SP2 honors five accomplished alumni at 2025 hall of fame ceremony 

Dr. Anao Zhang

MSW Program

Anao Zhang, PhD, LCSW, OSW-C, ACBT, is an Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Michigan and the Clinical Research Director at the Michigan Medicine Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Oncology Program. A psycho-oncologist by training, Dr. Zhang’s research attends to the biopsychosocial wellness of individuals impacted by cancer, especially those diagnosed during adolescence and young adulthood. 

As a mid-career oncology social work researcher, Dr. Zhang has contributed to over 80 peer-reviewed journal articles and received nearly $2 million in research funding. Dr. Zhang’s research critically addresses health equity in the AYA cancer population. His recent study funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), for example, evaluates treatment access barriers of cancer care among minoritized AYAs with cancer. 

Dr. Zhang is a University of Michigan Interprofessional Leadership Fellow and has received scholarships from several competitive federally-funded training programs, such as the Harvard Medical School Center for Palliative Care. Most recently, Dr. Zhang was selected for the Cambia Health Foundation Sojourns Leadership Program — the country’s most prestigious fellowship program in palliative care leadership. In 2024, he received the Avery D. Weisman & J. William Worden Award for New Investigators from the American Psychosocial Oncology Society — the nation’s largest interprofessional society of psychosocial oncology. Dr. Zhang received his MSW from Penn’s School of Social Policy & Practice and his PhD from The University of Texas at Austin, where he also completed a graduate portfolio program in applied statistical modeling.

Dr. Rosemary (Rosie) Frasso

PhD Program

Dr. Rosemary (Rosie) Frasso is a health equity researcher, public health educator, and the Victor Heiser, MD Professor of Population Health at Jefferson’s College of Population Health. Dr. Frasso earned a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy & Practice, as well as two master’s degrees from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her current research focuses on the integration of qualitative and quantitative methods in projects designed to improve the health of vulnerable populations. Recognized as an expert in mixed methods study design, Dr. Frasso provides consultation and oversight on qualitative projects for clinicians, researchers, and students as well as for partners from local, national, and international organizations, including the University of Pennsylvania, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, WillsEye Hospital, the Federal Reserve Banks of Chicago and Philadelphia, LV Prasad Eye Institute in India, Ulster University, Northern Ireland, and Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy. Her expertise in qualitative methods focuses on traditional and alternative data sources and data collection approaches that are crucial to studies designed to inform, assess, and promote health equity interventions. Dr. Frasso has trained hundreds of researchers to conduct rigorous qualitative and mixed methods research studies through a popular mini-course on qualitative research that draws learners from around the U.S. Additionally, she has worked on several cross-disciplinary projects with educators, artists, and economists who are committed to using qualitative methods to support and enhance community collaborations and to amplify the voices of vulnerable populations. Dr. Frasso directs Jefferson’s MPH program and leads mixed methods research endeavors at the Asano-Gonnella Center for Research in Medical Education and Health Care at Jefferson’s Sidney Kimmel Medical College.

Kimmie L. Weeks

NPL Program

Kimmie L. Weeks is a lifelong humanitarian and development leader who has spent over two decades alleviating poverty and human suffering in Liberia and across Africa. As a child, he survived the Liberian Civil War and came close to death from starvation and disease. These early hardships inspired a deep determination to protect and uplift others, especially children. At fourteen, he co-founded Voice of the Future Inc. and launched the Children’s Bureau of Information. In 1996, he established the Children’s Disarmament Campaign, a nationwide initiative that brought global attention to the use of child soldiers in Liberia and called for their immediate demobilization. 

In 1998, his activism led to threats on his life, forcing him to flee Liberia. He was later granted political asylum in the United States. While a freshman at Amherst College, he founded Youth Action International, an organization dedicated to supporting young people in post-conflict African countries through education, health care, and economic empowerment. The organization has since impacted close to one million people across six countries. In 2024, Weeks founded Hope Farm, which serves as a model agricultural and training center designed to equip young people with practical farming, agribusiness, and leadership skills. 

Weeks’ leadership and impact have earned him international honors, including the Golden Brick Award and recognition as the Knight Grand Commander in the Humane Order of African Redemption, Liberia’s highest civilian honor. His work has been featured in several books and publications, and he has been the subject of major media coverage on CNN, BBC, and Al Jazeera. 

