Associate Professor & Academic Unit Head, Department of Social Work, James Madison University (JMU)
As a social services paraprofessional, Dr. Funge provided counseling and coordinated a psychosocial rehabilitation program for the Mental Health Association of Orange County (MHA) in Garden Grove, CA. The agency provided support to community members living with a mental illness who were either experiencing homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
As a Master of Social Work student, he completed internships at the California Youth Authority working with paroled juvenile sex offenders. In addition, he interned with the City of Long Beach in their Neighborhood Services Bureau.
As a professional social worker, Dr. Funge worked for a human relations organization in Long Beach, CA -- the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ). There he conducted a variety of advocacy, conflict resolution, and education programs aimed at promoting more inclusive communities.
Prior to joining JMU, Dr. Funge was an Associate Professor and BSW Program Director at Western Kentucky University (WKU) and was a Lecturer for the School of Social Work at California State University, Long Beach where he taught both graduate and undergraduate social work courses.
His current research interests include factors that influence foster parents' decisions to continue fostering and the impact of domestic sojourn (e.g., Study Away) programs.
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About Simon Funge
As a social services paraprofessional, Dr. Funge provided counseling and coordinated a psychosocial rehabilitation program for the Mental Health Association of Orange County (MHA) in Garden Grove, CA. The agency provided support to community members living with a mental illness who were either experiencing homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
As a Master of Social Work student, he completed internships at the California Youth Authority working with paroled juvenile sex offenders. In addition, he interned with the City of Long Beach in their Neighborhood Services Bureau.
As a professional social worker, Dr. Funge worked for a human relations organization in Long Beach, CA -- the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ). There he conducted a variety of advocacy, conflict resolution, and education programs aimed at promoting more inclusive communities.
Prior to joining JMU, Dr. Funge was an Associate Professor and BSW Program Director at Western Kentucky University (WKU) and was a Lecturer for the School of Social Work at California State University, Long Beach where he taught both graduate and undergraduate social work courses.
His current research interests include factors that influence foster parents' decisions to continue fostering and the impact of domestic sojourn (e.g., Study Away) programs.
| Present | Associate Professor/Academic Unit Head, James Madison University ‐ College of Health and Behavioral Studies | |
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Disciplines
Research Interests
Childhood literacy, Social work education at branch campuses, Effective community partnerships for macro-practice social work education, Efficacy to teach social justice content in social work education, institutional factors supporting social work education for social justice, educational outcomes of social work education for social justice, and Legislative advocacy.
Honors and Awards
- • CSU Chancellor’s Doctoral Incentive Program recipient
- • UCLA Summer Research Mentorship Grant
- • UCLA School of Public Affairs Advisory Board stipend
- • Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI) – Applied Social Issues Internship
Courses
- SWRK 101: Foundations of Human Services
- SWRK 205: Introduction to Social Work
- SWRK 330 & 331: Human Behavior in the Social Environment I and II
- SWRK 345: Social Work Research Methods
- SWRK 375: Social Work Practice I (Individuals)
- SWRK 381: Social Work Practice III (Communities and Institutions)
- SWRK 481 & 483: Field Seminar I and II
| 2013 | PhD Social Welfare, University of California - Los Angeles | |
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| 1998 | Master of Social Work, California State University, Long Beach | |
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| 1992 | B.A. Psychology, University of California, Irvine | |
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Contact Information
JMU
540.568.3431
Email:
