Surgeon General C. Everett Koop HIV/AIDS Research Grant
To honor the legacy of C. Everett Koop, M.D., former U.S. Surgeon General, RCAP established an endowed research grant that will support doctoral student research related to HIV/AIDS prevention. This grant was announced on the eve of Dr. Koop’s 95th birthday, October 14, 2011. Beginning in the 2012-2013 academic year this grant will be awarded annually by RCAP on a competitive basis to help support research of doctoral students nationally. Koop was the federal government’s chief spokesperson regarding AIDS while serving as U.S. Surgeon General in the 1980s. He was the recipient of the 2010 Ryan White Distinguished Leadership Award in 2010.
Jessica Short, is a second-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Sociology at Indiana University. She graduated from Florida State University with a B.S. in Psychology and Sociology. Her research interests include reproductive health, fertility, and family planning. Her Master’s thesis focused on how perceptions of infertility in young women lead to decreased contraceptive usage and, subsequently, higher pregnancy rates. Her current study uses the Relationship Dynamics and Social Life (RDSL) study to examine if sociodemographic characteristics, intimate relationship dynamics, and prior STI diagnosis affect risk perceptions of HIV and STIs in young women.
Michael Sanchez, DNP, ARNP, FAANP, is a Ph.D. student at the University of South Florida. He has extensive clinical experience as a nurse practitioner in primary care, HIV prevention and management, and working with vulnerable populations of economically disadvantaged backgrounds. His research area of interest includes HIV prevention, sexual health research, and behavioral interventions for linkage and engagement in HIV preventive services. In addition, his research aims to elucidate social, contextual, and temporal factors related to HIV, STI risks, and prevention among sexual minority men who are content creators of sexually explicit media. Currently, Michael Sanchez is a clinical associate professor at Florida International. He completed his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate in nursing practice at the University of Miami. Michael Sanchez is certified as an HIV specialist by the American Academy of HIV Medicine and a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners.
Gabrielle S. Evans, MPH, CHES, is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston (UTHealth) and proud citizen of the Haliwa-Saponi Tribe. She received her BS and MPH in Community Health Education and from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG). Her research focuses on reducing sexual health disparities among Native American populations and analyzing the impact of historical and present traumas on Native sexual health. Gabrielle has taught comprehensive sexuality education since 2016, facilitating programs for faith-based organizations, providers, and Native American adolescents. As a sexuality educator and researcher, Gabrielle hopes to expand research on Native sexual well-being.
Andrew O'Neil, MPH, is a doctoral student in the Institute for Health Equity at the Medical College of Wisconsin and received his MPH in rural and underserved populations from Oklahoma State University. He currently works as a graduate research assistant in the Center for AIDS Intervention Research at MCW. His research interests center around understanding barriers and facilitators within the HIV prevention and care continuums, including pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), as well as linkage to and retention in HIV care for sexual minority men. Particularly, he is interested in studying these continuums in rural areas, where sexual minority men face unique challenges accessing these preventative services and care. His current research seeks to elucidate barriers and facilitators for increasing PrEP use in states with a rural HIV burden in the Ending the HIV Epidemic plan from key informants' perspectives.
Amber Sophus, MPH, is a doctoral candidate in the Office of Public Health Studies at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa. She obtained her MPH in Public Health from the University of Miami. She is currently a graduate research assistant at UH Mānoa coordinating various research studies related to HIV prevention and relational health among sexual and gender minorities. Her current research interests include HIV/STI prevention, women’s sexual health, behavioral and biomedical methods for HIV prevention, and health promotion. Her dissertation research will identify barriers and facilitators associated with Black women’s attitudes, motivations, intentions, and use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP); as well as assess whether PrEP intention is an indicator for PrEP uptake. Her study findings will: inform how best to alleviate barriers and enhance facilitators for PrEP uptake among at-risk Black women; extend HIV prevention literature about PrEP with this vulnerable population; and provided needed information that can work to support to existing programs, interventions, and state-funded directives to scale-up PrEP among Black women in the South.
