Assistant Professor Abigail Williams-Butler has been selected as an early career fellow at the Rutgers University Institute for the Study of Global Racial Justice (ISGRJ). Dr. Williams-Butler is one of just 12 fellows selected from across the university.
Chancellors, deans, and the ISGRJ executive director, in consultation with department chairs, nominated promising scholars working in the areas of social justice and racial inequality for a one-year fellowship at the institute. Fellows receive partial support toward a course release, $2,500 in research funds, and access to institute-funded events throughout Rutgers and benefit from mentoring and professional development. Of special interest are scholars whose work engages with humanistic methods and is related to such areas as social justice, public health, public policy, the carceral state, and K–12 education.
Dr. Williams-Butler’s research focuses on the precipitators of racial disparities within the child welfare and juvenile justice system. “I am excited to connect with scholars around the University focusing on issues related to race, racism, and social justice,” said Dr. Williams-Butler. “Oftentimes we are siloed within our different departments on our different campuses. This Early Career Fellowship allows a space for us to connect and facilitates interdisciplinary partnerships to address ongoing racial disparities within the United States and around the world.”
Dr. Williams-Butler is also the leader of the Policy and Intersectionality Working group funded through the ISGRJ. This group focuses on the role that language has historically played in the passing of value-based and biased language within federal legislation that later precipitated racial disparities within the child welfare and criminal justice systems.
