Center for Integrated Recovery and Wellness Studies

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The Center for Integrated Recovery and Wellness Studies (CIRWS) supports community-engaged research in behavioral health to inform best practices and policies that build and sustain healthy and resilient individuals and communities. CIRWS aligns with the University’s mission to maximize human potential, alleviate suffering, and promote a humane and just society.

Mission

The Center’s mission is to explore and address the role of social determinants and behavioral health factors that influence well-being across communities, with a focus on strengthening individual and community wellness, resilience, and recovery from substance use disorder and co-occurring mental illness.

By bridging gaps in data and research related to these conditions, the Center aims to improve policies and practices through a resilience and recovery ecosystems framework. As an R1 university, FAU provides CIRWS with an opportunity to leverage the talent, advanced data science, and technology necessary to enhance public access to quality information, research, and learning.

Programs and Activities

  • Collaborate with local community organizations and recovery centers to create a designated space for research and learning.
  • Create and maintain a live data dashboard for community and individual wellness with Palm Beach County Community Services and Commonly Well.
  • Research workshops and interprofessional opportunities for community partners and graduate students in the FAU College of Social Work and Criminal Justice, the Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, the Lynn College of Nursing, the Schmidt College of Medicine, and other colleges and units across Florida Atlantic.
  • Support community partners in obtaining grants and other sustained funding sources.
  • Establish a culture of best practices using research to advance wellness and create recovery-oriented systems of care.

Internal Team Members

  • Naelys Luna, PhD, MSW, founding dean of the College of Social Work and Criminal Justice and professor of social work
  • Michael Robinson, PhD, MSSW, CAADC, professor and director of the Phyllis and Harvey Sandler School of Social Work
  • Precious Skinner-Osei, PhD, MSW, BSW program coordinator and assistant professor
  • Heather Howard, PhD, MSW, LICSW, adjunct faculty
  • Tod Marshall, program assistant
  • Rebecca Booth, graduate assistant

Some Facts about Substance Use Disorder in the U.S.

According to the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health:

  • 17.82% of adults in the U.S. had a substance use disorder in the past year, totaling more than 45 million people
  • 28.9 million people ages 12 and older (10.2% in this age group) had alcohol use disorder in the past year, including:
    • 16.8 million males ages 12 and older (12.1% in this age group)
    • 12.0 million females ages 12 and older (8.3% in this age group)
  • 9.41% of adults in America had a drug use disorder in the past year

Generous Supporters and Partners

We wish to offer our tremendous gratitude to the Palm Beach County Office of Behavioral Health and Substance Use Disorder and the Florida Association of Recovery Residencies, whose funding helped bring this center to life.

We also want to thank our dedicated collaborators whose ideas and partnerships support the impactful research and learning in the critically important area of integrated recovery and wellness:

  • Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute
  • Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine
  • Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing
  • Florida State University
  • Hanley Foundation

Location and Contact Information

CIRWS is housed in the Phyllis and Harvey Sandler School of Social Work within the College of Social Work and Criminal Justice. For more information, please contact Dr. Michael Robinson, founding director of CIRWS, at (561) 297-3245 or michaelrobinson@dgrzzx.com.