Ortner Center on Violence & Abuse
The Ortner Center on Violence & Abuse researches issues related to violence and abuse against women & girls
Our Vision
Safe Daughters.
Confident Women.
Strong Society.
Our Mission
The mission of the Ortner Center on Violence & Abuse in Relationships is to
- Investigate the correlates and consequences of violence and abuse against women and girls in domestic and intimate relations
- Educate the next generation of researchers, practitioners, and policy makers
- Translate research findings to policy and practice
- Engage community and university stakeholders to prevent violence and abuse, create conditions for health, well-being and flourishing for women and girls and, thus, make society stronger.
Student Fellows
Sesina Birhanemaskel
School of Arts & Sciences
Eujiny Cho
School of Arts & Sciences
Sangya Pandey
School of Arts & Sciences
Jasleen Sidhu
School of Arts & Sciences
Jiayi Xu
School of Arts & Sciences
Fellows
Naomie Shembo, MD
Resident in Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine
Information about Dr. Shembo can be found here(opens in a new tab)
Penn Faculty Fellows
Cristina Bicchieri, PhD
Department of Philosophy (SAS) and Wharton S. J. Patterson Harvie Professor of Social Thought and Comparative Ethics
Peter Cronholm, MD, MSCE
School of Medicine, Family Medicine and Community Health Associate Professor Nursing
Maria Cuellar, PhD
School of Arts & Sciences Assistant Professor
Malitta Engstrom, PhD
School of Social Policy & Practice Associate Professor
Sara Jaffee, PhD
School of Arts & Sciences, Department of Psychology Professor of Psychology, Director of Graduate Studies
Ivona Percec, MD, PhD
Perelman School of Medicine, Division of Surgery Assistant Professor
Jennifer J. Prah
Director, Ortner Center on Violence & Abuse
What we do
The Ortner Center is dedicated to increasing women’s and girls’ health and well-being by identifying societal changes that affect violence and abuse against women and girls, using the state-of-the-field technological advances in theoretical and empirical (qualitative and quantitative) research, and developing the next generation of national and global leaders.
What we believe
Girls and women around the globe live under the threat of violence and abuse. All can live more fully, have the opportunity to reach their potential when they are not afraid or unsafe, and they experience the conditions to flourish.
Who we are
Illustrating Penn’s commitment to cross-School collaboration, the Center brings together multiple disciplines. By working together, we can make progress. The Center is named for Evelyn Jacobs Ortner, who established the Center through a gift to the School of Social Policy & Practice at the University of Pennsylvania. See the link below for more information about Mrs. Ortner.