Andrew Irish, MSW, PhD
Dr. Irish joined the faculty of the WVU School of Social Work as an Assistant Professor
in 2022. He completed his MSW with a concentration in Mental Health at Roberts
Wesleyan College in Rochester, NY (2014). His post-MSW practice background is in
outpatient behavioral health. This includes direct clinical practice with individuals
and groups, as well as administration. He has experience in rural, suburban, and
urban settings, with a diverse range of client demographics. Dr. Irish completed
his PhD in Social Welfare at the University at Buffalo (2022) where he was a presidential
fellow and recipient of the University’s Graduate Award for Research, Scholarship,
and Creativity. His research has two focal points. The first area is the relationship
between population-level economic inequality and a range of physical/behavioral
health outcomes. His dissertation examined theory and empirical evidence for the
income inequality hypothesis at the level of US states. He also conducts research
in the area of substance use/misuse. This includes policy mapping studies on the
opioid epidemic, qualitative and quantitative research on substance misuse recovery,
and quantitative work on youth mental health. He has also been part of an NIH-NIAAA
grant team developing a measure of recovery capital. Dr. Irish has teaching interests
in social policy and analysis, as well as social stratification. He is interested
in collaborative and interdisciplinary research and has broad academic interests
including public health, sociology, economics, political science, history, and
philosophy.
EDUCATION
- BA, Sociology, Houghton College
- MSW, Mental Health, Roberts Wesleyan College
- PhD, Social Welfare, University at Buffalo
RESEARCH INTERESTS
- Economic Inequality and Health
- Substance Use/Misuse and Recovery
- Mental Health & Suicidality
TEACHING INTERESTS
- Social Stratification
- Social Policy
- Policy Mapping
- HBSE
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES
- Society for Social Work and Research
- Council on Social Work Education
- National Association of Social Workers
- American Public Health Association