Associate Professor of Social Work, School of Social Work and Associate Professor of Women's and Gender Studies, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts
they/them/theirs
About
Shanna K. Kattari, PhD, MEd, CSE, ACS (they/them/theirs) is an assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Social Work, the Department of Women’s Studies (by courtesy), Director of the [Sexuality|Relationships|Gender] Research Collective, and core faculty at the Center for Sexuality and Health Disparities. A queer, White, Jewish, cisgender, disabled, chronically ill Femme, their practice and community background is as a board-certified sexologist, certified sexuality educator and social justice advocate. Dr. Kattari’s extant research focuses on understanding how power, privilege and oppression systematically marginalize, exclude and discriminate against people regarding their identities/expressions through negative attitudes, policies reinforcing oppression, oppressive actions and isolation. Recently, they have focused on the health disparities among trans/NB communities, across physical and behavioral health, as well as working with the community through community-based participatory research to better understand how the lack of inclusive providers has increased these disparities. They are also interested in examining sexuality in marginalized communities, particularly disabled adults and LGBTQIA2S+ individuals.
Dr. Kattari has been working in the fields of sexuality and social justice since receiving their Master of Education in Human Sexuality Education from Widener University. In their work as a sexuality educator and diversity/inclusivity consultant, they have worked with organizations such as The Colorado Department of Public Health Education, Arizona State University, the Mayo Clinic and the American Medical Students Association’s sexual health scholars program to bring LGBTQIA and disability inclusivity to medicine, and with many colleges and universities to offer accessible sex education on campus. Additionally, they have several popular press books on the market, has written for several publications and has been on the board of directors for several social justice organizations.
Dr. Kattari has been working in the fields of sexuality and social justice since receiving her Master of Education in Human Sexuality Education from Widener University. In their work as a sexuality educator and diversity/inclusivity consultant, they have worked with organizations such as The Colorado Department of Public Health Education, Arizona State University, the Mayo Clinic and the American Medical Students Association’s sexual health scholars program to bring LGBTQIA and disability inclusivity to medicine, and with many colleges and universities to offer accessible sex education on campus. Additionally, thy have several popular press books on the market, have written for several publications and have been on the board of directors for several social justice organizations.
In their work, Dr. Kattari strongly values translational research that benefits the communities being researched, and strongly believes in making research accessible to not only academics but also to society at large. They are also committed to engaging, innovative education and pedagogy, multi-level mentorship models and supporting individuals from a variety of marginalized identities in entering, navigating and succeeding in the Academy.
Research Interests/Focus
