Dr. Katherine Van Wormer, MSSW, Ph.D. is Professor Emerita of Social Work. She has taught in departments of sociology, social work and criminal justice and has over 20 years of experience in teaching and public service. Dr. Van Wormer was actively involved in the historic civil rights movements in North Carolina and Northern Ireland. She practiced substance misuse counseling for four and a half years, including two in Norway.

Dr. Van Wormer has been publishing texts, book chapters and articles for over twenty years. In addition to ADDICTION TREATMENT: A STRENGTHS PERSPECTIVE, she has recently co-authored WOMEN AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM, SOCIAL WELFARE POLICY FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE, and earlier, THE MAID NARRATIVES and numerous other books, including one on the nature of oppression and one as a co-editor on restorative justice. She has received several honors, including the McKay Faculty Research Award from the University of Northern Iowa and a distinguished service award from the human rights commission in Iowa.