Announcement
May 11, 2010

Associate Professor Susan S. Witte Awarded Tenure by Columbia University

Columbia University has awarded a promotion to tenure to Susan S. Witte, Associate Professor in the School of Social Work. Dr. Witte also serves as the Associate Director of the Social Intervention Group at the School. Her work has illumined prevention interventions related to HIV/AIDS for couples, focusing specifically on the introduction of the female condom into couples-targeted approaches, the recruitment of dyads into clinical trials, and the examination of the concordance of data drawn from couples in order to inform the development of effective interventions. Dr. Witte has also shaped the field with her investigations into the acceptability of the female condom, a device that enables women to exert more control over their health and assure their own safety. Additionally, she pursued her commitment to enabling access to the female condom by surveying 50 states to determine whether their Medicaid programs provide reimbursement for these devices.

Dr. Witte has led a groundbreaking electronic-media based translational and dissemination research program, several segments and iterations of which have been funded generously by the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, largely in acknowledgment of the rigor, innovative quality, and the power of their implications for the advancement of prevention interventions and programs. Additionally, Dr. Witte has been dedicated to reaching and assisting underserved and diverse at-risk populations both here in the U.S. and in Mongolia and Southeast Asia. Her record of securing externally sponsored research from the National Institutes of Health to support her work is nothing short of exemplary.

Dr. Witte is an example of the rare, multi-talented clinical practice scholar and educator with significant direct practice experience who also methodically pursues innovative research that reflects the highest standards of intellectual rigor. Her role in the education and preparation of new generations of direct or advanced clinical practice scholars with interests in contemporary social concerns that threaten at-risk populations bodes well for the future.

The faculty, staff, and students of the Columbia University School of Social Work congratulate Dr. Susan Witte upon her well-deserved promotion to tenure.

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About CUSSW (www.socialwork.columbia.edu)
For 112 years, the Columbia University School of Social Work has been a leader in the education of professionals for careers in practice, policy, and administration. Located in New York City, the School offers a master’s and a doctoral program which are nationally and internationally recognized for their excellence. With a signature curriculum that features multidisciplinary courses taught by leading scholars and practitioners and rich field education, CUSSW continues to be at the forefront of clinical and community practice, social policy, and social enterprise administration education, research and innovation in the 21st Century.