Public Health News
Public health faculty lead GIS workshop for students, community members
On November 24, students, faculty and community members gathered for the first annual Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Workshop sponsored by Syracuse University’s Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics. David Larsen, an assistant professor in the Department of Public Health, Food Studies and Nutrition, led the workshop as part of public health professor Sandra Lane’s research work in the area of neighborhood trauma and violence in Syracuse. In addition to Drs. Larsen and Lane, this research project includes Falk College faculty members Dessa Bergen-Cico, Colleen Baish, Linda Stone Fish, and Tracey Reichert-Schimpff along with Maxwell professor Robert A. Rubinstein. Community partners involved in the project include Timothy “Noble” Jennings-Bey, CEO and founder of the Street Addiction Institute for Behavioral Modification, as well as the founding director of the Syracuse Trauma Response Team, and Arnett Haygood-El who is a member of the Trauma Response Team. Student collaborators include Enaam Alali, Giovanni Bazile, Timothy Bryant, Reed Kamyszek and Shaundel Sanchez.
The workshop offered a hands-on approach to teaching the skill of map making, an integral part of generating community awareness and conducting epidemiological analyses for public health problems like violence. The Syracuse Police Department provided the location of all shots-fired incidents over the past five years, which the participants linked to census tract populations in the workshop and then mapped. The workshop was based on Quantum GIS, an open-source geographic information systems program that any student or participant can freely download for their machine.
The results from the workshop will be used during community meetings to discuss how best to respond to the issue of neighborhood trauma. The results will also be useful in applying for research funding and to publish in scientific journals.
Syracuse University’s Falk College Highlights Graduate Studies During November 15 Information Session
Faculty, staff, students available to talk about programs, coursework, student life
Syracuse University faculty, staff and current students will welcome potential graduate students interested in the Falk College’s graduate programs in child and family studies, public health, marriage and family therapy, nutrition science, social work andsport management during a special Fall Information Session for graduate studies on Saturday, November 15. The presentation begins at 10:00 a.m. in the Shaffer Art Building, Shemin Auditorium.
Detailed information will be provided on graduate programs in child and family studies (MA, MS, Ph.D.), child and family health (MS), marriage and family therapy (MA), social work (MSW) as well as the dual degree program (MA/MSW) in marriage and family therapy and social work, nutrition science, and sport venue and event management (MS). Details on our newCertificate of Advanced Study (CAS) programs in trauma-informed practice and intercollegiate athletic advising and supportwill be available along with information on other Falk College CAS programs in addiction studies, dietetic internship, and global health.
Admissions staff will be available at the information session to meet with students and provide information on academic programs, scholarships and housing.
National Science Foundation spotlights Falk REU program that trains veterans, non-veterans to conduct trauma-related research
The Trauma Research Education for Undergraduates (REU) program, launched three years ago by Falk Family Endowed Professor of Public Health, Brooks Gump and SUNY Oswego psychology professor Karen Wolford, trains veterans and non-veterans to conduct trauma-related research. A joint venture of Syracuse University, the State University of New York (SUNY) at Oswego and SUNY Upstate Medical University, the Trauma REU is offered to 10 students each year. It starts with an intense, immersive summer program–four weeks of trauma coursework while crafting a research project–and continues through the year as students conduct research under faculty supervision. Students are a mix of veterans and non-veterans. This highly interdisciplinary program includes faculty who are geneticists, psychologists and social workers and has contributed to research on stress reduction tools used by trauma patients
Falk College Faculty Awarded Komen Foundation Grant for Breast Cancer Awareness, Education Programming
Public health professor of practice, Luvenia Cowart, working with Maria Brown, assistant research professor, School of Social Work, has received a $47,293 grant from the Susan G. Komen for the Cure New York Foundation to support the project, “Breast Cancer Awareness and Education Program for African American Women in Underserved Communities.” The project’s aim is to reduce disparities in breast cancer and its associated health risks, and to promote participation in mammography and early detection services for African American women in the Syracuse community.
According to the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer is the second most common cause of cancer deaths among African American women. Standard health education has not been effective with minorities, particularly those with lower incomes or less education. Widespread distrust of the formal healthcare system, health literacy issues and a perceived lack of cultural relevance contribute to the challenges. Historically, faith-based organizations have led the movement to reach at- risk African American communities using culturally appropriate health promotion to address chronic diseases.
The Genesis Health Project Network, a community-designed, culturally competent intervention, has developed and started to implement the breast cancer program in the Syracuse community. Co-founded by Cowart in 2004, the Genesis Project is a partnership between minority churches, community and government sponsors and Syracuse University’s Falk College to reduce health disparities in minority populations. Under Cowart’s leadership, the Genesis Project has successfully facilitated health seminars, fitness programs, educational programs at barbershops, and healthy lifestyle activities with churches and universities. Her work and the Genesis Health Project were recognized with numerous honors, including the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities Director’s Award in 2008 from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ National Institutes of Health.
