The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Social Work will welcome Yekoutiel “Couty” Sabah, Ph.D., as a visiting professor for spring semester 2020. He will work directly with Gary Nelson (who directs the School’s Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Lab) and will serve as guest lecturer for several courses.
Sabah’s research expertise includes virtual communities of practice, knowledge management and organizational learning in human services programs, according to UNC School of Social Work Dean Gary Bowen.
“I have found his scholarly and policy/practice-based work … to be cutting edge and highly informative,” Bowen noted. “Couty is a thoughtful and engaging scholar and colleague — he is going to love being involved in our discussions.”
Sabah leads Israel’s National Statistical System Coordination Division, with responsibility for coordinating efforts within the Israeli government to bring together processing and dissemination of official statistics from all agencies. He has also served as head of research, planning and training with the Israel Ministry of Social Affairs and Services.
Previously, Sabah was a social advisor for Israel’s National Planning and Building Authority and Israel’s delegate and liaison to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs, among other governmental roles.
He studied social work at Hebrew University, where he earned bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees. He also earned a Master of Public Administration degree from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. Currently, he serves on the editorial board of Hevra ou-Revaha (Society and Welfare) and, in 2018, he was a guest editor for its special issue “Leadership and Management in Social Services.”
Sabah has served as a visiting scholar at Brown School of Social Work (Washington University in St. Louis), University of South Florida, University of Kentucky and the European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research in Vienna, Austria.