Dr. Allison Howard PhD Program Travel Award

What is Spark SSW?

Spark SSW is the University of Maryland School of Social Work’s crowdfunding initiative to support students, programs, and community impact. Crowdfunding gathers gifts of all amounts from many people to quickly fuel urgent needs and meaningful projects. This approach makes giving more accessible to our community to rally collective support for the School’s mission and priorities.

The Dr. Allison Howard PhD Program Travel Award will honor the memory of Dr. Allison Howard (’25 PhD; ’18 MSW) who passed away unexpectedly just a few weeks after graduating from the PhD Program. Allison was a fierce advocate for social justice, women’s rights, and victims of trafficking. She also valued her clinical work in partnership with her strong research skills. She loved being able to travel to conferences and share her research findings with other researchers as well as practitioners who were making a real impact in the world.

As an individual, Allison was well-known for her creativity in baking elaborate treats and in her unique sense of style and fashion. She will be remembered not only for her kindness, dedication, and warmth toward everyone she met, but also for the deep love she had for her dogs. Her compassion extended to all creatures, and the bond she shared with her dogs was a true reflection of her gentle spirit.

These funds will be used to establish a travel award in her honor to support at least one PhD student each year who exemplifies the passions and values that Allison demonstrated in her life and work. Funds for the award may be used to support areas such as conference travel (including flight, hotel, conference registration, and related costs).

"Gifts made in support of the Dr. Allison Howard PhD Program Travel Award may be converted toward an endowed fund if total gifts reach a minimum of $25,000."