Clark University has announced the appointment of Nadia Ward, M.Ed, Ph.D., as the next director of the Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise at Clark University. She joins the Institute on July 1.

Dr. Ward comes to Clark from the Yale University School of Medicine, where she is an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and deputy director of the Yale Doctoral Internship Training Program in Clinical and Community Psychology. She also serves as director of Urban Education and Prevention Research and senior evaluation consultant with YaleEVAL in the school’s Consultation Center. Her expertise coalesces with the redefined mission of the Mosakowski Institute to address the issue of behavioral health in adolescents and young adults, particularly young men.

Dr. Ward is uniquely qualified for this critical role. She has dedicated her career to addressing educational disparities in urban schools and communities and pursuing solutions to improve academic, social-emotional, and behavioral health outcomes. Her collaboration with community and governmental partners has manifested itself in a range of successful initiatives, including a multiyear reform initiative that serves 3,000 low-income and minority students in Connecticut. She also secured funding from the U.S. Department of Education to create and launch Maximizing Adolescent Academic eXcellence (MAAX), a program that increases school engagement and supports the development of students’ social-emotional skills. MAAX is now used in four states.

In her role at Clark, Dr. Ward will closely partner with the Adam Institute and Hiatt Center, and with the Worcester Public Schools, to advance necessary research and action in the area of behavioral health.

“We are excited to welcome Dr. Ward to Clark University and look forward to her leadership of the Mosakowski Institute,” President David Angel said.