The UCF College of Health and Public Affairs is pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Bonnie Yegidis as director of the School of Social Work.

Yegidis brings extensive experience in academic administration and social work teaching and research to her new position. Most recently, she served as professor and director of the School of Social Work at the University of South Florida in Tampa. She has held leadership positions at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers and University of Georgia in Athens as well.

During her faculty career, Yegidis has taught in the areas of social work education; international education; women’s mental health; research methods; program development and evaluation; social measurement; and administration across systems, programs and levels. Her research has focused on family violence, cross-cultural issues in social work practice and evidence-based social work practice. She is the co-author of Research Methods for Social Workers, now in its seventh edition, as well as many book chapters and refereed journal articles. In addition, she is certified as a family mediator by the Florida Supreme Court.

Yegidis earned her bachelor’s degree from Montclair State University in New Jersey, master’s degree in social work from West Virginia University, and doctorate in curriculum and instruction (concentration in measurement and evaluation) from the University of South Florida.

“COHPA is indeed fortunate that Dr. Yegidis is assuming a leadership role in the School of Social Work,” said college Dean Mike Frumkin. “She is a nationally renowned leader in social work education who is both a scholar and a visionary. Bonnie is continuously looking for new ways of improving social work education and increasing the impact of the profession on improving people’s lives. She is clearly committed to the college’s mission of Strengthening Communities. Changing Lives.”

Professor Sophia Dziegielewski served as interim director of the School of Social Work from January 2012 to August 2013. She has returned to teaching and leading the school’s research activities and military social work curriculum.

(Photo by Abi Bell)