Leah Cleeland, PhD, MSW joined the Social Work faculty at UMD in the fall of 2016. Leah has earned a BSW, MSW, and most recently a PhD in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Leah worked in direct practice for over 10 years in Colorado and Illinois. She has worked with substance abuse, health care, criminal justice, and with at-risk children and adolescents. Leah is interested in collecting personal narratives with the aim of improving the lives of people and impacting systems and social issues. Her research looks at the impact of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq on soldiers, veterans, and their families. Her current research looks at the impact of deployment on National Guard spouses. She is looking forward to continuing and expanding her work with the military in Minnesota.