Victoria Banyard, Professor, Associate Dean for Faculty Development, and Associate Director of the Center for Research on Ending Violence, received this year’s Chancellor-Provost’s Award for Pioneering Research. This award honors a faculty member (Professor or Distinguished Professor, tenure-track) whose research contributions have transformed the field, including highly cited scholarship or practiced patents. The award will be presented to Dr. Banyard at the Chancellor-Provost’s Celebration of Faculty Excellence on Thursday, May 19.
Dr. Banyard has dedicated her academic career to finding better ways to help communities prevent and respond to interpersonal violence. Dr. Banyard – who received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology (and a Certificate in Women's Studies) from the University of Michigan – has worked with colleagues across the U.S. and abroad to help shape policy at the national, state and local level through a rigorous examination of violence-prevention programs centered on a critical question: Do they work? Banyard uses multiple methods, both quantitative and qualitative, to understand how, where and why prevention strategies and programs succeed or not. Her research, begun more than 25 years ago, underscores the importance of listening well to survivors and empowering those in a position to help them – be they policy makers, social workers, or bystanders – with the best practices available.
