AUSTIN, Texas—The School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin recently received grants totaling $6.3 million for research on substance abuse.
One major grant involves a five-year, $2 million Substance Abuse Research Development Program funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). It will involve research and training activities to develop substance abuse research among faculty and students in the School of Social Work and related disciplines.
Dr. Barbara W. White, dean of the university’s School of Social Work, said the program would focus specifically on substance abuse among underserved populations, particularly African Americans and Mexican Americans. She said it will emphasize factors at the individual, family, organizational, societal and cultural levels that influence substance abuse and substance abuse treatment.
In addition to this newly funded initiative from NIDA, three other federal grants totaling $4.3 million were awarded recently to the School of Social Work. Research scientist Richard Spence is the principal investigator of these three grants. They are:
- Research grant from NIDA to study the normalization of heroin as a "club drug"
- Research grant from NIDA to study drug problems on the U. S./Mexico border
- Technology transfer grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to bridge the gap between research and clinical practice in the addictions field.
The Substance Abuse Research Development Program co-directors are Professor James Alan Neff and Distinguished Teaching Professor Diana DiNitto. Others involved in the program are Professor Clay Shorkey, Associate Dean for Research and Distinguished Teaching Professor Ruth McRoy, Assistant Professor Dorie Gilbert, Associate Professor David Springer and Associate Professor Kate Wambach.
For additional information, contact Neff at (512) 471-8267, DiNitto at (512) 471-9227 or Spence at (512) 471-4109.
