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Maria Morrison, Ph.D., LCSW

Assistant Professor
School of Social Work


Office Hours

By appointment

Courses Taught

Advanced Social Work Practice in Trauma with Children and Youth (SWRK 5775); Research for Evidence-Informed Social Work Practice (SWRK 5787); Social Work Practice with Individuals (SWRK 5750); Human Behavior and the Social Environment (SWRK 5725); Policy Practice for Social Justice (SWRK 5707); Social Work Practice with Individuals, Families, & Groups (SWRK 3300); Criminology: Nature of Crime (CCJ 2150)

Education

Ph.D., Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis
M.S.W., University of Alabama

Practice Areas

Trauma interventions and support services to individuals in prison and recently released from prison.

Research Interests

Trauma, incarceration, and the reentry process.

Publications and Media Placements

Morrison, M., Hai, A.H., Bandaru, Y.S., Salas-Wright, C.P., & Vaughn, M.G. (2023).  Opioid misuse and associated health risks among adults on probation and parole: Prevalence and correlates 2015-2020. Substance Use and Misuse.

Morrison, M. (2023).  The Mass Incarceration Trauma (MIT) Framework: A conceptual frame for understanding trauma among individuals who experience incarceration. Social Work.

Morrison, M., Pettus, C., Drake, B., Roth, K. & Renn, T. (2023).  Trauma and incarceration: A latent class analysis of lifetime trauma exposures for individuals in prison.  Journal of Trauma and Dissociation.

Morrison, M. & Drake, B. (2022).  Foster children in care due to parental incarceration:  A longitudinal nationwide analysis.  Children and Youth Services Review.

Morrison, M., Pettus-Davis, C., Renn, T., Veeh, C. & Weatherly, C. (2019).  What trauma looks like for incarcerated men:  A study of men’s lifetime trauma exposures in two state prisons.  Journal of Traumatic Stress Disorders and Treatment.

Honors and Awards

Collaborative Research Grant. Funded by: Doerr Center for Social Justice Education and Research, Saint Louis University School of Social Work

Ruth L. Kirchstein National Research Service Award. Funded by: National Institute of Mental Health, Grant 1F31MH129081-01A1

National Research Service Award. Funded by: National Institute of Mental Health, Grant T32MH019960

Professional Organizations and Associations

Society for Social Work Research

Community Work and Service

Dr. Morrison is a social worker at the Equal Justice Initiative, a non-profit human rights organization that provides legal services to individuals in prison serving unjust sentences. She provides direct services to clients while incarcerated and following release.