Dr. Howard received the Doris Sands "Excellent Teaching" award

Dr. Donna Howard, Associate Professor for Public and Community Health, was given the Doris Sands "Excellent Teaching" award at the faculty retreat. This award is presented to a faculty member who has been evaluated by the department chair, peers and students as being an excellent teacher in his/her area of expertise.

Dr. Doris Sands was a renowned sexuality educator who was recognized for her tremendous teaching skills and ability to reach students.

Mariano Kanamori won first place honors at the 2008 UMD student interaction research day

Mariano Kanamori, a doctoral graduate student in the Department of Public and Community Health won first place honors at the 2008 UMD student interaction research day in the exploring identities category. Congratulations to Mariano.

Drs Atkinson, Howard and Sawyer were recognized as honored faculty

Drs Atkinson, Howard and Sawyer were recognized as honored faculty at the Inaugural Scholarship and Research Celebration May 1, 2008, hosted by the Provost and Vice President UMCP.

Dr. Howard has been selected as a Fulbright scholar grantee to India

Dr. Howard has been selected as a Fulbright scholar grantee to India by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Dept of State, which oversees the operations of Fulbright Programs throughout the world. During the 2008-9 academic year, while on sabbatical, Dr Howard will be a Fulbright Fellow at Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India where she will teach public health to medical/allied health professionals and graduate students, present seminars, and also engage in a host of community-based public health activities in the southwestern region of the country. As a representative of the U.S. in India, Dr Howard will help fulfill the principal purpose of the Fulbright Program which is to increase mutual understanding between the people of the U.S. and the people of the over 150 countries that currently participate in the Fulbright Program.

Congratulations to Alice Yan for her dissertation grant award from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Alice was awarded a very competitive grant for her dissertation by the RWJ-Active Living Research for the year 2007. Active Living Research is a national program that stimulates and supports research to identify environmental factors and policies that influence physical activity. Alice was awarded $25,000 for up to 2 years.

Assistant/Associate Professor Job Announcement

Link to the Announcement

Robin Sawyer was recently honored by the AIDS and sexual health resource organization, Mothers' Voices, at a luncheon in Miami, Florida.

Robin received the organization's "Extraordinary Voice" award in recognition of his pioneering efforts to improve the sexual health of youth and adolescents. Mothers' Voices is a national non-profit organization that conducts programs to give parents the skills they need to communicate with their children about sexual health and HIV/STD prevention, in addition to working directly with adolescents, and youth. To date, Mothers' Voices has reached over 20,000 parents and families with their programs and outreach activities.

Two of our doctoral students won University of Maryland Graduate Research Interaction Day (GRID) awards

Two of our doctoral students, Sylvette La Touche and Melinda Griffin, won University of Maryland Graduate Research Interaction Day (GRID) awards. That is 2 out of 13 awards, or 15% of the pool of the GRID awards. Sylvette La Touche also won a $600 travel award at GRID. This is a big coup for our department!

The title of La Touche's presentation is "Making it work: Using the Internet to promote positive health behaviors in low literate populations."

The title of Griffin's presentation is "ALCOHOL PROTECTIVE BEHAVIORAL STRATEGIES UTILIZED BY COLLEGE STUDENTS."

Abstract

Amy S. Billing, MSSA 1, Sylvette La Touche, MA, Nancy L. Atkinson, PhD 1, NCC, Robert S. Gold, PhD, DrPH 1, Tian, Jing. (1) Public Health Informatics Research Laboratory, University of Maryland, Department of Public and Community Health, Suite 2387 Valley Drive, College Park, MD 20742-2611.

Making it work: Using the Internet to promote positive health behaviors in low literate populations
The University of Maryland's Public Health Informatics Research Laboratory and Maryland Cooperative Extension have collaborated on a nutrition education demonstration project featuring the 'Eat Smart, Be Fit, Maryland!' website, a health promotion tool developed as part of this project. The project involves a comprehensive assessment of community needs and strengths, a community health promotion intervention, and evaluation components. Three strategies were piloted in Maryland counties to promote access to and use of this website by food stamp recipients. These include: providing computers and training to families for home website access, partnering with organizations and publicizing community website access, and website promotion through a communication campaign. Statewide dissemination of the website will take place using a combined community intervention during this year of the project. Data collection is being conducted via online and paper-pencil surveys with experimental and control participants to compare behavior change over time for website users and non-users. This presentation will provide an overview of the web portal and its background and development. Project outcomes will be presented, including website usage statistics, user feedback, and implementation outcomes. The statewide diffusion plan will also be presented.