Jacqueline Bible, MA, is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Family Science and Human Development at Montclair State University. Her research interests include the influence of culturally based stigma on comprehensive sexual health, with a specific focus on women and sexual minority groups. She aims to promote sexual health through individual empowerment and positive frameworks. Jacqueline intends for her research to be translational with hopes that it will alter the negative cultural messages surrounding sexual health and promote more positive holistic conversations about sexual health.
Brittany Wilbourn, MPH, is a doctoral candidate in Translational Health Sciences at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. She graduated from the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine with an MPH in Epidemiology. She is currently a Research Associate in the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health coordinating a variety of studies related to HIV. Her research interests include; HIV prevention; LGBTQ sexual health; health disparities among sexual, gender, and racial minorities; and adolescent and young adult sexual health. Her dissertation research will explore pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) screening and assessment of PrEP need among men who have sex with men and transgender persons of color in the DC Metro Area. The study's findings are intended to be translated into recommendations, protocols, and best practice guidelines that better identify MSM who could benefit from PrEP and are inclusive to transgender persons.
Seul Ki Choi, MPH, is a doctoral student in the Department of Health Behavior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and received her MPH in biostatistics from Indiana University. She has been a research assistant at the Behavior and Technology Lab at UNC (Director: Dr. Lisa Hightow-Weidman) since 2015. Her research interests are reducing sexual risk behavior among minority population and developing effective HIV prevention interventions. In the past, she conducted research investigating continuum of care among HIV-positive Young Black Men who have Sex with Men (YBMSM) and the relationship between condom use intentions, psychosocial predictors, and sexual risk behaviors among YBMSM. Her current research focuses on exploring safer sex empowerment among YBMSM, investigating how safer sex empowerment is linked to engagement in sexual risk behaviors, and how HIV prevention interventions may be enhanced by targeting safer sex empowerment.
Karen B. Vanterpool, MPH, is a PhD student in Health Behavior at Indiana University. She graduated from the University of Florida with an MPH in Social & Behavioral Sciences. Her research interests include risk perception and decision-making regarding sexual behaviors, and reducing health disparities among disadvantaged populations. Karen intends to pursue research focused on risk reduction, specifically related to HIV and other STIs among vulnerable populations.
Joyell Arscott, BSN, RN, ACRN is a PhD candidate in Nursing at Duke University, and received her A.S. in in Nursing from Essex Community College, and later her Bachelor’s Degree in Science in Nursing from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Over the past two decades, she has worked with adolescents and young adults in various settings, which included schools, community clinics, and the prison system, providing HIV education and testing services, linkage to care, and technical assistance. She has combined her past community and clinical work with at-risk and HIV-infected adolescents and young adults and their providers to inform her dissertation, which focuses on exploring the use of HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis in young African American men who have sex with men. Once she graduates, she plans on continuing her program of research focusing on adolescent and young adult sexual and reproductive health, LGBTQ health, HIV/STI prevention, and health disparities.
Tiara C. Willie, MA, is a Ph.D. Candidate in Chronic Disease Epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health and predoctoral fellow in the NIMH Interdisciplinary HIV Prevention Training Program at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS. Her research examines the etiology and health consequences of gender-based violence, domestically and globally. She has authored several publications and presentations related to determinants of gender-based violence victimization and perpetration, and its impact on the mental, sexual, and reproductive health of marginalized populations. Her dissertation focuses on the implications of intimate partner violence on women’s engagement in the HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) continuum.
Alice Ma, MPH, CHES, is a doctoral student in the Department of Public Health Education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Her research interests include the promotion of sexual and reproductive health, HIV prevention, and reducing health disparities among vulnerable and marginalized populations. She has co-authored manuscripts, presentations, and papers related to challenges to HIV care linkage and engagement among HIV-positive persons, adolescent pregnancy prevention efforts, and care-seeking challenges among Latino sexual and gender minorities. Her current research focuses on barriers to, and opportunities for, HIV testing among Latino sexual and gender minorities living in a new settlement state.
Dennis Flores is a doctoral student in the School of Nursing PhD program at Duke University under the mentorship of Dr. Julie Barroso. He graduated from Emory University with an MSN in Public Health Nursing Leadership and is board member of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care. His current research focuses on the sources of sexual health information of gay, bisexual or queer-identifying adolescent males with emphasis on the role sex communication may play during puberty. Dennis has been active in frontline nursing care of people with HIV/AIDS and several national HIV prevention campaigns. He intends to pursue research focused on health equity issues and intervention work for access to HIV care by children and families from minority populations.
