Meet The Team
Shelley L. Craig, PhD (Principal Investigator)
Shelley L. Craig’s research focuses on the social determinants of health and mental health and the impact of the service delivery system on vulnerable populations. Her primary specializations are: (1) the needs of sexual and gender minority youth and subsequent program development and service delivery (2) the roles and interventions used by health social workers to impact the social determinants of health (3) developing competent social work practitioners through effective social work education.
As principal investigator she has recently tested several interventions for sexual and gender minority youth including Strengths-First, a resilience-focused case management program for youth at risk, ASSET, an empowering group model and funded through the Canadian Institute of Health Research, AFFIRM, an affirmative cognitive-behavioural group intervention. Funding from SSHRC has allowed Dr. Craig to further understand the influence of the media on the resilience and identity of this vulnerable population. Other projects include a HIV prevention intervention for minority youth involved with the juvenile justice system, identified the HIV testing patterns of older Latinas; HIV prevention for Latina transgender sex workers, and the use of mental health services by urban gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) youth. Dr. Craig directed an extensive community research plan, as well as developed and established a multi-million dollar comprehensive service delivery system for sexual minority youth and their families. She has also been PI of an international study of LGBTQ students in social work programs.
Dr. Craig is registered and licensed clinical social worker with a particular expertise in delivering effective services for vulnerable populations. Selected experiences over her twenty five years of practice include: Founder and Executive Director of the Alliance for LGBTQ Youth, Executive Director of ALSO for Out Youth; Medical social worker in the emergency care center of a community hospital; Director of a domestic violence shelter.
Dr. Craig has been the recipient of numerous awards, including: the Inspirational Social Work Leader 2015, Ontario Association of Social Workers; Fellow, the Society for Social Work Research (SSWR); the Excellence in Research Scholarship Award from the Council of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity/Expression (CSOGE), National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Student Social Worker of the Year and the Gay and Lesbian Adolescent Social Services (GLASS) National Person of Impact. She is particularly proud that several of her students and mentees have also become Student Social Worker(s) of the Year.
As principal investigator she has recently tested several interventions for sexual and gender minority youth including Strengths-First, a resilience-focused case management program for youth at risk, ASSET, an empowering group model and funded through the Canadian Institute of Health Research, AFFIRM, an affirmative cognitive-behavioural group intervention. Funding from SSHRC has allowed Dr. Craig to further understand the influence of the media on the resilience and identity of this vulnerable population. Other projects include a HIV prevention intervention for minority youth involved with the juvenile justice system, identified the HIV testing patterns of older Latinas; HIV prevention for Latina transgender sex workers, and the use of mental health services by urban gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) youth. Dr. Craig directed an extensive community research plan, as well as developed and established a multi-million dollar comprehensive service delivery system for sexual minority youth and their families. She has also been PI of an international study of LGBTQ students in social work programs.
Dr. Craig is registered and licensed clinical social worker with a particular expertise in delivering effective services for vulnerable populations. Selected experiences over her twenty five years of practice include: Founder and Executive Director of the Alliance for LGBTQ Youth, Executive Director of ALSO for Out Youth; Medical social worker in the emergency care center of a community hospital; Director of a domestic violence shelter.
Dr. Craig has been the recipient of numerous awards, including: the Inspirational Social Work Leader 2015, Ontario Association of Social Workers; Fellow, the Society for Social Work Research (SSWR); the Excellence in Research Scholarship Award from the Council of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity/Expression (CSOGE), National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Student Social Worker of the Year and the Gay and Lesbian Adolescent Social Services (GLASS) National Person of Impact. She is particularly proud that several of her students and mentees have also become Student Social Worker(s) of the Year.
Ashley Austin, PhD (Academic Co-Investigator)
Ashley Austin, PhD is currently an Associate Professor of Social Work at Barry University in Miami. FL. Her research and practice interests revolve around reducing disparities in health and treatment for LGBTQ youth and young adults. Her areas of research and professional practice include promoting resilience and well-being among sexual and gender minority youth, transgender affirmative practice, education, and research, and adaptations of empirically supported interventions for marginalized populations. Her recent research and scholarship collaborations focus on addressing notable gaps in the treatment literature through the adaptation of evidence informed cognitive behavioral interventions to meet the unique needs of diverse LGBQT youth and young adults. Dr. Austin was the Primary Investigator for various research projects aimed at giving voice to the diverse needs and experiences of transgender and gender non-conforming individuals, as well as a Co-investigator on intervention research studies conducted with LGBTQ youth in Toronto, CA. Dr. Austin has authored multiple publications and presentations aimed at advancing the delivery of transgender affirmative social work education and clinical practice.
Cheryl Dobinson (Community Co-Investigator)
Cheryl Dobinson is the Director of Community Programming and Research at Planned Parenthood Toronto. She is responsible for the agency’s research activities as well as the management of health promotion programming and community development initiatives to improve client health and well-being. Cheryl has been involved in four different community-based health research projects over the last decade, including the CIHR-funded project Risk and resilience among bisexual people in Ontario: A community-based study and projects related to sexual identity and mental health.
Lauren B. McInroy, PhD (Clinical Evaluation Specialist)
Lauren B. McInroy is a Research Coordinator and Course Instructor in the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work at the University of Toronto. She is also a fully qualified primary/junior level educator. Lauren’s research interests include vulnerable children and adolescents, LGBTQ+ populations, and the developmental and social implications of offline and online media engagement and participation by youth and young adults. She is also particularly interested in digital research methodologies, online fandom cultures and communities, and online social advocacy movements and campaigns. Lauren’s doctoral research considered the impacts of participation in online communities (particularly online fandoms) on the identity development, resilience, and positive adjustment of LGBTQ+ young people. She has been a Royal Bank of Canada Graduate Fellow in Applied Social Work Research, received a Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship (Doctoral) from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and held an Ontario Graduate Scholarship.
Gio Iacono, PhD(c) (Clinical Evaluation Specialist)
Gio Iacono is a Doctoral Candidate, Research Coordinator, and Course Instructor in the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work at the University of Toronto. Gio also teaches at Ryerson University and Centennial College. His research and scholarly interests include: LGBTQ youth mental health, resilience, social work education and mindfulness-based treatment approaches. Gio has worked as a clinical social worker, psychotherapist, educator, and researcher in a variety of health and community-based settings. His community development work has been focused on promoting the mental health of diverse and marginalized communities. Gio has been a Royal Bank of Canada Graduate Fellow in Applied Social Work Research, has received the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (2015), and currently holds an Ontario Graduate Scholarship.
Poe Liberado, MSW (Project Coordinator)
Poe Liberado is an artist, educator, and Registered Social Worker. Hir work ranges from stand-up comedy to community-based research. This range was best demonstrated in hir Western European performance and lecture tour “I’m not a racist, but..” and “Deconstructing White Supremacy within LGBTQ+ Communities”. Hir community organizing experience includes the former Chair of Hamilton Pride, and former Coordinator of The Well, LGBTQ Wellness Centre of Hamilton. Hir project coordination work includes the development of a worker’s cooperative in Chandigarh, India, for which ze was named City of Mississauga’s Young Citizen of the Year, and Space Between, a conference in Hamilton, Ontario which brought together marginalized LGBTQ+ populations, which was awarded the Rainbow Health Ontario Breakthrough Project Grant. Currently, Poe demonstrates hir commitment to social justice as a grant writer, raising more than $100,000 to date for community-based organizations. Currently, ze is an LGBTQ+ youth mental health counsellor at the Griffin Centre, and facilitates the Trans Partner Network, and SOFFA (Significant Others, Friends, Family and Allies) at Sherbourne Health Centre.