Through pastoral health messaging and culturally appropriate strategies, the grant will support efforts to heighten awareness of breast cancer risks and prevention, promote mammography and early detection, and increase awareness of free/low-cost mammography and adoption of healthier behaviors.
Study Identifies Key Components for Prevention, Intervention Programs for Adolescent Smoking in China
Falk College professors, Ambika Krishnakumar (Child and Family Studies) and Lutchmie Narine (Public Health) authored “Parenting practices and adolescent smoking in mainland China: The mediating effect of smoking-related cognitions,” which appeared in the August 2014 edition of the Journal of Adolescence. In collaboration with Dr. Yan Wang, Drs. Krishnakumar and Narine examined the direct and indirect associations of general and smoking-specific parenting practices with Chinese adolescents’ smoking behaviors. Results suggest that parenting practices and smoking-related cognitions are critical components to be incorporated in prevention and intervention programs for adolescent smoking in China.
Falk College Seed Grants awarded for 2014-15
Each year, the David B. Falk College Research Center, in collaboration with the Dean’s Office, awards seed grants on a competitive basis to assist faculty with completing preparatory work for research projects that have a high likelihood to compete for external funding. The 2014-15 seed grant recipients include:
Development and evaluation of a mind-body awareness intervention to enhance self-regulation as a mechanism to promote healthy weight among young children.
Dessa Bergen-Cico, assistant professor, Public Health
Rachel Razza, assistant professor, Child and Family Studies
Cultivating food justice: using photovoice to document the outcomes of a pilot food system intervention program for youth
Evan Weissman, assistant professor, Food Studies
Housing and LGBTQ youth
Maria Brown, professor of practice, School of Social Work and Aging Studies Institute
Deborah Coolhart, assistant professor, Marriage and Family Therapy
How do Iraqi refugees experience and make sense of family relationships as they resettle in a host country?
Rashmi Gangamma, assistant professor, Marriage and Family Therapy
In memoriam: patient advocate, author Jessie C. Gruman H’11
Jessie C. Gruman, president and founder of the Center for Advancing Health (CFAH), died on July 14, 2014 after a long illness. Dr. Gruman was the recipient of an honorary doctor of humane letters degree from Syracuse University in 2011. With the philosophy that people will not benefit from the healthcare available to them unless they can participate fully and competently in it, Jessie Gruman thoughtfully and passionately drew on her own experience of treatment for multiple cancer diagnoses, plus surveys, peer-reviewed research and interviews with patients and caregivers as the basis of her work to advocate for policies and practices to overcome the challenges people face in finding good care and getting the most from it.
“We at Falk College were honored to know and be able to nominate Jesse Gruman for an honorary degree at Syracuse University. She led an inspired and committed life giving voice to endless medical consumers. Her advocacy for medical patients and research has helped create a more responsive healthcare system,” notes Diane Lyden Murphy, dean, Falk College.
In 2011, she was the featured guest speaker for a special Falk College lecture where she presented, “The Patient in Patient-Centered Care: What Clinicians Need to Know.” She authored many publications, including “The Experience of the American Patient: Risk, Trust and Choice” (Health Behavior Media, 2009), “Behavior Matters” (Health Behavior Media, 2008) and “AfterShock: What to Do When the Doctor Gives You–or Someone You Love–a Devastating Diagnosis” (Walker Publishing, second edition, 2010), as well as scientific papers and opinion essays and articles.
During her lifetime, Gruman was honored by Research!America for her leadership in advocacy for health research. In addition to her honorary degree from Syracuse University, she received honorary doctorates from Brown University, Carnegie Mellon University, Clark University, Georgetown University, New York University, Northeastern University, Salve Regina University and Tulane University. She was a recipient of the Presidential Medal of The George Washington University. Gruman earned her bachelor’s degree from Vassar College and a Ph.D. in social psychology from Columbia University. In addition to her leadership of The Center for Advancing Health, a nonpartisan Washington-based policy institute funded by foundations and individuals in 1992 to work on patient engagement, she was a professorial lecturer in the School of Public Health and Health Services at The George Washington University.
“Jessie was a tireless advocate for patients. For the past ten years, she focused her efforts and the efforts of CFAH on advancing patient engagement as well as helping people find and benefit from good healthcare. The Center has lost a brilliant colleague. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Jessie have lost a dear friend. We will deeply miss her powerful and inspiring voice for patients, families and caregivers,” said M. Chris Gibbons, M.D., MPH, CFAH board of trustees chair.
The Syracuse Lead Study Expands Recruitment
The Department of Public Health, Food Studies and Nutrition at Syracuse University’s Falk College is expanding recruitment for the Syracuse Lead Study. Additional zip codes are 13202, 13206,13210 and 13224 in addition to the existing areas of 13203, 13204, 13205, 13207 and 13208. The study is examining environmental toxins (lead) that collect in our system and how that impacts stress response and cardiovascular health.
