CHIP Faculty Fellows

CHIP Faculty Fellows

Our Center’s home in Penn’s School of Social Policy & Practice (SP2) provides a unique opportunity to engage preeminent scholars and graduate students committed to social justice, social impact, and positive social change. Starting in the Fall of 2017, our inaugural faculty fellows program represents a more structured opportunity for faculty experts to contribute to our work. In addition to ensuring the rigor of CHIP’s guidance, program participation helps expand researchers’ networks and perspectives in a way that strengthens future scholarship, especially by affiliated post docs and other graduate students.

Jennifer Prah Ruger
Chair, CHIP Faculty Fellows

Amartya Sen Professor of Health Equity, Economics, and Policy
Associate Dean for Global Studies

A global expert in health policy and public health, Dr. Ruger helps CHIP’s research teams identify opportunities to leverage existing research, particularly in the areas of health and economic development. She serves on the research advisory board of The XX Factor, CHIP’s multi-year initiative on how funders can improve the lives of women and girls, and is a contributor to our work on community-based health (CBH), our analysis of one of the most promising approaches to delivering evidence-based care. Full bio→

John L. Jackson Jr.

Walter H. Annenberg Dean of the Annenberg School for Communication
Richard Perry University Professor
Penn Integrates Knowledge (PIK) Professor

A global expert in cultural anthropology, race studies, and new media, Dr. Jackson works closely with Katherina Rosqueta, CHIP’s founding executive director and adjunct faculty at SP2, to identify opportunities for CHIP’s team to engage faculty, students and the broader Penn community in service of CHIP’s mission. As Penn’s first Penn Integrates Knowledge (PIK) professor, his research exemplifies the CHIP multi-disciplinary approach to analyzing opportunities for social impact. In addition, he serves as a key advisor on ways to engage the broader public on social impact solutions, including serving as CHIP’s primary liaison to Penn’s Annenberg School for Communication. Full bio→

Jennifer Prah Ruger
Chair, CHIP Faculty Fellows

Amartya Sen Professor of Health Equity, Economics, and Policy
Associate Dean for Global Studies

A global expert in health policy and public health, Dr. Ruger helps CHIP’s research teams identify opportunities to leverage existing research, particularly in the areas of health and economic development. She serves on the research advisory board of The XX Factor, CHIP’s multi-year initiative on how funders can improve the lives of women and girls, and is a contributor to our work on community-based health (CBH), our analysis of one of the most promising approaches to delivering evidence-based care. Full bio→

John L. Jackson Jr.
Dean, School of Social Policy & Practice

Richard Perry University Professor
Penn Integrates Knowledge (PIK) Professor

A global expert in cultural anthropology, race studies, and new media, Dr. Jackson works closely with Katherina Rosqueta, CHIP’s founding executive director and adjunct faculty at SP2, to identify opportunities for CHIP’s team to engage faculty, students and the broader Penn community in service of CHIP’s mission. As Penn’s first Penn Integrates Knowledge (PIK) professor, his research exemplifies the CHIP multi-disciplinary approach to analyzing opportunities for social impact. In addition, he serves as a key advisor on ways to engage the broader public on social impact solutions, including serving as CHIP’s primary liaison to the Penn’s Annenberg School of Communications. Full bio→

170620 Culhane

Dennis Culhane

Professor
Dana & Andrew Stone Chair in Social Policy
Co-Principal Investigator, Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy
Director of Research, National Center for Homelessness Among Veterans

Dr. Culhane is a highly respected national and international authority on homelessness and assisted housing policy and served as an advisor and faculty for CHIP’s work on those issues as we developed our 2009 High Impact Philanthropy in the Downturn. His recent research includes studies of vulnerable youth and young adults, including those transitioning from foster care, juvenile justice and residential treatment services. This recent work is informing CHIP’s guidance on a variety of issues including, homelessness, substance use disorders, and disconnected/opportunity youth. Dr. Culhane also co-directs the Intelligence for Social Policy Initiative, a MacArthur Foundation-funded project to promote the development of integrated database systems by states and localities for policy analysis and systems reform. Full bio→

Chao Guo

Associate Professor of Nonprofit Management
Editor-in-Chief, Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly

Chao Guo is an authority on the intersection between nonprofit and voluntary action and government. More specifically, he conducts research on the contributions of nonprofit organizations to democratic governance, collaboration within and across sectors, social entrepreneurship, and the role and effects of new media on nonprofit organizations. In addition to his academic work, Chao is actively involved in professional and community service activities, including as founding co-director of the Institute for Philanthropy and Social Innovation at Renmin University of China and current Editor-in-Chief of Nonprofit & Voluntary Sector Quarterly, the premier journal in the field. He has previously collaborated with CHIP on the Franklin Prize and a series of funder education briefs targeted at donors interested in supporting scaling, capacity building, or innovation. with their giving Full bio→

170620 Culhane

Dennis Culhane

Professor
Dana and Andrew Stone Chair in Social Policy
Co-Principal Investigator, Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy
Director of Research, National Center for Homelessness Among Veterans

