Dr. Deneca Winfrey Avant
Social Work Faculty, Professor
Office
RC Rachel Cooper 201
Office Hours
By Appointment
Office Phone
Email
- About
- Education
- Awards & Honors
- Selected Research
Current Courses
SWK 337.001 Generalist Practice III:Groups
SWK 337.002 Generalist Practice III:Groups
Ph D Educational Organization and Leadership - Educational Administration
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, IL
Other Leadership and Administration
University of Illinois at Chicago
Chicago, IL
MSW Social Work
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Urbana, IL
Other Bachelor of Social Work
Jackson State University
Jackson, MS
Years of Service and Leadership
National First Star, Inc.
2024
Distinguished Lecturer Award nominee
College of Arts and Sciences
2023
Million Dollar Club
Office of the President
2023
RISE to the COVID Challenge Recognition
Office of the Vice President and Provost
2021
Civic Engagement Ambassador
Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning
2019
First Star Academy Director
First Star Academy
2019
Associate Director of Equity and Inclusion
Center for Child Welfare and Adoption Studies
2019
Administrator-in-Residence
Office of the Vice President and Provost
2019
Design, Align, Refine, and Teach Online Program
Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology
2018
Faculty Fellow, Summer Institute
Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning
2016
Pre-Tenure Faculty Initiative Grant
College of Arts and Sciences
2016
Research Mini Award
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
2016
Leadership Initiative Participant
Illinois State University Office of the Provost
2015
Outstanding Faculty Member of the Month
College Pan-hellenic Council
2015
Committee on Institutional Cooperation Summer Research Opportunities Program Alumni Award
2010
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Center for Teaching Excellence List of Excellent Teachers
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Center for Teaching Excellence
2009
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Bureau of Educational Research Traditional Dissertation Award
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Bureau of Educational Research
2008
University Council for Educational Administration Barbara L. Jackson Scholar
University Council for Educational Administration
2007
Diversifying Faculty in Illinois Fellowship
2006
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign College of Education Thomas L. McGreal Award
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign College of Education
2005
Grants and Contracts
First Star Academy
Deneca Winfrey Avant
DCFS. July 2025 - June 30 2026
First Star Academy
Deneca Winfrey Avant
DCFS. July 2024 - June 30 2025
Administrator-in-Resident
Deneca Avant
Office of the Vice President and Provost. August 2019
First Star Academy
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and Private donor. July 2019 - June 2020
Community Empowerment Health and Wellness Grant
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Delta Research and Educational Foundation. December 2018 - December 2019
First Star Academy
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and Private donor. July 2018 - June 2019
First Star Academy
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and Private donor. July 2017 - June 2018
First Star Academy
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and Private donor. July 2016 - June 2017
Pre-tenure Faculty Initiative Grant
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Illinois State University. 2015 - 2016
Diversity and Oppression: Cultural Competence Among Social Work Students
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. - 2016
Book Review
School Social Work: A Skills-Based Competency Approach by Keller and Grumbach
Karen Sue Stipp, Deneca Winfrey Avant.
(2024), 49, 68-70, School Social Work Journal
School Social Work: Engaging Social Justice and Racial Equity from Practitioners’ Perspectives by Robert Ayasse et al.
Karen Sue Stipp, Deneca Winfrey Avant.
(2024), 48, 77-78, School Social Work Journal
Book, Chapter
Educators as the Gatekeepers: Promoting a Race Informed, Culturally Competent Pedagogy for Human Service Professionals
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston, LaTasha L. Nesbitt.
(2020), Cultural Competence in Higher Education, Emerald
Unwrapping Tradition: Shifting from Traditional Leadership to Transformative Action
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
(2011), 114-130, Transformative Leadership: A Reader, Transformative Leadership: A Reader
Educators as the Gatekeepers: Promoting a Race Informed, Culturally Competent Pedagogy for Human Service Professionals
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston, LaTasha L. Nesbitt.
