Catherine Simmons, Ph.D.

Dr. Catherine Simmons, Ph.D., LCSW, is a Professor of Social Work at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs (UCCS), where she served as the founding Chair of the Department of Social Work from 2019 to 2024. With 10 years of post-MSW clinical experience and 19 years in academia, Dr. Simmons brings nearly three decades of expertise to her teaching, research, and leadership.

She is the author/editor of three books and over 60 scholarly publications. Her research interests span strengths-based interventions, career trajectories in social work, politics, leadership, measurement, and issues related to gender, trauma, and violence.

Dr. Simmons holds LCSW licensure in both Colorado and Tennessee and has a rich background in clinical practice across multiple subspecialties. Her direct practice experience includes a decade as a military social worker, where she led programs in family violence prevention, crisis intervention, and clinical services.

Known for her strengths-based approach to both research and practice, Dr. Simmons is widely recognized for her leadership in program development, particularly in launching new academic initiatives across disciplines.

To review the CV of Dr. Simmons, click here.

Dr. Simmons’s research integrates trauma-informed, strengths-based, and systems-oriented approaches to social work practice, education, and leadership. Her areas of focus include:

• Trauma and Interpersonal Violence: Investigating the impact of trauma and violence across diverse populations, with particular attention to gender-based violence, military families, and trauma recovery frameworks.
• Ethics, Leadership, and Political Social Work: Exploring ethical decision-making, leadership development, and the role of social workers in political and policy arenas, including career trajectories and identity formation.
• Measurement and Evaluation in Social Work: Developing and validating tools to assess trauma-informed practice, program effectiveness, and practitioner well-being, with an emphasis on culturally responsive and strengths-based metrics.
• Program Development and Academic Innovation: Studying the processes and outcomes of launching new academic programs, interdisciplinary collaboration, and leadership in higher education settings.
• Gender, Power, and Systems of Oppression: Examining how gender, systemic inequities, and institutional structures influence experiences of violence, access to services, and professional advancement in social work.