Megan Hicks, M.S. is a doctoral student in the Department of Human Development and Family Science at The University of Georgia. Her research focuses on community and relationship factors affecting African American men’s health behaviors, specifically those related to HIV and other STIs. Her current research focuses on the psychosocial factors predicting inconsistent condom use among African American young men who report having main and casual sexual partners. In addition to research, Megan is active in the community volunteering in community education and prevention programs with African American youth.
Danielle Haley is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education at the Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University. Her research focuses on whether and how neighborhood environments (e.g., violent crime rates, the ratio of men to women) are associated with sexual risk behaviors and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among US women. Her dissertation will integrate individual-level data (e.g., sociodemographics, sexual risk behaviors) from the Women’s Interagency HIV Study research sites in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and North Carolina with administrative data on the places where these women live (e.g., US Census data, police records, state alcohol licensing). An understanding of whether and how neighborhood environments contribute to the sexual health of women living with HIV or at high risk of HIV acquisition can inform the development of future multilevel interventions to improve women’s sexual health and reduce HIV/STI transmission.
Krystal S. Frieson is a doctoral student in Counseling Psychology and a master’s student in Public Health at the University of Kentucky. Her professional, clinical, and research interests involve combining counseling psychology with public health science to create a version of health psychology that addresses the overall health and well being of individuals, groups, communities, and entire populations. Additionally, Krystal has a specialty focus in the psychological, physical, and sexual health issues of oppressed, marginalized, and underserved populations along with an emphasis in health behavior and HIV/AIDS/STD treatment, education, and prevention. Her current study focuses on the effectiveness of a computer-based HIV prevention program in decreasing HIV-related risks for rural African American women.
Junhan Cho is a doctoral student in the department of Human Development and Family Science at the University of Georgia working under Dr. Steven Kogan. His research interests include the association of social contextual factors with sexual risk behavior among African American adolescents. His studies focus on psychosocial models that specify how contextual factors influence adolescents' risky behavior and on protective mechanisms including family-centered prevention. Prior to entering the Ph.D. program, he earned a Master of Arts degree in Child and Family Studies at Yonsei University in South Korea.
Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein is a third year PhD student in the Community Research and Action program at Peabody college at Vanderbilt University. Lauren's primary research interests include investigating the social context of health, health equity and health policy specifically related to HIV. She has an educational background in sociology and social policy and practical research experience and specific training in public health research methodology. Lauren also has a research interest in exploring the impact of setting level determinants and community contexts (e.g. urban vs. rural) on individual health.
Ivanka Simić Stanojević, M.S., is a Ph.D. student at Indiana University's School of Public Health with a major in Leisure Behavior, holding a master's degree in Special Education and Rehabilitation from the University of Belgrade, Serbia. With a Ph.D. minor in Sexual and Reproductive Health, Ms. Simić Stanojević's line of research focuses on the sexual wellness of women and LGBTQ+ persons with disabilities. The Kirby Award will support Ms. Simić Stanojević's dissertation research aiming to assess attitudes and knowledge of direct care and service providers (DCSP) working with young adults with IDD toward the LGB population, measure providers' self-efficacy in performing LGB affirmative practice, identify the main barriers to supporting the sexual health of LGB clients with IDD, and understand the support needs of DCSP to promote the sexual health of LGB clients with IDD.
Kirsten Greer, is a PhD student in Health Behavior at Indiana University Bloomington in the School of Public Health. She earned her Master’s Degree in Human Development and Family Studies from Michigan State University in 2021. At Michigan State University, she conducted research that focused on sexting among emerging adults, adult women’s pornography use, school professionals’ knowledge about students online sexual experiences and adult men’s sexual victimization experiences. Her current research projects at Indiana University include examining condom use experiences among low vision and blind individuals with the Kinsey Institute Disability and Sexual Health Initiative (DASHI). Additionally, she is conducting research which evaluates the impact of COVID-19 on marital relationships with the Kinsey Institute Condom Use Research Team (CURT). While she has a research experience in a board range of sexual health topics, her main research interests are focused on the process of sexual socialization and its impact on sexual consent decisions, which will be supported through the Doug Kirby Adolescent Sexual Health Research Grant. She plans to investigate how social coercion impacts sexual consent decisions and contributes to compromised sexual agency and negative health outcomes among college students through in-depth interviews.