Cultural Competence in Higher Education, Emerald
How school social workers can best support and service youth in care.
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Karen Sue Stipp, Carlos Evans.
School social work best practice guide, Illinois Association of School Social Workers & Illinois State Board of Education
Conference Proceeding
Fostering Success: Meeting the academic and social-emotional needs faced by youth in foster care.
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
American Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE) 2019 Conference Proceedings, 20, (2019)
Journal Article
When privilege and oppression becomes “real” in the life of emerging social workers.
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
Journal of Teaching in Social Work, 42 (1), 1-14, (2022), 10.1080/08841233.2021.2008089
“I Needed to Aim Higher:” Former Foster Youths’ Pathways to College Success
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Aimee Miller-Ott, Doris Houston.
Journal of Child and Family Studies, 30 (4), 1043-1058, (2021), 10.1007/s10826-020-01892-1
“I needed to aim higher:” Former foster youths’ pathways to college success.
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Aimee Miller-Ott, Doris Houston.
Journal of Child and Family Studies, 30 (4), 1043-1058, (2021)
A collaborative endeavor: A comparison of school social workers and school psychologists profession roles and functions.
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Mark Swerdlik.
School Social Work Journal, (2016)
Using Response to Intervention/ Multi-Tiered Systems of Supports to Promote Social Justice in Schools.
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
Journal for Multicultural Education, (2016)
School Social Workers as Response to Intervention Change Champions
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Brenda Lindsey.
Advances in Social Work, 16 (2), 276-291, (2015), 10.18060/16428
Using Problem-based Learning To Illustrate the Concepts of Privilege and Oppression
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Wanda Bracy.
Journal of Social Work Education, (2015)
Social Work and Special Education Students’ Attributions of Poverty: A Leadership Opportunity for School Social Workers
Diane L Zosky, Deneca Winfrey Avant, J. Thompson.
School Social Work Journal, 38 (2), 77-97, (2014)
The Roles of School Social Workers in Implementation of Response to Intervention
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
School Social Work Journal, 38 (2), 11-31, (2014)
Teachers and students perceptions of internationalisation of higher education in Nigeria
Blessing F. Adeoye, Blessing E. Anyikwa, Deneca Winfrey Avant.
European Scientific Journal, 8 (19), 110-128, (2012)
The roles of the church in meeting the emotional and mental healht needs of the congregation and community
Deneca Winfrey Avant, R. Williams, M. Adamek.
Journal of the Tenth National Conference on Undergraduate Research Proceedings, (1), 875-879, (1996)
Other
Final Report-Higher Education as the Lifeline to Social Mobility for Former Foster Youth: A Comprehensive Needs and Assets Assessment.
Doris Houston, Christopher Gjesfjeld, Deneca Winfrey Avant, Aimee Miller-Ott, Tiffany Gholson.
Spencer Foundation Small Research Grants, N/A (N/A), 52, (2017)
Diversity and Oppression: Cultural Competence Among Social Work Students
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
The SoTL Advocate, (2016)
How teachers perceive their job satisfaction is influenced by their principals’ behaviors and attitudes related to race and gender
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
ProQuest Dissertation and Theses database, 206, (2009)
Technical Report
First Star Academy FY25 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Tameka Thompson.
(2025)
First Star Academy FY24 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Stacey Wiggins.
(2024)
First Star Academy FY23 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Stacey Wiggins.
(2023)
First Star Academy FY22 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Stacey Wiggins.
(2022)
First Star Academy FY21 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
(2021)
Listening to middle school and high school youth: Report from a 2019 survey collaboration between Not in Our Town/Not in Our Schools United Way McLean County McLean County Middle Schools and High Schools
Karen Sue Stipp, Charles Bell, Deneca Winfrey Avant.
(2021)
First Star Academy FY19 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston.
(2019)
First Star Academy FY20 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant.
(2019)
First Star Academy FY18 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston.
(2018)
First Star Academy FY17 Annual Report Q1-Q4
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston.
