Scholars on the Market
All NYU Silver PhD candidates have received personalized mentoring and cutting-edge research opportunities throughout their doctoral training, positioning them to be top social work scholars and leaders in the field. The following scholars are currently seeking an academic appointment.

Lynden Bond
Lynden Bond is a PhD Candidate at New York University's Silver School of Social Work. She is a graduate of the Silver School of Social Work's MSW program and is a licensed master social worker in New York. Lynden's research interests include social determinants of health, housing insecurity, homelessness, and behavioral health. Her current research focuses on how housing insecurity and homelessness may impact access to mental health and substance use treatment services among emergency department patients.
Highlights:
Publication: Bond, L., Wusinich, C., & Padgett, D. (2021). Weighing the options: Service user perspectives on homeless outreach services. Qualitative Social Work. doi.org/10.1177/1473325021990861
- Predoctoral Fellow, Behavioral Sciences Training Program in Drug Abuse Research (T32)
New York University, Rory Meyers College of Nursing, 2021 - present

Laura Curran
Laura Curran, LMHC (FL) is a 5th year Doctoral Candidate in the Silver School of Social Work at New York University and T32 Predoctoral Fellow with NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing. Her research focuses on treatment and policies surrounding substance use and co-occurring mental health disorders and medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) among pregnant individuals. She has 4 years of clinical experience as a mental health provider working in the child welfare system and as a substance use counselor in a harm-reduction methadone program specializing in prenatal substance use. Her current research with Dr. Jennifer Manuel examines the effectiveness of Critical Time Intervention (CTI) for individuals with substance use disorders leaving residential treatment. Also, her current work includes exploring the impact of substance use on community integration for individuals with severe mental illness in NYC. Laura’s dissertation is focused on federal and state policies surrounding prenatal substance use and MOUD, and the multi-level facilitators and barriers that influence MOUD utilization among pregnant individuals in the US. Laura seeks to contribute knowledge about the social determinants of prenatal substance use and mental health disorders, and to improve collaboration between substance use services, child welfare system, and healthcare systems. She has a strong interest in the ways in which criminalizing or punitive policies impact service utilization, and seeks to expand policies that leverage harm reduction principles to facilitate access to treatment and reduce the stigmatization of prenatal substance use. Laura’s future work will advocate for policy development and specialized substance use services for pregnant individuals, and for advancing equity in health outcomes for women and families experiencing substance use.
Highlights:
- Award: NIH T32 Predoctoral Fellowship, Behavioral Sciences Training Program, NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing
- Publication: Frank, D., Mateu-Gelabert, P., Perlman, D., Walters, S., Curran, L., & Guarino, H. (2021). “It’s like ‘liquid handcuffs’”: The effects of take-home dosing policies on Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) patients’ lives. Journal of Harm Reduction.
- Publication: Curran, L., Jordan-Arthur, B., Tan, T., Rice, J. (2021). The risk of child removal by child protective services among pregnant women in medication-assisted treatment for OUD. Journal of Social Work Practice in the Addictions.

Yangjin Park
Yangjin Park is a PhD Candidate at New York University's Silver School of Social Work. Yangjin's research interests include violence and trauma, mental health, vulnerable families, military families, family resilience, and family therapy. His current research focuses on how family resilience can buffer various patterns of risks on developing into violence and trauma.
Highlights:
- Publication: Park, Y., Song, J.K., Sullivan, K. & Paik, S.H. (in press). Mapping perceptions of violence in Asia. Journal of Asian and African Studies.
- Publication: Park, Y., Sullivan, K. S., Riviere, L., Merrill, J., & Clarke-Walper, K. (2021). Intimate partner violence perpetration among military spouses. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. DOI:10.1177/08862605211004139.