Our very own Dr. Dawn Anderson-Butcher was awarded The Top 50 Women Leaders of Ohio for 2022 by thewomenweadmire.com! See below for more of the story on how Dr. Dawn Anderson-Butcher earned this well-deserved recognition.
Dawn Anderson-Butcher is a sports scientist by training, and a licensed clinical social work worker. She has dedicated her career to promoting healthy outcomes for young people, especially those from socially vulnerable circumstances. Her current role is Professor of Social Work and Affiliate Faculty in Kinesiology at The Ohio State University. At Ohio State, she serves as the Co-Executive Director of Ohio State’s LiFEsports Initiative, overseeing the research, curriculum development, and training components of this nationally recognized sport program. Dawn also serves as the Executive Director of the Community and Youth Collaborative Institute, a center focused on building the capacity of the multiple social settings that serve youth (such as schools, afterschool programs, sports, etc.). Dawn is an internationally renowned scholar and has amassed over 120 publications over the course of her career. She served over 10 years as the chair for the Mental Health Education Integration Consortium, a national think-tank focused on school mental health practice, policy, and research. Additionally, her collaborative work has touched the lives of over 10,000 youth over the years in Central Ohio.
Her work has been honored by many. Dawn was the first person at Ohio State to be inducted as a Fellow in the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare. She also is a Research Fellow in both the Society of Health and Physical Educators and the Society of Social Work Researchers, as well as received the School Social Work Association of America’s Gary A. Shaffer Award for Academic Contributions to the Field of School Social Work. Dawn earned a PhD in exercise and sport psychology and a master’s degree in social work from the University of Utah. She has a master's degree in exercise science and undergraduate degrees in psychology and exercise science from Miami University of Ohio.