PhD Student
Contact Information
Email: cwon@crimson.ua.edu
Areas of Interest and Expertise
- Community-Based Participatory Research
- Culturally informed practice
- Immigrant and Refugee Populations
- Mental Health
- Mixed Methods Research
Education
- BSW, University of Alabama
- MSW, University of Alabama
Bio
Since receiving her BSW, Cho Rong has accumulated diverse research experiences in the areas of gerontology, health disparities, mental health, behavioral health, and rurality among the minority population. She acquired international field experience for both BSW and MSW field placements in South Korea where generalist practice is prevalent. From these opportunities, she acquired diverse practice experience from case management to program development and administration. Also, she worked with diverse populations, including children from low-income families, elders, multicultural families, children with intellectual disabilities, adults with schizophrenia, and North Korean defectors.
Applying her personal immigrant background and diverse research and practice experiences, her dissertation aims to implement and evaluate the Korean version of the Mental Health First Aid, an 8-hour educational program for increasing mental health literacy and reducing mental health stigma among laypersons. Using a community-based participatory research approach and mixed methods research, the program will be implemented to Korean immigrants residing in rural southern US, where ethnic mental health resources are limited. She hopes to continue her effort nationwide and develop a community center that can support diverse needs of immigrant and refugee population residing in areas with limited ethnic resources.