The UT Social Work Office of Research and Public Service (SWORPS) specializes in program evaluation, applied research, software development & systems engineering, and staff training & development. The SWORPS team is pleased to announce three new promotions.

Debbie Abrams-Cohen has been promoted to Lead Program Manager for the Child Support Education and Parenting Programs

Debbie Abrams-Cohen received her BS in Psychology and MSW at the University of Utah where she worked for their SWORPS-type organization called the Social Research Institute on a longitudinal, statewide project interviewing welfare recipient. After school, she continued working with welfare recipients for the state of Utah. She moved (back) to Knoxville in 2006 with her husband, daughter and 3 cats. Abrams-Cohen started with SWORPS in 2007 on a “six-month” project known as CSEPP. The project continued and expanded, as did her family (added a son, lost those 3 cats, added 3 new cats) and 14 years later, she is excited that CSEPP has become TCSEPP/TPOPS and serves 17 counties, a prison, a residential recovery center, and another prison soon to be included.

Deidre Ford has been promoted to Assistant Director of Information Technology at SWORPS.

Deidre Ford came to SWORPS in 2000 as a Computer Information Specialist, performing web research.  She learned web-based database design and development on the job, moving into a lead developer role, then to an IT Team Leader position where she has been for the past 16 years. While at SWORPS, she completed her undergraduate degree, began a Master’s program in Information Sciences and became a Fulbright Specialist for the US Department of State.  Ford leads the IT team as they continue to grow, expand their services, and continue their commitment to serving the community through technology. 

Gary Moats has been promoted to Senior Developer

Gary Moats came to SWORPS in 2015, via TEKsystems.  He was a recent graduate of Lee University’s Political Science program and had been a Strategic Routing Analyst for Covenant Transportation where he performed as a web developer and a data analyst.  Shortly after his arrival, Moats created the Knoxville Community Dashboard on Homelessness, which continues to be a key resource for the Knoxville area and a model for other communities.  He has expanded his skill set as a Lead Developer at SWORPS, providing a wide array of development expertise for most SWORPS development projects, including those with Signal Centers, TDHS, KPD, KnoxHMIS, and more.