D.F. Duncan is a research professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Social Work where he has taught courses in welfare reform, data analysis, program evaluation and research methods. Since joining the faculty in 1997, he has directed studies on human trafficking, child welfare, welfare reform, Medicaid, homelessness and food stamps.
He led Project NO REST, a five-year initiative funded by the U.S. Children’s Bureau to address the trafficking of youth aged 25 and younger in North Carolina. Project NO REST allied with agencies and organizations to build collaborative community responses to human trafficking. These include prevention; outreach and engagement; screening; emergent services to children and youth who have been removed from a trafficking; and long-term services to survivors of trafficking.
Funding strategies as well as novel and effective data collection methods were developed. The project conducted a statewide outreach campaign to connect trafficking survivors with services through the support of a two-year federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grant allocated through the NC Governor’s Crime Commission (GCC). The VOCA grant also supported the development and implementation of a set of five pilot projects that created and implemented a coordinated collaborative response to trafficking in 17 counties across the state.
Degrees
Ph.D., Political Science, Emory University
MUA, UNC-Charlotte
BA, Philosophy, UNC-Charlotte
Research Program(s)
Child, youth and family well-being
Economic security
Health, mental health and behavioral health
System- and service-level research
Research Expertise
Child abuse, trafficking and child welfare
Child and adolescent mental health and well-being
Educational disparities
Housing
Workforce development
Recent Research Projects
"Creating Indicators and Improving Outcomes"
North Carolina Division of Social Services, Principal Investigator
This project explores the experiences of children who come into contact with the child welfare system in North Carolina. It follows reports of maltreatment, entry into foster care, types of placements, and services received.
“North Carolina School District SEL Profiles”
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, Principal Investigator
In collaboration with the North Carolina Department of Public Instructions’ (NCDPI) Strategic Plan, Operation Polaris 2.0, our team used various strategies to learn more about N.C. schools are responding to the behavioral, mental, social, and emotional health needs of their students and staff. Results from this project detailed what resources were already present in school systems, what barriers were inhibiting progress, and what resources and actions are needed to overcome these barriers in the future.
“Project NO REST: What Are You Searching For”
NC Division of Public Health, Principal Investigator
This project explored tactics to reduce demand for human trafficking in a North Carolina county.
View Google Scholar Page