Trina R. Shanks

Assistant Professor of Social Work

Trina R. Shanks

Degrees

BS, Business Administration, 1992, John M. Olin School of Business, St. Louis, MO;
MPh, Comparative Social Research, 1996, University of Oxford, Oxford, England;
MSW, Social Work, 2000, Washington University, St. Louis, MO;
PhD, Social Work, 2003, Washington University, St. Louis, MO

BioSketch

Trina Shanks is assistant professor of social work. She completed her Ph.D. and Masters in Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis and is also a faculty associate with its Center for Social Development. In 1994 she was awarded the Rhodes scholarship to study at the University of Oxford, where she earned a Masters in Comparative Social Research. In addition to her graduate schooling, Dr. Shanks served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Ecuador working in micro-enterprise development and served as executive director of Christian Community Services, a church-affiliated not-for-profit agency she was invited to help form in Nashville, Tennessee. Shanks initiated its family mentoring program and introduced Individual Development Accounts to its work with public housing residents. In her current research, funded by the Ford Foundation, she is co-investigator for the SEED Impact Assessment study, which sets up a quasi-experimental research design in Pontiac, Michigan, to test the impact of offering Head Start families 529 college education plans for their enrolled children. Other areas of research/scholarly interest: the relationship between assets, poverty and children's well-being; public policy for families; social and economic development, particularly in urban communities.

Personal Information

Email

trwilli@umich.edu

Mailbox

INDI

273

Location

Room:	3726 SSWB
Phone:	(734) 764-7411
Fax:	(734) 763-3372

University of Michigan
School of Social Work
1080 S. University
Ann Arbor, MI 48109

Selected Publications

Hollingsworth, L., Allen-Meares, P., Shanks, T., & Gant, L. M. (in press). A solution-focused approach to community planning: Miracles, dreams, and strategies. Families in Society.

Sherraden, M., & Williams Shanks, T. (2009). The influence of research on policy and practice: Lessons from studies of asset building and low-income families. In A. Stiffman (Ed.), The field research survival guide. Oxford University Press.

Hollingsworth, L. D., Allen-Meares, P., Shanks, T., & Gant, L. M. (2009). Using the miracle question in community engagement and planning. Families in Society, 90(3), 332-335.

Williams Shanks, T. R., & Destin, M. (2009). Parental expectations and educational outcomes for young African American adults: Do household assets matter? Race and Social Problems, 1(1), 27-35.

Boddie, S., & Shanks, T. (2008). Closing the wealth gap: Building an applied research agenda research meeting summary. St. Louis, MO: Center for Social Development.

Beverly, S., Sherraden, M., Zhan, M., Williams Shanks, T., Nam, Y., & Cramer, R. (2008). Determinants of asset building. Washington, DC: Urban Institute.

Davis, L. E., Wallace, J. M., & Williams Shanks, T. R. (2008). African Americans - Overview. In T. Mizrahi & L. E. Davis (Eds.), Encyclopedia of social work. 20th Ed. Oxford University Press.

Williams, J. H., Davis, L. E., Johnson, S. D., Williams Shanks, T. R., Saunders, J. A., & Nebbitt, V. E. (2007). Substance use and academic performance among African American high school students. Social Work Research, 31(3), 151-161.

Williams Shanks, T. R. (2007). The impacts of household wealth on child development. Journal of Poverty, 11(2), 93-116.

Mowbray, C. T., Woolley, M. E., Grogan-Kaylor, A., Gant, L. M., Gilster, M. E., & Williams Shanks, T. R. (2007). Neighborhood research from a spatially oriented strengths perspective. Journal of Community Psychology, 35(5), 667-680.

Curley, J., Edwards, K., Henson, E., Lee, A., Miller, K., Shanks, T. R., et al. (2006). Wealth building in rural America: Potential in human diversity. St. Louis, MO: Center for Social Development, Washington University.

Ratcliffe, C., Chen, H., Williams Shanks, T., Nam, Y., Schreiner, M., Zhan, M., et al. (2006). Assessing asset data on low-income households: Current availability and options for improvement. St. Louis, MO: Center for Social Development, Washington University.

Sherraden, M., McBride, A. M., Johnson, E., Hanson, S., Ssewamala, F. M., & Shanks, T. R. (2005). Saving in low-income households: Evidence from interviews with participants in the American dream demonstration. St. Louis, MO: Center for Social Development, Washington University.

Shanks, T. R. W. (2005). The Homestead Act: A major asset-building policy in American history. In M. Sherraden (Ed.), Inclusion in the American dream: Assets, poverty, and public policy (pp. 20-41). New York: Oxford University Press.