ALCOHOL PROTECTIVE BEHAVIORAL STRATEGIES UTILIZED BY COLLEGE STUDENTS
Melinda A. Griffin, ABD, MS
Department of Public and Community Health

Acknowledgements: Dr. Donna Howard, Dr. Bradley Boekeloo
Funded by National Institutes of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Grant # R01AA015139-01A1

Introduction: Alcohol use and the related negative consequences affect all college students. There are certain personal, interpersonal, and environmental strategies students can use when socializing in environments in which alcohol is present. Literature suggests that the use of such strategies may result in a reduction of alcohol use and negative consequences. The purpose of this study was to examine which strategies students at Maryland utilize to guide the development of an alcohol intervention.
Methods: Focus group discussions were conducted in the fall of 2005 with first-year freshmen residing in campus dormitories. The moderator's guide was developed with input by various university administrators and public health professors. In-depth analysis of the focus group transcripts was guided by the Information-Motivation-Behavioral skills framework and a phenomenological approach. Analysis included creating a dictionary of terms, coding each transcript into a computerized qualitative program, multiple reviews of each transcript, and identifying common themes.
Results: Eight focus groups were conducted with 47 students. Gender differences arose across discussions. Common strategies identified by students include going out with trusted friends, eating before drinking, keeping at least one person sober, and setting a limit.

MPH alums - Claire Wingfield (May 2006) - involves Gates-funded TB-HIV Advocacy Project

Claire Wingfield is now the Coordinator for the newly Gates-funded TB-HIV Advocacy Project for the Treatment Action Group ( www.aidsinfonyc.org). The Project has 4 main objectives: to develop global advocacy around TB and HIV, particularly increasing community presence on global planning and funding boards such as Global Fund and UNAIDS; develop TB-HIV advocacy in sub-Saharan Africa by developing toolkit and trainings ranging from basic TB info to working with policy makers and researchers; tripling US funding commitment to TB and TB-HIV research and programming; and finally to ensure the research around TB and TB-HIV is addressing the priorities of community and supporting activists engagement with research.

Claire will be taking the lead on sub-Saharan Africa and visited the region from Cape Town to Kampala (where I accidently found myself in a protest of the government and got tear gassed) to Preotria and Johannesburg and back to Cape Town.

National Television Exposure for Center Research

Link to the video

Dr. Robin Sawyer's teaching attracts national attention on the Today Show

Link to the video

Dr. Elbert Glover interviewed by Internal Medicine World Report

Link to the article

Dr. Robin Sawyer interviewed by Washington Post

Link to the article

University Launches Website to Promote Maryland Family Nutrition, Fitness

The interactive site has information and tools on nutrition and physical activity, including food and activity logs, games to learn how to save on food costs and links to local grocery specials. It also provides information on local nutrition and fitness resources and events for every county in Maryland. Please visit the Website at: News release for the Eat Smart project.

Peggie A. Smith, selected as HRSA Scholar at the United States DHHS

Peggie A. Smith, a doctoral student in the Department of Public and Community Health, was recently selected as a HRSA Scholar at the United States Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration. From over 500 applicants, she was one of 50 individuals chosen for this highly competitive training program. The cornerstone of the Scholars Program is a structured, individualized, 12-month training and development curriculum that each Scholar must finish to complete the program. Participants enhance skills with an emphasis on developing the crosscutting abilities and substantive knowledge needed to meet HRSA's emerging challenges. The program entails a combination of formal and on-the-job training, rotations, and mentoring.

Dr. Carolyn Voorhees was recognized by the state for her contribution

On May 3 the State of Maryland (Department of Health and Mental Hygiene) released the Maryland Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity Prevention Program Report at a meeting at Turf Valley Resort in Baltimore. Dr. Carolyn Voorhees was recognized for her contribution to the writing/coauthor of the plan on the Surveillance and Evaluation Committee and member of the overall team to edit and review the report. Our department was also recognized and is listed as a contributer to the plan in both the executive summary and overall report. The plan will now move to the implementation phase with CDC funding to continue this work. Dr. Deborah Rohm-Young of Kinesiology also served on the advisory committee.

Dr. Brad Boekeloo promoted to full Professor -- Well-Deserved.

Hearty congratulations to Brad Boekeloo for being promoted from Associate Professor to Professor. Dr. Boekeloo has also received a large grant award from the National Institutes of Health for his proposal "Peers as Family: Preventing Problem Drinking," which began in April 2005.

Community Health student Andre Blackman selected as SOPHE Student Scholar

Congratulations to Andre Blackman, Community Health major, on being selected as one of SOPHE's 55th Annual Meeting Student Scholar Award recipients! This support, provided by the National Cancer Institute, is designed to encourage the professional development and training of a new generation of practitioners, researchers, and public health leaders. Mr. Blackman will join 12 other Student Scholars from around the United States in Washington, DC, and will receive a complimentary student conference regitration for the Annual Meeting, a ticket to the Saturday night Awards Banquet, and a 1-year membership in SOPHE.

Dr. Sawyer named Most Influential Faculty Mentor by Chad McCarthy, a 2004 Philip Merrill Presidentlal Scholar

At a new event, the Philip Merrill Presidential Scholars luncheon on November 5, 2004, the University recognized one outstanding student from each UMCP college. In turn, the student was asked to select a faculty member (and a K-12 teacher) who had been influential in their life. Chad McCarthy is an Individual Studies major headed for medical school, having combined pre-med requirements with Anthropoligy and Public & Community Health courses. Chad selected Dr. Robin Sawyer, Department

of Public & Community Health as his influential faculty mentor. Our Department is proud to have played an active role in Chad's academic and personal success.

