Faculty, students, and alumni of the National Catholic School of Social Service (NCSSS) were honored to present their research and work at the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR) 2026 Annual Conference, held January 14–18 at the Marriott Marquis in Washington, DC. The  conference was themed "Leading for Transformative Change: Aligning Social Work Science with Policy and Practice," and brought together researchers and practitioners from across the country to advance evidence-based approaches to social work.

NCSSS was well represented at the conference:

• Pete Delany, PhD, LCSW-C; Laura Daughtery, PhD, LCSW-C; Melina Azfal, LICSW, LCSW-C, presented “Community-Based Interdisciplinary Training for Postmasters Prepared Providers”
• Pete Delany; Laura Daughtery; and community partner Regena Humphries, LICSW, LCSW-C presented “Addressing the Issue of Poverty in Community: A Town-Gown Experiment”
• Eun Koh, PhD, MSW  presented on “Understanding the Well-Being of Children in Kinship Care: The Role of Child Disability Status and Relationship to Caregiver”
• Eun Koh and Jong Ho Kim, BA, current NCSSS MSW Student  preented on “Experience of Intimate Partner Violence and Its Association with Mental Well-being for Asians in the United States”
• Pious Malliar Bellian, PhD, MSW  presented on “Spiritual Healing from Trauma: New Scale Development, Analysis and Validation”
• Michael Massey, PhD, MSW; Grace Polistica, MSW; and Eathan Breaux, MSW (NCSSS alumni from the class of 2025) presented on “Artificial Intelligence and Environmental Justice: A Critical Review of Social Work Literature”.  

NCSSS is proud of our faculty, alumni, and student presenters, and this engagement at SSWR is a testament to the school’s enduring commitment to social work scholarship and research.

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