by Matthew Smith
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Social Work Associate Professor Cynthia Fraga Rizo was announced as one of five recipients of the Thomas Willis Lambeth Distinguished Chair in Public Policy by the University on Thursday.
Funded by the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, the honor is a five-year term professorship that recognizes faculty members in the School of Social Work, the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Law, Kenan-Flagler Business School, and the School of Government.
“I am honored to receive this distinguished chair and to be recognized for my work,” Rizo said. “It would not be possible without the wonderful colleagues I have collaborated with throughout the years, the community partners who have engaged alongside me in the work, and the people with lived experience who have trusted me with their stories and experiences.”
Exceptional credentials
Rizo earned her doctorate from the School and joined its full-time faculty in 2014.
Rizo’s primary research focus consists of developing and evaluating interventions for particularly vulnerable survivors of interpersonal violence, including Latine survivors and youth. Some of her prior work includes developing and evaluating school-based sex trafficking content for students, evaluating a parenting program for Latine survivors of partner violence, and examining available domestic violence services and service delivery for the Latine community.
Her work has been published in journals including Trauma, Violence and Abuse; Social Work; American College Health; and Violence Against Women, among others.
Rizo has received numerous honors during her Carolina career, including being named the School’s John A. Tate Early Career Scholar for Children in Need in 2021; the 2017 Linda Saltzman New Investigator Award; and the School’s 2013 Outstanding Doctoral Student Award.
Other recipients
Carolina’s Office of the Provost announced that the distinguished professorship recognizes “exceptional faculty members whose work contributes to the development of public policy in North Carolina and beyond, includes students, collaborates between participating schools, and demonstrates the value of public service.”
Rizo joined four other recipients, including:
- F. Joel Fodrie, professor, Department of Earth, Marine, and Environmental Sciences
- Mark Holmes, professor, Department of Health Policy and Management
- Jeff Hoopes, associate professor, Kenan-Flagler Business School
- Amanda Thompson, professor, Department of Anthropology & Department of Nutrition
Former School Thomas Willis Lambeth Distinguished Chair in Public Policy faculty recipients include Professor Emeritus Gary Nelson, who earned the honor in 2013.
Award background
The distinguished chair was founded by the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation to honor the retirement of former executive director Thomas Willis Lambeth.
The Clayton, N.C., native is a member of the School of Social Work’s Board of Advisors.
He worked as a staffer for Gov. Terry Sanford and U.S. Rep. Richardson Preyer before taking on his role at the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation. During his career the foundation awarded more than $260 million in grant funding to nonprofit organizations, including more than $27 million to the UNC System and its affiliates.
Learn more about the honor online.
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