Meg Panichelli
Assistant Professor
Anderson Hall, Room 471
mpanichelli@wcupa.edu
610-738-0501
Social Work (2018)
(pronouns: she/her/hers)
B.A. West Chester University; M.S.W., West Chester University; Ph.D., Portland State University
Dr. Panichelli’s academic foundation in Women’s and Gender Studies instilled in her
a commitment to intersectional feminist politics, anti-oppressive social work practice,
and the values of transformative justice. In her past work experience, she managed
a harm reduction program for injection drug users and people working in the sex trade,
coordinated an LGBTQ domestic violence program, trained and supported advocacy staff
at a Domestic Violence shelter, and facilitated sexual violence prevention education
with K-12th graders. Likewise, Dr. Panichelli’s teaching and research are grounded
in feminist approaches to social work, namely those that incorporate anti-carceral,
queer, and intersectional theories of oppression. More specifically, she is interested
in the role social workers play in the criminalization of already vulnerable communities.
Her dissertation research analyzed the content and pedagogical choices employed by
social work educators to teach about the sex trades, while her current research includes
a project on harm reduction and radical social work practice with substance using
pregnant women and a project utilizing arrest data for prostitution. She is interested
in continuing to pursue research at the intersections of citizenship, mental health,
sexuality, pregnancy, and drug use. As a first generation college graduate, Dr. Panichelli
is thrilled to work in the BSW Undergraduate Social Work Department, and she looks
forward to teaching courses that prioritize social and economic justice. She will
ask you about your astrological sign and likes her coffee with cream and sugar.