BOSTON (Diya TV) — Boston College has named Guatam Yadama, who already serves as the assistant vice chancellor for international affairs and professor in the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis, as the new dean of the Boston College School for Social Work.
He will begin in July and succeed Alberto Godenzi, who is retiring as dean after 15 years of service.
A researcher of international acclaim whose interdisciplinary work has focused on understanding the social and environmental challenges of the rural poor in South Asia and China, Yadama has conducted exhaustive community-based research throughout India, China and Nepal. His research examines the overarching questions of how communities successfully self-govern and collectively provide essential public goods and common-pool resources vital for their livelihoods; how government and non-governmental organizations engage and collaborate with these communities; and how social and ecological interactions influence the sustained implementation of household and community interventions to overcome social dilemmas and improve wellbeing.
A gifted scholar and teacher regarded for his curricular innovation, Yamada has won Distinguished Faculty Awards from both Washington University and the Brown School of Social Work.
Fluent in the languages of English, Telugu and Hindi, Yamada has also served as director of international programs at the Brown School of Social Work and as a visiting professor in India, Azerbaijan, Mongolia and the Republic of Georgia.
In announcing the appointment, Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley praised Yadama as a leader whose reputation for interdisciplinary collaboration in the field of social work will benefit Boston College.
“The search committee and I are confident that Gautam Yadama is the right leader for the School of Social Work,” said Quigley. “His experience in the communities of Cleveland, metro St. Louis and around the globe, his vision for the field of social work, and his imaginative approach to cross-school collaborations all resonated with faculty, staff and students. I expect that colleagues across campus will quickly come to value Gautam as an important partner.”
Yadama said he was delighted to join Boston College and lead the faculty at the School of Social Work.
“The Boston College School of Social Work is highly visible in the profession for its emphasis on tackling key challenges in social work,” said Yadama. “Its faculty have been significant in shaping the grand challenges for social work and taking on intractable and perennial problems confronting our most vulnerable and disenfranchised. The school is pursuing social work practice rooted in place to generate social innovation, integrate immigrants, explore race and place to provide stable lives for African American children, empower disadvantaged youth, and realize environmental justice in urban spaces.