“Recruitment will continue until we reach our goal of 300 participants,” says Dr. Brooks Gump, principal investigator for the Syracuse Lead Study and the Falk Family Endowed Professor of Public Health at Syracuse University. In addition to residence in the outlined zip codes, participants need to be 9, 10 or 11 years of age and consider their race as black or white. Participants and their parents/guardians will be compensated for their time with a stipend of up to $120.00.
The study consists of two appointments which involve a blood draw, collection of hair and urine samples, body measurements, two echocardiograms, questionnaires and computer games. Appointments will occur on and off-campus and will take approximately 7 hours total.
Bringing Theory to Practice project headed to SU, other campuses
Several courses within the Falk College will benefit from a Bringing Theory to Practice grant aimed at studying the psychological and social well-being of college students. The Bringing Theory to Practice Project (BTtoP) awarded more than $700,000, including campus matching grants, to the colleges to address two key questions: How does learning on college campuses support the psychosocial development of students, and how and why does intentional commitment to the well-being of all students positively affect their learning and civic involvement?
Among the courses to be evaluated and studied are two courses offered through Falk College: SPM 101—Personal and Social Responsibility taught by associate professor of sport management, Jeff Pauline and HTW 405/HTW 605—Cognitive Behavioral Approaches to Stress Reduction, taught by assistant professor of public health, Dessa Bergen-Cico. Additionally, SOC/WGS/CFE 230—Intergroup Dialogue, which focuses on women’s issues, race, gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, taught by Gretchen Lopez from the School of Education, is included in the project.
Syracuse University was one of 28 schools awarded funds to study and evaluate courses that have civic engagement and specific engaged learning practices in their curricula that add to the overall well-being of students.
The BTtoP campus projects began early this year and will continue through June 2015. Bringing Theory to Practice is an independent project sponsored by the Charles Engelhard Foundation of New York City and the S. Engelhard Center and developed in partnership with the Association of American Colleges and Universities. The State University of New York at Cortland, State University of New York at Geneseo and Wagner College also are part of the project.
Falk College honors faculty for excellence in teaching, research, service
Faculty members from the Departments of Public Health, Food Studies and Nutrition and Sport Management were honored for excellence in teaching, research and service with 2014 Falk College Faculty of the Year Awards. The honorees, who are nominated by their peers for outstanding performance and contributions to students, the Falk College, Syracuse University and beyond, were recognized during the Falk College’s Convocation for the Class of 2014 on May 10. The name of each recipient, the award received, and excerpts from the letters of nomination are noted below.
Dennis Deninger, Professor of Practice, Sport Management
Excellence in Teaching
Professor Deninger is described as having a genuine passion for teaching and mentoring students. His courses draw from 25+ years as an industry practitioner at ESPN television. Professor Deninger, a three-time Emmy Award winner at ESPN, recently wrote and produced his second documentary, “Changing Sports, Changing Lives,” which premiered on campus in April 2014 and focused on disability and sports.
In addition to service in the Falk College Department of Sport Management and Syracuse University, he has served as a national judge for the annual College Sports Media Awards. Dennis also completed teaching and administrative responsibilities in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, where he was the founding director of the Sports Communications graduate program.
He has written and published a book, Sports on Television: The How and Why Behind What You See, which is being translated into Chinese.
Dr. Rodney Paul, Professor, Sport Management
Excellence in Research
Most recently, Dr. Paul received the 2014 Award for Extraordinary Accomplishments in Research by the Academy of Economics and Finance, the organization that selected him as the Research Fellow in Economics in 2013.
As a sports economist, he brings a strong financial and analytical business background into the classroom, which is immeasurable in the sport management field of study. In the past year, his research has focused on attendance variables and predictability among different minor league baseball leagues; betting and wagering in college football; ticket pricing variables affecting Major League Baseball; fan satisfaction levels in the National Football League; and attendance predictability in minor league professional hockey, among other contemporary topics.
Dr. Paul serves as the faculty sponsor for honors theses, independent studies, research projects and sport practicums, and advises the Baseball Statistics Club.
Dr. Maureen Thompson, Associate Professor, Public Health
Excellence in Service
Dr. Thompson is described as someone who is never a passive participant and shoulders more than her fair share of tasks and responsibilities. As director of undergraduate programs in public health, she conducts all interviews for students seeking to declare a public health major or transfer into it.
She served on both the Falk College and departmental Promotion & Tenure Committees. She has chaired, and currently serves on, the departmental curriculum committee. She is an expert at developing curricula and has shared that expertise, via her committee work, in developing the major and minor in food studies and graduate programs in public health. She has also been instrumental in developing the Falk College’s addictions studies programs.
Her additional service includes the University Senate Ad Hoc Committee on Promotion and the University Health Professions Advisory Board. She is co-director of the Consortium from Cultural Foundations in Medicine.
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