The legacy of the passionate social justice advocate and beloved friend lives on through her scholarship, community memories, and the PhD Travel Award supporting future researchers.
Allison Howard, PhD ’25, MSW ’18, a senior health program specialist at the School of Medicine, passed away in June shortly after earning her PhD from the School of Social Work. She was an extraordinary friend and a remarkable human being whose unwavering encouragement and radiant energy uplifted everyone around her. She was deeply passionate, a fierce advocate for social justice, and possessed a rare gift for forming meaningful, lasting connections with all who knew her.
We recently gathered for the Allison Howard Celebration of Life service in North Carolina. The recording of the service includes cherished photos from Allison’s life and heartfelt reflections from her parents, family, and friends, including the School of Social Work’s own Rod Rose and LJ Mack, who shared beautiful memories highlighting Allison’s impact as a scholar, friend, and person.
Within the PhD Program, we are committed to carrying forward Allison’s legacy through several important efforts. We are grateful to Rod Rose, Bruce DeForge, and several PhD student co-authors for their dedication to advancing Allison’s scholarly work — ensuring that any manuscripts she had in progress or submitted will be published and widely disseminated. If you are aware of any ongoing projects or papers she was involved in, please connect with Rod or Bruce to help preserve her work.
To honor Allison’s memory, the School of Social Work PhD Program has established the Dr. Allison Howard PhD Program Travel Award. Allison cherished the opportunity to travel to conferences, sharing her research with fellow scholars and practitioners making a real difference in the world. Funds raised for this award will support future PhD students in traveling to conferences to present their own work. To learn more or contribute, please visit Dr. Allison Howard PhD Program Travel Award.
We encourage everyone to honor Allison in their own way — whether by baking creatively, doing nail art, sharing extra treats with loved ones and pets, donating to the Travel Award fund, or simply giving time and attention to a friend or someone in need. Thank you for helping to carry forward Allison’s inspiring legacy.