Scott Ryan

Dr. Scott Ryan is a professor at the UTA SSW and the editor of Adoption Quarterly. He previously served as the Dean of the UTA SSW (2009-2023), the Director of the Center for Clinical Social Work, and the Director of the Center for Child Welfare. Dr. Ryan held a joint appointment as a Senior Research Fellow at the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute and was the Jeanene Janes Endowed Professor of Child Welfare at the Florida State University. He is the Principal Investigator of the Title IV-E Child Welfare Partnership Project and the LCCA/LCPA Project. To support his scholarly work, he has received funding from such organizations as the Texas Department of Family & Protective Services; the Texas Health and Human Services Commission; the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoptions, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and others. Dr. Ryan has received the Friend of Children Award from the North American Council on Adoptable Children, an Angel in Adoption Award from the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, and an Adoption Excellence Award from the U.S. Children's Bureau. In 2020, he was awarded the NASW North Central Texas Branch Lifetime Achievement Award, and, in 2023, he was recognized as an NASW Social Work Pioneer.