Doctoral Student Fellows

 

 

Maureen Fredrickson-MacNamara, MSW
Doctoral Student

Throughout her career Maureen Fredrickson-MacNamara has incorporated animals in educational and social work interventions with children and adults struggling with disruptive behaviors, histories of trauma and overwhelming life challenges. During her tenure as Delta Society Vice President of Programs, Maureen developed training and handling protocols for horses and dogs in mental health and education programs and is creator of the internationally recognized Pet Partners program. She lectures widely about the critical role that animals and nature play in human health, development and well-being and methods of incorporating horses, livestock and companion animals in mental health and educational applications.

Maureen is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work. Her scholarly interests include the development and treatment of medical life threat and PTSD in youth with chronic or life threatening illness, the application of animal-assisted interactions in social work practice, particularly for individuals with trauma histories and chronic illness, and animals as a dynamic part of the human social landscape.