Dr. Culhane is a highly respected national and international authority on homelessness and assisted housing policy and served as an advisor and faculty for CHIP’s work on those issues as we developed our 2009 High Impact Philanthropy in the Downturn. His recent research includes studies of vulnerable youth and young adults, including those transitioning from foster care, juvenile justice and residential treatment services. This recent work is informing CHIP’s guidance on a variety of issues including, homelessness, substance use disorders, and disconnected/opportunity youth. Dr. Culhane also co-directs the Intelligence for Social Policy Initiative, a MacArthur Foundation-funded project to promote the development of integrated database systems by states and localities for policy analysis and systems reform. Full bio→

Chao Guo

Associate Professor of Nonprofit Management
Editor-in-Chief, Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly

Chao Guo is an authority on the intersection between nonprofit and voluntary action and government. More specifically, he conducts research on the contributions of nonprofit organizations to democratic governance, collaboration within and across sectors, social entrepreneurship, and the role and effects of new media on nonprofit organizations. In addition to his academic work, Chao is actively involved in professional and community service activities, including as founding co-director of the Institute for Philanthropy and Social Innovation at Renmin University of China and current Editor-in-Chief of Nonprofit & Voluntary Sector Quarterly, the premier journal in the field. He has previously collaborated with CHIP on the Franklin Prize and a series of funder education briefs targeted at donors interested in supporting scaling, capacity building, or innovation. with their giving Full bio→

Femida Handy

Professor
Director, PhD in Social Welfare Program

Professor Handy’s research and teaching focus on the economics of the nonprofit sector, volunteering, philanthropy, nonprofit management, entrepreneurship, and microfinance. One area of prominence is her scholarship on volunteering and philanthropy, in an international context. She is the author of the Palgrave Handbook of Global Philanthropy and  Philanthropy in India: Promise to Practice. She is one of the founders of The Center for Global Generosity, a research group that aims to generate  a  comprehensive understanding of generosity motivations, behaviors, and it’s societal outcomes. A former Editor-in-Chief of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, the premier journal in the field, she has served on the editorial board of several academic journals. Full bio→

Phyllis Solomon

Dean of Research, School of Social Policy & Practice
Kenneth L.M. Pray Chair
Senior Fellow, Center for Public Health Initiatives
Faculty Fellow, Ortner Center

Internationally renowned for her research on mental illness services, Dr. Solomon provides guidance to CHIP’s team on social science research methods broadly, as well as the latest research on behavioral health (e.g., mental health issues and addiction) more specifically. In addition, she serves as a mentor and advisor to CHIP’s research staff to ensure responsible interpretation of relevant research findings in the context of practical philanthropic decisions. Full bio→

Femida Handy

Professor
Director, PhD in Social Welfare Program

Professor Handy’s research and teaching focus on the economics of the nonprofit sector, volunteering, philanthropy, nonprofit management, entrepreneurship, and microfinance. One area of prominence is her scholarship on volunteering and philanthropy, in an international context. She is the author of the Palgrave Handbook of Global Philanthropy and  Philanthropy in India: Promise to Practice. She is one of the founders of The Center for Global Generosity, a research group that aims to generate  a  comprehensive understanding of generosity motivations, behaviors, and it’s societal outcomes. A former Editor-in-Chief of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, the premier journal in the field, she has served on the editorial board of several academic journals. Full bio→

Phyllis Solomon

Dean of Research, School of Social Policy & Practice
Kenneth L.M. Pray Chair
Senior Fellow, Center for Public Health Initiatives
Faculty Fellow, Ortner Center

Internationally renowned for her research on mental illness services, Dr. Solomon provides guidance to CHIP’s team on social science research methods broadly, as well as the latest research on behavioral health (e.g., mental health issues and addiction) more specifically. In addition, she serves as a mentor and advisor to CHIP’s research staff to ensure responsible interpretation of relevant research findings in the context of practical philanthropic decisions. Full bio→

Susan Sorenson

Professor of Social Policy
Professor of Health & Societies
Senior Fellow in Public Health
Director, The Evelyn Jacobs Ortner Center on Family Violence

A widely published expert on the social context of family and sexual violence, Dr. Sorenson is a member of the research advisory board of The XX Factor, CHIP’s multi-year initiative on how funders can improve the lives of women and girls. She has been an advisor on major US public health priorities such as gun violence and domestic violence and served as guest faculty for the Center’s highly-rated semester-long class on social impact analysis, strategy, and leadership. Full bio→

Susan Sorenson

Professor of Social Policy
Professor of Health & Societies
Senior Fellow in Public Health
Director, The Evelyn Jacobs Ortner Center on Family Violence

A widely published expert on the social context of family and sexual violence, Dr. Sorenson is a member of the research advisory board of The XX Factor, CHIP’s multi-year initiative on how funders can improve the lives of women and girls. She has been an advisor on major US public health priorities such as gun violence and domestic violence and served as guest faculty for the Center’s highly-rated semester-long class on social impact analysis, strategy, and leadershipFull bio→