 Mary Anne Plastino Saunders
Associate Professor of Human Services and Sociology
Mary Anne Plastino Saunders, Associate Professor of Human Services and Sociology, received her Ed.D. in Human Development in 1991 from The George Washington University. Her research interests include developing leadership in the non-profit sector and social gerontology.
Selected Publications
Forthcoming 2008. "Institutionalizing Community-Based Learning and Research: The Case for External Networks." Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning (with Elizabeth Shrader and Sam Marullo)
2001. Saunders, Mary Anne P. "The Importance of the Third Sector in Conflict Prevention in CEE," RESEARCH PAPERS: Human Rights Conflict Prevention Centre. University in Bihac (current edition, November/December 2001).
Selected Presentations
October 2007. "Community/Higher Education Partnerships and Community Impact: From Rhetoric to Reality." International Research Conference on Service-Learning and Community Engagement, Tampa, Florida.
April 2007. "University/Community Partnerships: Rhetoric or Reality?." CoRAL Conference, Washington, DC.
April 2006. "Building Effective CBO Partnerships." CoRAL Conference, Washington, DC.
February 2004. "Leadership and European Integration." Invited presentation to Croatian Chamber of Economy, Zagreb, Croatia.
December 2003. "Motivation in the Health Care Sector: A Human Resource Issue." Keynote speaker at Ministry of Health, Republic of Croatia.
June 2003. "Engendering the Curriculum" at Comparative Perspectives on Gender, Race, Ethnicity and Nation in Post-Socialist Societies and the United States Conference, Zagreb and Porec, Croatia.
Current Projects
From 2003-2006, Mary Anne P. Saunders served as the Principle Investigator for a sub-grant entitled the Community Research and Learning Network (CoRAL), funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service. One of the objectives of this three-year grant was to increase the participation of university students in service learning, community service, and community-based research in order to further the cause of social justice in the District of Columbia.
Saunders's sabbatical research in Zagreb, Croatia in 2001 investigated two interest areas, the role of the third sector in transition countries, especially in central Europe, and the development of leadership skills in the executive sector in transition countries. The second of these interest areas has evolved into a longer-term training project of the governmental, corporate as well as the non-profit sectors in Croatia and has been endorsed by a number of ministries and large private firms. As a result, Saunders has been named Special Advisor to the Croatian Minister of Science, Education and Sports.
Saunders serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Meridian International Institute for Cooperation and Development of Countries in Transition in Zagreb, Croatia.
Saunders serves on the Board of Advisors of the Community Research and Learning Network, a Washington DC NGO supporting DC Universities and community based organizations to collaborate.
School and Departmental Service
Saunders currently serves on the Columbian College Undergraduate Studies Committee, the Service Learning Advisory Board and is chair of the Department of Sociology's Graduate Committee.
Courses Taught
HmSr 172: Introduction to Human Development, Part II, Adult Development and Aging (undergraduate level)
HmSr 176: Program Planning and Development for Service Agencies
HmSr 182: Organization and Administration in the Human Services
HmSr 701: Women and Aging (undergraduate level – cross-listed with Women’s Studies)
HmSr 801: Dean's Seminar – Birth to Earth: Human Development Across the Lifespan (Freshman Seminar)
Contact Information
map@gwu.edu
202-994-6798
Rome 457
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