Woman smiling in red and black flower dress in front of a blue background

Ashley Cureton

AM ’10, PhD ’19
Fields of interest
Academia, Mental Health, Immigrants and Refugees, Children, Adolescents, and Families

2025 Elizabeth Butler  Alumni Award Recipient

Assistant Professor, School of Social Work and Marsal Family School of Education, University of Michigan

Ashley Cureton is a leading scholar in international social work and forced migration studies. Through her teaching, research, and advocacy, she has dedicated her career to improving educational and socio-emotional outcomes for refugee and migrant youth and families, both in the U.S. and across the globe.

With over a decade of community-based and participatory research experience, Ashley’s work spans continents—collaborating with displaced populations in countries such as Uganda, South Africa, Ghana, Jordan, and Ecuador. Her scholarship identifies culturally specific programs and policies that support the unique needs of vulnerable, yet resilient, communities affected by displacement.

Ashley earned both her PhD and master’s degree from the University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice. She also holds advanced certificates in forced migration and refugee mental health from Harvard University, the University of Oxford, and Northwestern University. Prior to her current role, she was a Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellow at Johns Hopkins University and a research associate at Northwestern University’s Institute for Policy Research.

Her research has been published in leading journals such as The Lancet, Urban Education, and International Social Work, and supported by institutions including SAMHSA, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Center for Institutional Diversity. Recognized for her impact in both research and education, Ashley was named a 2025 Emerging Scholar by Diverse Issues in Higher Education and received multiple awards at the University of Michigan for her innovation in teaching and commitment to outreach.

Ashley’s globally engaged scholarship continues to bridge academia and community, research and practice. She lives by the belief that meaningful, inclusive support for refugee youth begins with listening deeply, acting boldly, and centering lived experience.