Curriculum Vitae
Current Roles
Assistant Professor, School of Social Work, California State University, Sacramento
Ford Fellow in Disability Policy Research, National Academy of Social Insurance
Benefits Futures Innovator, Benefits Futures Studio
Member, NASI Social Security Speakers Bureau
Selected recent publications
Savin, K., Freitag, C., & Borus, M. (2026). "In the Last Year, It's Gotten a Lot Worse": A Qualitative Investigation of Barriers to Disability Benefits in 2025. Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF) and American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD)
Savin, K., & Barnes, C. (2025). “Playing the Game”: How Supplemental Security Income and Social Security Disability Insurance Recipients Cope with Administrative Burdens. Social Service Review, 99(4), 581-612.
Savin, K. (2025). “Social Security Won’t Let You Have a Nest Egg”: The Case for Updating Supplemental Security Income’s Asset Limit. Policy brief published by the National Academy of Social Insurance. https://www.nasi.org/discussion/social-security-wont-let-you-have-a-nest-egg-the-case-for-updating-supplemental-security-incomes-asset-limit/
Bowen, L., & Savin, K. (2025). From Self-Advocacy to Solidarity: Narrating Disability and Dementia beyond Personal Identity. The Hastings Center report, 55 Suppl 1, S97–S104. https://doi.org/10.1002/hast.4999
Savin, K. (2025). The Human Toll of Administrative Burden in Social Insurance Programs. Health & social work, 50(2), 87-89.
Savin, K., Morris, Z. A., Wise, M. S., & Marinoff, R. (2024). “Every day you are working you have to prove it”: Navigating the costs of work and ableism with visual impairment. Journal of vocational rehabilitation, 60(3), 389-401.
Savin, K. (2024). “Everyone Else Gets to Have the American Dream:” How Social Security Disability Policy Shapes Disability Identity. Journal of sociology and social welfare, 51(1).
In the news
A diminished Social Security workforce, and its customers, feel the strain. The New York Times. 2025
Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling. Fortune. 2026
Trump's Social Security shakeup is hurting the disabled and poor, advocates say. Axios. 2025
Accessing Social Security disability benefits became harder in 2025, researchers find. Nextgov/FCW. 2026
Over 7,100 Social Security Administration employees exit, leaving cases "stuck in purgatory." New York Post. 2026
Wyomingites face increased barriers to Social Security benefits. Wyoming Public Radio. 2026