in the academic sector and four in the civil sector. Previously, she worked to address social disparities among young men and women; in HIV/AIDS workforce development and managing the Global Fund Country Coordinating Mechanism in Namibia. Her research interests include culturally responsive social services; systems strengthening child welfare and HIV/AIDS, and educational disparities.
Cary Waubanascum, Ph.D.
Student (4th year)
Cary received her bachelor’s degree from Alverno College and MSW from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. She is originally from the Land of the Menominee Nation (WI) and a member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin. She is a wife and Aknulha to a son, daughter, and 6 nephews. Cary spent ten years working as a social worker with Indigenous communities in community corrections, transitional housing, suicide prevention, reentry, and strategic planning with tribal justice systems. She is currently a fourth-year doctoral student. Her research is focused on Indigenous and decolonizing social work.
Johara Suleiman, Ph.D.
Student (1st Year)
Johara received her BA in Psychology at Carleton College in 2012, and her MSW at Salem State University in 2016. Over the last nine years, she has worked with youth and adults ranging from 4-years-old to 75-years-old in school, hospital, home, and community settings as an individual, couples, and family therapist. The primary focus of her clinical work has been around supporting children and families through chronic trauma and its subsequent challenges. Johara plans to focus her research on child welfare and the intersecting impacts of the child welfare system’s Islamophobia, xenophobia, and racism on Muslim BIPOC families living in the United States.
Young Ji Yoon, Ph.D.
Student (4th year)
Young Ji received her BA in Child Welfare Studies and BEc. in Economics from Sookmyung Women’s University. She completed her MSW at Yonsei University and has participated in research projects focused on cross-national comparisons of child abuse and domestic violence. She completed internships at a social welfare center, geriatric hospital, and the Korean National Council on Social Welfare. Her research focuses on improving cancer screening behaviors of minority populations and enhancing quality of life for cancer survivors. Young Ji is a research assistant for a study that examines the psychosocial adaptation of children in MN public schools.
Minhae Cho Ph.D.
Student (Alum)
Dr. Minhae Cho completed her Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota in April 2019. She is an assistant professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Memphis, TN. Her research focuses on better understanding culturally diverse, vulnerable children and families. Dr. Cho has been working with Dr. Wendy Haight on crossover youth, racial and gender disparity in out-of-school suspension, moral injury with youth involved in social service systems, and cross-cultural study of children with disabilities.