Alan B. Kirk, Ph.D., LCSW
Dr. Alan Kirk has served as the Chair of the Human Services Department since August, 2001. His professional practice background includes service with the U.S. Air Force, the Veteran's Administration, and full time private practice in the Miami/Ft Lauderdale metropolitan area. His writings and research are published in several books and national journals including NASW, the Journal of Gerontological Social Work, and AdultSpan. Dr. Kirk has written several training programs that have been implemented by federal and state governmental organizations. The focus of these training curricula includes leadership, organizational development, case management services, and crisis screening/critical incident debriefing. He currently teaches leadership and research courses at KSU.

Louise Bill, Ph.D. M.S.W.
Dr. Louise Bill is a Professor of Social Work in the Department of Human Services. Her professional training and academic preparation is in social welfare policy and administration. Dr. Bill’s background is in community corrections and working with battered women and children. She received her Ph.D. from Atlanta University in 1988 and her M.S.W. from the University of Georgia. She also holds an M.S. in Urban Affairs. Dr. Bill teaches nonprofit administration and poverty and culture courses.

Matthew J. Corrigan, PhD, LMSW, CASAC
Dr. Corrigan received his Ph.D. and M.S.W. from State University of New York at Albany, School of Social Welfare. His areas of research interest include; substance abuse prevention and treatment, mental health, and social justice. He is a Licensed Master of Social Work and a Credentialed Alcohol and Substance Abuse Counselor, with over ten years of practice and supervisory experience in the addiction field. His work has been presented at several national professional conferences. He is a member of the Society for Social Work and Research and the Society for Prevention Research. He brings this expertise to the Department of Human Services new Master of Social Work degree, specifically contributing to the Substance Abuse track of the MSW.

Anne Hicks-Coolick, Ph.D., MSW
Dr. Hick-Coolick is an Associate Professor of Social Work in the Department of Human Services at Kennesaw State University. She received a M.Ed. from Georgia State University and M.S.W. and Ph.D. from the University Of Georgia School of Social Work. For ten years she was the Clinical and Education Coordinator at Mill Springs Academy in Alpharetta, GA, a school for youth with learning disabilities and attention deficit disorder. She has also worked in social services in public housing and in public mental health. Dr. Hicks-Coolick's primary areas of interest are children, youth, and their families. At KSU she teaches the Overview of Human Services course as well as classes in research, domestic violence, working with families, working with children and youth, and child welfare.

Ardith Peters, Ph.D.
Ardith Peters, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Human Services. She is the Campus Executive Director of the American Humanics program, an academic program that prepares and certifies students to work in nonprofit organizations. Dr. Peters spent 10 years as Director of Planning & Evaluation and Grants Manager in the Atlanta Public Safety/Police Departments. These experiences and a childhood spent abroad piqued her interest in working with culturally diverse communities. She also works in the area of poverty, developing and teaching a Poverty and Culture class with a colleague. She is published on the issues of homelessness in Cobb County and Georgia. Dr. Peters teaches Program Development and Evaluation, Fundraising & Development, Human Socialization and Poverty and Culture. Dr. Peters holds a Ph.D. in sociology from Emory University. Her bachelor’s and master's degrees in sociology are from Wheaton College and Northern Illinois University.

Judith R. Slater, L.C.S.W.
Ms. Slater is an Associate Professor of Social Work at Kennesaw State University where she has taught since 1992. She received a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Georgia and a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Carson-Newman College. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and was in private practice for 13 years. In addition Ms. Slater was a social worker at Kennestone Hospital from 1979 – 1992. She has been a presenter, locally and nationally, on a wide range of topics including compassion fatigue, stress management, communication/crisis management, ethics, and grief/loss topics. Ms. Slater teaches ethics and coordinates undergraduate and graduate internships at KSU.

Timothy Akers, M.S., Ph.D.
Dr. Akers is the Assistant Dean for Research and Graduate Studies in the WellStar College of Health and Human Services, Kennesaw State University. He is a Professor of Human Services and serves as the first Assistant Dean for Research and Graduate Studies in the college and university. Dr. Akers was a Senior Behavioral Scientist with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC). During his tenure at CDC, Dr. Akers served as the Senior Behavioral Scientist and Project Officer in the Office of Minority Health where he served as team leader for the group who developed CDC’s first HIV/AIDS indicator tracking system that tracked CDC’s progress in meeting its HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan’s goals and objectives. Dr. Akers holds a dual B.S. in criminology and criminal justice from Metropolitan State College, Denver, CO; joint M.S’s. in Criminal Justice and Urban Studies from Michigan State University (MSU); and joint Ph.D’s. in Resource Development (Environmental Science) and Urban Studies from MSU. Most recently, Dr. Akers has been instrumental in establishing the Kennesaw AIDS Research & Evaluation Network (KAREnet) initiative for KSU, which focuses on addressing the development of innovative standards and classification methodologies for HIV/AIDS prevention.

Lisa B. Johnson, Ph.D., LCSW
Dr. Lisa Barbanell Johnson, LCSW is an Assistant Professor of Social Work in the Department of Human Services at Kennesaw State University. Dr. Johnson received her BSW from Florida Atlantic University and her MSW and Ph.D. in Social Work from Florida State University. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the state of Florida. Her direct practice experience includes providing outpatient treatment to children and adolescents, focusing on trauma and abuse, as well as in-home counseling to foster-care children and their families (i.e., foster, adoptive, and biological). She was also a Licensed Clinical Director of a supported foster home program that provided intensive wrap-around services. She has managed both a state and federal grant focusing on a child welfare certificate program and adoption in the state of Florida. She has also presented at state, national, and international conferences. Her most recent publication is:

Cash, S., Mathiesen, S., Barbanell, L. D., Smith, T., Graham, P. (2006). Education and partnerships in child welfare: Mapping the implementation of a child welfare certificate program. Journal of Social Work Education, v. 42(1), 123-138

Her research areas of interest include child welfare, adoptions, and children's mental health.

Sharon E. Williams, Ph.D., MSW
Dr. Sharon E. Williams is an Associate Professor in the Department of Human Services. She received her Ph.D. from Florida State University in 1992, and the MSW from Delaware State University in 1986. She completed Post-Doctoral training at the University of Michigan, Institute on Social Research, Program on HIV/AIDS and African Americans. Her professional practice background and training is in the areas of child and family services, child protective services, family violence, culturally competent social work practice, and social work administration. Her research interest is the areas of HIV/AIDS and African American Women and Children, Family Violence Prevention, Outcomes for Children Exposed to Violence, and Post Traumatic Stress Disorders in Children. Her primary teaching areas are research methods, child and family practice, cultural competence, and program evaluation.