First Star Academy FY17 Quarter 3 Report
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston.
First Star Academy FY18 Quarter 1 Report
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston.
Presentations
Building Bridges: Community Engagement as a Foundation to Support Youth in Care
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Connecting the Dots, Completing the Circle Conference, Bloomington, MN, October, 2025
ISU Faculty Diversity Enhancement Program
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Leaders Circle Symposium, Normal, February, 2023
Faculty Appointment, Salary, Promotion, and Tenure (ASPT) Anti-Bias Training
Deneca Winfrey Avant
College Deans and Academic Chairs and Directors, Normal, IL, December, 2022
Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE) Communication Planning
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE) Strategy, Online, September, 2022
Anti-Racism and Student Success
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Chairs/Directors Retreat, Normal, IL, August, 2021
Postsecondary Pathways for Former Foster Care Youth
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Postsecondary Pathways for Former Foster Care Youth, Online, August, 2021
Beating the Odds: African American Foster Youth Pathways to College
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston,
American Association of Blacks in Higher Education Conference, Indianapolis, March, 2019
It Takes a Village: Why Community Engagement Matters
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Jamillah Gilbert
National First Star Academy Directors Conference, Washington, DC, February, 2019
White Like Me
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Student Counseling Services Multicultural Outreach Initiative, Normal, February, 2019
Former Foster Youth in College: A Needs and Assets Assessment and First Star ISU Academy
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Doris Houston, Jamillah Gilbert
Student Affairs Council Meeting, Normal, IL, December, 2017
Overcoming Stress
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Faculty Development, Normal, IL, October, 2017
A collaborative endeavor: The roles and functions of school social workers and school psychologists implementing multi-tiered system of supports/response to intervention
Deneca Winfrey Avant, Mark Swerdlik
Illinois Association of School Social Workers Conference, Lisle, IL, October, 2017
Culturally Responsive Teaching
Deneca Winfrey Avant
New Faculty Orientation, Normal, August, 2017
Stress In Academia
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Summer Faculty Institute, Normal, IL, July, 2017
Start Where You Are…But Don’t Stay There: The Journey Towards Understanding White Privilege and Dismantling Oppression
Deneca Winfrey Avant
White Privilege Conference, Kansas City, MO, April, 2017
Culturally Responsive Teaching
Deneca Winfrey Avant
New Faculty Orientation, Normal, August, 2016
Promoting Social Justice
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Faculty Summer Institute, Normal, July, 2016
Stress Free Social Work: Relax, Relate, Release
Deneca Winfrey Avant
School Social Worker Association of America, Nashville, TN, April, 2015
Fighting the Stress of Teaching: Revitalizing Your Passion
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Teacher School Improvement Day, Urbana, IL, January 16, 2015
Stress Free Social Work: Relax, Relate, Release.
Deneca Winfrey Avant, L. Walls
Illinois Association of School Social Workers Annual Conference, Lisle, IL, October, 2011
The Roles of School Social Workers in Implementation of Response to Intervention
Deneca Winfrey Avant, B. Lindsey
Illinois Association of School Social Workers Annual Conference, Lisle, IL, October, 2011
Alumni Panel: Ph.D. Honorees – Speak and Share Knowledge
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Summer Research Opportunities Program, Columbus, OH, July, 2010
How Teachers Perceive their Job Satisfaction is Influenced by their Principals' Behaviors and Attitudes Related to Race and Gender
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Administration Organization & Leadership/Section 2: School Organization and Effects under Division A at the American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, Denver, CO, April, 2010
Using Problem-based Learning to Promote Social Justice
Deneca Winfrey Avant, W. Bracy
Association of Baccalaureate Social Work Program Directors Conference, Atlanta, GA, March, 2010
How Teacher Job Satisfaction is Influenced by Principals' Leadership, Attitudes, and Beliefs Related to Cultural Identity Markers
Deneca Winfrey Avant
Northwestern University Graduate and Professional Student Research Conference, Evanston, IL, April, 2008