Elizabeth McKay, MEd, BSN, is a doctoral candidate in Nursing at Boston College. She has a background in both education and nursing and received her Master’s of Education from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her program of research examines the sources of sexual health information of sexual and gender minority adolescents with a focus on parent-child communication about sex and school-based sex education. The Kirby research grant will support her work toward the rigorous measurement and evaluation of sexual minority-inclusivity in sex education.
Mika Baugh is a PhD student in Health Behavior at the Indiana University Bloomington School of Public Health. She obtained her MPH from Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis in 2015. Mika has over 10 years of professional experience teaching and directing educational programs in the nonprofit and education sectors. Her lived experience as a queer disabled person, as well as her professional experiences as an educator, have kindled her research interests, which include access and equity in sex education, sexual consent and bodily autonomy for disabled people, and issues related to pregnancy and parenting for disabled and LGBTQ communities. Mika's current study will examine barriers to, and facilitators of, access to sex education for blind students. Through in-depth interviews with specially licensed teachers of the blind, the research will help explore why blind students do not receive adequate sex education, and produce recommendations for improvement.
Brooke Bouza, M.S., is a doctoral candidate in Community Health Promotion at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Since starting her doctoral studies, Brooke has conducted research examining sexual function in association with exercise and sexual function in association with sex-hormone fluctuations. Additionally, she is interested in the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. The HPV vaccine interests her because a cancer-preventing vaccine should be highly desirable to most people; but, the relationship between HPV and sexuality complicates the way some people feel about the vaccine. Thus far, her research on the HPV vaccine has included epidemiological investigations into factors associated with the initiation of the HPV vaccine. Moving forward in her research, Brooke would like to focus on increasing HPV vaccine coverage in populations who are routinely stigmatized as asexual.
Shemeka Thorpe, MS, is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Public Health Education at the University of North Carolina Greensboro (UNCG). She received her MS in Family and Child Sciences from Florida State University and her BS in Human Development and Family Studies from UNCG. Her research interests include the sexual health of Black women and college students. She has co-authored publications relative to college students' participation in hookup culture, the sexual health needs of marginalized college students, and sexual health interventions for Black women. As a sexuality educator, Shemeka has presented at national conferences on utilizing sex-positive and pleasure-inclusive approaches for adolescents of color. Her research utilizes a sex-positive framework to investigate Black women's sexuality. Shemeka hopes to create asset-based, pleasure-inclusive sexual health interventions and sexuality education curricula for Black women.
Reina Evans, BS, is a doctoral student in the Applied Social and Community Psychology Program at North Carolina State University. She received her bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Neuroscience from St. Edward’s University, where she began research on the long-term effects of early sex education on the sexual health of emerging adults. Her research broadly examines adolescent health with a focus on parent-teen sexual communication, positive sexuality, and community-based intervention practices. With the support of the Doug Kirby research grant, she will conduct a meta-analysis on sexual health interventions for Black and Hispanic youth to better understand what factors contribute to more effective interventions for these adolescents.
Maya Luetke, MSPH, is a doctoral student in Epidemiology at Indiana University-Bloomington. Her background is in infectious disease, specifically HIV, and she formerly conducted a state-wide survey of people living with HIV in state of Florida for the Florida Department of Health. She is passionate about ending gender-based violence and her dissertation research involves evaluating sexual violence prevention on IU’s campus, investigating the risk of perpetration and victimization, and designing transformative interventions that reduce sexual violence and encourage healthy, positive, and ethical sexual practices among college students. After graduating, she intends to continue her work to reduce sexual and gender-based violence in other populations and hopes to work internationally.
