Rate My Professor Sean Newsome

W. Sean Newsome, Ph.D., is Interim Chair and Associate Professor in the Department of Family Science and Social Work at Miami University. He received his Ph.D. in Social Work from The Ohio State University in 2002, focusing his dissertation on testing the efficacy of solution-focused treatment with at-risk junior high school students. He holds a Master of Social Work from Wayne State University (1996) and dual Bachelor of Arts degrees in Psychology and Philosophy from the University of Michigan (1994). Newsome's research specializations include the use of solution-focused brief therapy with at-risk adolescents, the impact of school liaisons with low-income families, and the effects of grandparents raising grandchildren in K-12 educational settings. His peer-reviewed publications feature "The impact of solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) with at-risk junior high school students" (Children & Schools, 2005), "Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) with at-risk junior high school students: Enhancing the bottom-line" (Research on Social Work Practice, 2004), "Grandparents raising grandchildren: A solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) approach in school settings" (Social Work with Groups, 2004, with M. Kelly), and "Participation in boys and girls clubs and relationships to youth outcomes" (Journal of Community Psychology, 2003, with D. Anderson-Butcher and T. Ferrari). He has contributed book chapters on Appalachian families and poverty (Sage Handbook of Families & Poverty, in press), bullying behavior and school violence (2006), and measures for family assessment from a strengths perspective (2005).

Newsome joined Miami University in 2006 as BSW Program Director and Assistant Professor, advancing to Associate Professor, and currently serves as Interim Chair. Previously, he was Assistant Professor in the School Social Work Concentration at the University of Illinois at Chicago's Jane Addams College of Social Work (2002-2005) and held multiple teaching and research assistant roles at The Ohio State University. His professional practice includes serving as School Social Worker in the Birmingham Michigan School District (1997-1998), Treatment Coordinator and House Coordinator at Boysville of Michigan (1996-1997), and various internships in school social work and autism support. Newsome received a Certificate of Achievement Award at the 15th National Symposium on Doctoral Research in Social Work (2003) and has been nominated for Teaching Assistant of the Year at Ohio State University. He teaches graduate research sequence and social work practice courses and is an Associate Faculty Member in Miami's Center for Human Development, Learning, and Technology.