He served as Corporate Communications Strategist for Cellcom GSM and Orange Liberia and as Chairman of the Board at the Liberia Water & Sewer Corporation. He was also appointed to the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council, where he joined global experts in shaping international development policy. 

He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Amherst College, a Master of Science from the University of Pennsylvania, and was awarded an honorary doctorate in 2011. He serves as Executive Director of Youth Action International, Senior Director for Africa at Integrum Scientific, and Chief of Employment, Training, and Policy at the Delaware Department of Labor. 

Through his work, Kimmie Weeks remains a powerful advocate for justice, opportunity, and lasting change, committed to building a future where young people across Africa and the world can thrive.

Ayesha Amin

MSSP Program

Ayesha Amin is a feminist activist, gender expert, and the visionary founder and CEO of Baithak – Challenging Taboos, a women-led grassroots organization in Pakistan working at the intersections of gender justice, sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), and climate justice. Since its inception in 2018, Baithak has transformed the lives of over 500,000 women and girls by breaking stigmas, building community power, and advancing intersectional feminist action across Pakistan. Under Amin’s leadership, Baithak has pioneered multiple national-level initiatives, including the award-winning Gender Inclusive Climate Action (GiCA) Toolkit; the Masculinity Manifesto, engaging men and boys in Gender-Based Violence prevention; the Behenchara Network (Sisterhood Collective), a coalition of feminist leaders from Pakistan’s most remote regions; and the Feminist Wellbeing Institute, a first-of-its-kind space for healing and movement sustainability for grassroots activists. From leading humanitarian responses for menstrual dignity in climate disasters to building digital solutions like Gul, an AI-powered voice assistant for family planning, Amin’s work continues to push boundaries with care, courage, and community at its heart. 

Amin also works as a consultant with international organizations on projects for UNICEF, UNFPA, Pathfinder International, and others supporting policy advocacy, research, and gender mainstreaming across South Asia and humanitarian settings. Amin has been recognized by multiple national and international platforms for her leadership and impact at the grassroots. She has received several awards, including the CAREC Gender and Climate Award, the ICFP Youth Trailblazer Award, and the Gender Just Climate Solutions Award at COP28. She is a member of UN Women’s 30 for 2030 Network and was invited to speak at the United Nations HQs during CSW67. Amin is also an alumna of Penn’s School of Social Policy & Practice, the Fulbright Program, the GRO GEST Fellowship at the University of Iceland, and the Swedish Institute Leader Lab. 

Amin continues to imagine and build a world where young girls and women not only survive systems of oppression but boldly lead the way in dismantling them.

Dr. Anderson Sungmin Yoon

DSW Program

Dr. Anderson Sungmin Yoon is a Korean immigrant who came to the United States at the age of 29 to pursue a degree in social work at The City University of New York, Hunter College, where he was awarded the prestigious John A. Hartford Foundation Scholarship and received full tuition and stipends in recognition of his academic excellence and commitment to geriatric social work. 

Upon graduation, receiving the Helen Rher Award for excellent research, Dr. Yoon began his professional career as a psychiatric social worker at The Child Center of NY, later serving as the Vice President of Training, Research, and Development. Dedicated to serving minority mental health clients, Dr. Yoon has practiced clinical social work and psychotherapy for more than 22 years. 

He now holds a Doctor of Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Studies from the University of Oxford, and a Master of Social Work from the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College, The City University of New York. He has also completed a one-year global clinical scholars’ research training program at Harvard Medical School. His research interests include minority mental health, the social determinants of mental health, and AI-powered digital treatment. 

Currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Welfare at Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, he and his colleagues were awarded $5 million to develop AI-powered digital therapeutic games that treat adolescents and young adults affected by gaming disorder, substance use, and conduct disorder. In addition, he has served as a consultant on a $1.8 million NIH-funded research project that focuses on developing and testing a culturally tailored mental health intervention to improve help-seeking behaviors for Chinese and Chinese-American adolescents and their parents. 

He has received multiple research grants, including funding from the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea and the Sungkyunkwan University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation. Under the mentorship of Professor Phyllis Solomon (Penn) and Professor Willem Kuyken (Oxford), Dr. Yoon has completed a randomized controlled trial (RCT) and will publish a training manual in 2025 that will help individuals struggling with gaming disorder. He is very active in academic publishing and the author or editor of several forthcoming books.