Stacey Griner, MPH, is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Community and Family Health in the College of Public Health at the University of South Florida. She received her MPH in Social and Behavioral Sciences from the University of Florida and a Graduate Certificate in Women and Gender Studies from the University of South Florida. Broadly, her research focuses on risky sexual behaviors and the associated health outcomes among college students and emerging adults. Specifically, Stacey is interested in college-based approaches to improving sexual health, community-level determinants of student health, and the influence of the social determinants of health on sexual health. Her dissertation examines factors influencing college women’s intention to be screened for chlamydia and gonorrhea using self-collected sampling methods.
Malachi Willis is a doctoral student and Distinguished Academy Fellow in the Community Health Promotion program at the University of Arkansas. He works with Dr. Kristen Jozkowski in the Sexuality and Education and Consent Studies lab. Malachi has earned MA degrees in Forensic Psychology form Marymount University and from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He broadly researchers the sexuality of college students (e.g. unwanted sexual activity, sexual pleasure, and sexual education). Specifically, Malachi is interested in the role of consent communication plays in each of these domains
Riley Steiner is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education at Emory University Rollins School of Public Health. Prior to beginning her doctoral work, she received her MPH from the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and has worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Her research focuses on adolescent sexual and reproductive health, with a particular emphasis on integration of pregnancy and STI prevention. Her dissertation is examining the STI prevention implications of adolescent long-acting reversible contraceptive use.
Alyssa Lederer is a doctoral candidate and Graduate Pedagogy Scholar in the Department of Applied Health Science at Indiana University’s School of Public Health-Bloomington. She received her MPH in Behavioral Sciences and Health Education from Emory University and BA in Studies in Health and Society and Studies in Women and Gender from the University of Virginia. Her research aims to improve the health and well-being of adolescents and emerging adults, particularly through the design and evaluation of school-based interventions. She is interested in best practices in sexuality education, the intersection of health education and behavior change, and applied research.
Emily Scheinfeld is a doctoral student in the Communication Studies program at The University of Texas at Austin, working under Dr. Erin Donovan. She graduated from The University with highest honors, and received her MA from the University of Georgia in Communication Studies. Her primary areas of research are family and health communication, primarily how families talk about risky behaviors, including sexual health, and uncomfortable topics (e.g., genetic testing and end-of-life care). Her current study focuses on how young adults experience sexually transmitted infections and the shame and stigma as they relate to STIs, including getting tested, adhering to treatment, and seeking out social support from peers, partners, and/or parents. These factors may help us better understand the motivation to engage in safe sex communication as well as seeking out the necessary support post-diagnosis.
Christopher Stults is a doctoral student in the Counseling Psychology program at New York University, working under the mentorship of Dr. Perry Halkitis. He is also a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in independent practice in New York City. Prior to relocating from South Florida to attend NYU, he worked as a counselor in private practice, in research settings for the University of Delaware and University of Miami, and as an adjunct college instructor. His research and clinical interests focus on the mental and physical health of LGBT people, including: HIV prevention, intimate partner violence, consensual non-monogamous relationships, and novel interventions that promote wellness.
Sophia Choukas-Bradley is a doctoral student in clinical psychology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She graduated magna cum laude from Brown University and received her M.A. in Psychology from UNC. Her primary areas of research focus on psychosocial predictors of adolescents’ and young adults’ sexual behaviors. Her current study combines an experimental paradigm and a longitudinal study design, to examine the roles of peer norms, peer influence susceptibility, and gender in adolescents’ trajectories of sexual behavior. She also has broad research interests in adolescent girls’ and young women’s interpersonal relationships, health risk behaviors, technology use, and mental health.
Christiana von Hippel is a second year MPH student in Behavioral, Social and Community Health at Indiana University. Her aim with all her contributions as a student and professional is to help advance sexual health communication and public health practice in the United States. She comes to IU with a BA in Psychology and the Study of Women & Gender from Smith College where she helped develop the college’s first course on women’s sexuality and launched the first research-based campaign for student sexual health and pleasure on campus entitled “Sexual Smithies, Pleasure is Power.” As a current MPH student and future doctoral student she will continue to pursue research on sexual health communication and pleasure with a focus on teens just beginning their education in sexual health as well as among senior women with a wizened perspective on sexual health across the life course to bridge the gap between scholarship and practice of sexual health promotion yet unaddressed in these communities.