Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy (InCHIP)

Jim Downs, Ph.D., Gettysburg College

Topic: Effects of Colonialism, Slavery, and War on Medicine

January 25, 2024 | 12:30 - 1:30 PM

Jim Downs is the Gilder Lehrman-National Endowment for the Humanities Professor of Civil War Era Studies and History. He is the author of Sick From Freedom: African American Sickness and Suffering during the Civil War and Reconstruction (Oxford UP, 2012), Stand By Me: The Forgotten History of Gay Liberation (Basic Books, 2016) and Maladies of Empire: How Colonialism, Slavery, and War Transformed Medicine (Harvard UP, 2021) which has been translated into Chinese, French, Korean, Japanese, and Russian.

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Join In-Person: J. Ray Ryan Bldg., Room 204 

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Idia Binitie Thurston, Ph.D., Northeastern University

Topic: Multilevel Factors Contributing to Health Inequity in Pediatric Populations

February 8, 2024 | 12:30 - 1:30 PM

My research explores causes of health inequity among adolescents, young adults, and parents by examining how and why BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and other minoritized individuals experience a greater health and disease burden. Framed by an academic womanist lens, my research explores multilevel individual, relational, and contextual risk and protective factors that contribute to varying health outcomes among minoritized and underserved populations. I am deeply invested in the development of a diverse workforce of health scientists via the CHANGE* lab, where I support grad, postbacc, and undergrad scholars to engage in health equity science, social justice advocacy, and cultural humility practices. Our lab strives to combat health inequity by engaging with communities to develop strength-based, culturally-responsive tools, programs, and interventions to enhance well-being, reduce stigma, and promote self-empowerment. We prioritize research that explores intersectional identities of race, ethnicity, gender, class, age, and sexuality.

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In Recognition of Heart Health Month

Andrea Spaeth, Ph.D., Rutgers University

Topic: Sleep and Cardiovascular Disease

February 29, 2024 | 12:30 -1:30 PM

Trained as an experimental psychologist, Dr. Spaeth has dedicated herself to a career in sleep research aimed at advancing our understanding of how changes in sleep behaviors affect health outcomes, with a focus on weight management and metabolic health. Dr. Spaeth developed her own independent line of research in this area as a graduate student by assessing the impact of sleep on weight, caloric intake and energy expenditure in healthy adults participating in an ongoing in-laboratory sleep restriction protocol. As a postdoctoral researcher, she gained experience in the implementation of sleep and meal timing interventions outside of the laboratory and examined the impact of these interventions on cardiometabolic outcomes. The ultimate goal of Dr Spaeth’s research will be to develop and implement effective lifestyle modification interventions related to sleep in diverse at-risk populations to promote health and wellness.

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Morissa Henn, DrPH, Associate Commissioner, NH Department of Health and Human Services

Topic: Firearm Safety and Suicide Prevention 

April 4, 2024 | 12:30-1:30 PM

Virtual Lecture

Associate Commissioner Morissa Henn helps lead cross-cutting efforts to integrate policy and practice to improve services for youth and families. Her portfolio includes New Hampshire’s child welfare and juvenile justice system (the Division for Children, Youth, and Families), its public mental health and substance misuse system (the Division for Behavioral Health), and its psychiatric hospital for youth (Hampstead Hospital and Residential Treatment Facility). She is a member of the Department’s Senior Executive Team and helps ensure the integration of policy and practice among all Departmental programs and services.

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Chelsea Singleton, Ph.D., Tulane University

Topic: Impact of Healthy Food Access on Dietary Intake and Chronic Disease

April 18, 2024 | 12:30 - 1:30 PM

Dr. Chelsea Singleton is a nutritional epidemiologist whose research examines the impact healthy food access has on food purchasing behavior, dietary intake, and chronic disease risk. The overarching goal of her research is to document and dismantle nutritional inequities affecting low-income populations and people of color in the U.S. Her recent work has primarily focused on describing the mechanisms by which structural racism and structural violence impede healthy eating in underserved communities. She has extensive experience working with nutrition assistance program participants (e.g., SNAP, WIC), and she primarily uses epidemiological, geo-spatial, and community-based participatory research methods to accomplish her research goals. Prior to joining the SBPS faculty, she was an Assistant Professor of Public Health at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She completed a USDA-funded post-doctoral research fellowship at the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2018. In 2020, the National Institute on Minority Health & Health Disparities (NIH/NIMHD) awarded her a five-year K01 grant. Her K01 research aims to study the effects of community violence on food retail and food purchasing behavior in low-income African American communities. She is a proud Tulane and Xavier graduate! 

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Join In-Person: InCHIP, J. Ray Ryan Bldg., Room 204

Livestream via YouTube