Dr. Wang receives 2003 HEDIR Award at APHA

Dr. Min Qi Wang will receive the 2003 HEDIR award at the fall APHA conference in San Francisco. Min Qi is being recognized for his development of a system to
collect and monitor HIV intervention data for CDC-funded grantees … a system that CDC has apparently been trying to develop for some time!

Jessica Donze named Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant

Each year the Department nominates an outstanding graduate teaching assistant to receive the University’s Center for Teaching Excellence’s “Distinguished Teaching Assistant” award and this year the Department recognizes Jess Donze for her outstanding work in the classroom. Jess, an MPH student, has done an incredible job in the classroom for the past two years, teaching HLTH 140 during her first year, and stepping in to teach Dr. Sawyer’s section of the Methods course this past year. Her teaching energy and talents will be sorely missed when she graduates in May.

Abstracts for APHA and Am J Prev Med Articles.

PCH Students participate in CDC/RWJ-funded study on minority women and physical activity. Abstracts submitted are for papers to be published in Am J Prev Med ...

... in October 2003, and for presentation at APHA November 2003. Under the direction of Dr. Carolyn Voorhees, the Public and Community Health Students involved included Ms. Jana Sharp (MPH student), Ms. Jie Li (PhD student), and Yvette Poole (BS student). The students are acknowledged in both papers:

• Associations among sociocultural and environmental factors and physical activity level in urban African American women.
• Personal, social and physical environmental correlates of physical activity levels in young urban Latinas.

Graduate programs ranked 12th best in the nation.

For the first time, the US News and World Report Rankings include graduate programs in public and community health. In its first ever ranking the Department is listed at number 12 in the country. This is terrific recognition for our programs, especially the MPH degree which only began in 1999. Although the whole issue of rankings should be viewed with some caution, being recognized as such a highly considered program is rewarding for faculty, staff and students. Congratulations to everyone!

Here are the top 25 rankings:

Doctoral Program Among Top Ten in U.S.

...in the last National Ranking Study of Doctoral Programs in Health Education. Journal of Health Education. A study ranking 28 doctoral programs in health education was conducted in 1999 by Dr. James Eddy, University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa, Dr. Thomas O’Rourke and Stephen Notaro, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The Department of Public & Community Health (formerly Health Education) was ranked 8th with five of the seven who ranked higher being Schools of Public Health. Based on academic productivity, including variables such as published articles, citations and external funding, our average faculty ranking was 4th. Only one institution had more individual variables than Maryland ranking in the top 10; none had more individual variables ranking in the top 20.

Faculty Awards and Special Recognition

University, College and Professional awards and faculty recognition attest to the excellence of our outstanding faculty. More UMCP Department of Public and Community Health faculty have been selected as Fellows in the American Academy for Health Behavior than any other department in the nation.

Some notable examples include:

• American Academy for Health Behavior Fellows (Brad Boekeloo, Ken Beck, Robert Gold, Elbert Glover, MinQi Wang)
• American Association for Health Education Presidential Citation (Robert Gold)
• School of Public Health Jerry P. Wrenn Outstanding Service Award (Robin Sawyer)
• School of Public Health Research and Development Award (Robert Gold)
• Diversity Initiative Faculty Support Award winner (Sharon Desmond)
• Gerontological Society of American Fellow (Lori Simon-Rusinowitz)
• Three faculty recognized as “Rain-makers” among the campus’s leading faculty grant recipients (Ken Beck, Brad Boekeloo)
• University System of Maryland Board of Regents’ Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching (Robin Sawyer)

Robin Mockenhaupt Receives HPI Award

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Health Promotion Institute / HPI, a constituent unit of The National Council on the Aging, recently presented its annual Molly Mettler Award to Robin E. Mockenhaupt, Ph.D., Senior Program Office, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Princeton, NJ. The award was given March 14, 2003, at the 2003 Joint Conference of the NCOA and the American Society on Aging at the Sheraton Hotel & Towers in Chicago, IL.

Co-author of the book “Healthy Aging,” Ms. Mockenhaupt works on health behavior, chronic disease management, and community and family health issues, on campaigns such as the Active for Life, Health e-Technologies program, and others.

Founded in 1950, The National Council on the Aging is the nation’s first charitable organization dedicated to promoting the dignity, independence, well-being, and contributions of older Americans. NCOA serves as a national voice and powerful advocate on behalf of older Americans. NCOA is an innovator, developing programs such as BenefitsCheckUp, Foster Grandparents and Family Friends. NCOA is an activator, working with its thousands of community organization members nationwide to provide needed services to older people. For more information on NCOA, visit www.ncoa.org.