2022 News Archive

Isabella Alonso and Kyndall Dye-Braumuller selected to receive 2022 Arnold School Student Awards

Congratulations to Isabella Alonso (B.A. in Public Health, MPH in HPEB) on winning the Jeffrey Keith Mattison Outstanding Student Achievement Award and Kyndall Dye-Braumuller (Ph.D. in Epidemiology) for winning the Doctoral Student Achievement Award.

May graduate to advance health equity for underserved communities by addressing social determinants of health

As a public health major, Cedrick Belton began to see the bigger picture of health and instantly felt a connection. He spent his time at UofSC learning about the challenges facing underserved communities as well as possible impacts and solutions.

Arnold School honors alumni at 2022 Hooding Ceremony

Kara Whitaker (MPH-PAPH, Ph.D. in Exercise Science) has been awarded the Gerry Sue Arnold Alumni Award, and Susan Bolick (MSPH in Epidemiology) is the recipient of the Norman J. Arnold Alumni Medal.

Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion announces inaugural DEI awardees

These awards are designed to recognize alumni, faculty, staff and students who have made exceptional contributions to advancing DEI through research, practice, community engagement, teaching and/or advocacy.

May graduate earns public health degree as foundation for career in medicine

During her program, Madison Petersen gained research experience with the Arnold Childhood Obesity Initiative, Connect Lab and the NCI-funded Cancer Education Program, ultimately earning Graduation with Leadership Distinction in Research.

Health promotion, education, and behavior announces department's 2022 student award winners

Isabella Alonso and Megan Austin are the recipients of the Outstanding Master's Student Award, and Tianyue Mi has been honored with the Christopher Peter Aluah Outstanding Doctoral Student Award.

Staff Spotlight: Gaye Christmus

The Arnold School has been a home to Gaye Christmus for three decades and counting. The Master of Public Health alumna has served as the pre-award grants manager and technical editor for the Department of Exercise Science for 22 years.

International student earns master's degree to increase athletic training services in Caribbean

Reann Young gained experience with UofSC's beach volleyball and football teams as well as the SC Summer Dance Conservatory and Columbia International University. She also developed research interests in the mental health of student-athletes.

Public health scientist sets high bar in research, mentoring productivity

UofSC Today features Breakthrough Leader and exercise science professor, Michael Beets. An expert in children's physical activity and health, Beets is the director for the Arnold School Obesity Initiative and the director of Propel.

Doctoral graduate develops new use for biostatistics methods: assessing human exposure to radiation

Thomas LaBone has spent 40 years assessing occupational exposure to radioactive materials. With his Ph.D. in Biostatistics, he is on the forefront of researchers applying Bayesian statistics to internal dosimetry - a goal 25 years in the making.

Graduate School selects three Arnold School doctoral students to receive university-level awards

Maggie Carson (Environmental Health Sciences) won the Dean's Excellence in Leadership, Valeri Yelverton (Health Services Policy and Management) won the Outstanding Research Award, and Rajat Das Guptas (Epidemiology) won the George M. Reeves Fellowship.

Two students honored with inaugural public health programs awards

The Office of Undergraduate Affairs has selected two students to receive the inaugural Outstanding Public Health Awards. Stephen ("Andrew") Zahran (B.A. in Public Health) and Zola Jane Alpin (B.S. in Public Health) are the 2022 recipients.

Department of Exercise Science recognizes students with annual awards

Seven exercise science students have been recognized with recognized with departmental awards. This year’s winners were chosen for their academic achievements, community service and leadership roles.

I Am Public Health: Keren Herrán

Ph.D. in Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior student brings wealth of experiences to doctoral program as she prepares for a global health career focused on health disparities, nutrition, and maternal and child health.

May graduate lands project manager role with healthcare-focused technology organization

Chantal LaFlamme is particularly interested in helping the company use its software to improve workflow, patient safety and quality of care as well as identify health issues and address health disparities.

May graduate focuses on emerging technologies to advance public health

Annalee Brody's first campus visit to UofSC was instrumental to helping her select a major. She says that Arnold School students clearly had a stronger passion and enthusiasm for their education and experiences.

Athletic training graduate committed to improving transgender healthcare and education

During their program, Erica Schulman explored their interests in transgender healthcare and its integration into academic curricula and educational opportunities for athletic training students and practicing athletic trainers.

UofSC recognizes undergraduate students on Awards Day

Seventeen undergraduate students from the Arnold School's public health and exercise science bachelor's programs have been recognized with 20 honors on UofSC's 2022 Awards Day.

May graduate to begin 3rd Arnold School program in pursuit of career in maternal and child health

After taking her first health promotion, education, and behavior course junior year, Megan Austin knew she had found her future career. She considered various master's programs but was drawn back to the Arnold School's HPEB department.

PASOs combats COVID-19 racial and ethnic health disparities in South Carolina

Epidemiology student Samantha Rieche and Center for Community Health Alignment communications coordinator Richard Strater explain how PASOs has helped mitigate health disparities in SC through increased vaccination rates in Latino communities.

Pandemic presents opportunity for optometrist to pursue career in public health

Jim Matthews' graduation with a Master of Public Health degree this May is 46 years in the making. In fact, his new venture into health policy is not only a second career for the optometrist, it is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.

Communication sciences and disorders professor Julius Fridriksson named Vice President for Research

After nine months as interim Vice President for Research, Julius Fridriksson has been officially appointed as VPR by the UofSC Board of Trustees. University of Kentucky’s College of Public Health Dean Donna K. Arnett has been named provost.

May graduate combines love of animals, passion for public health for career in veterinary medicine

Alex Karp found an intersectional topic he was passionate about for his senior honors thesis. Looking to incorporate animals into a public health project, he researched the impacts of pets on their owners' overall health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

UofSC alumna guides employer’s gift to Center for Civil Rights History and Research

Exercise science alumna Kelly Adams, managing director of state government and regulatory affairs for the energy infrastructure company Williams, was instrumental in her employer’s gift of $1.5 million to the Center for Civil Rights History and Research.

May graduate studies exercise science to prepare for career in medicine

An aspiring physician, Ana Jukic wanted a major that allowed her to learn about the human body, especially while engaged in physical activity. She chose exercise science as the best fit for her career goals while also including extremely interesting classes.

Athletic training graduate plans to be role model to students with new position at SC high school

After her graduation next month, Katrina Linenko will be kicking off her career with her dream job as an assistant athletic trainer at Chapin High School, where she will also teach sports medicine.

Master's student to serve bilingual children with language/literacy challenges as speech-language pathologist

Emily Fisher plans to work in local schools as a speech-language pathologist specializing with bilingual children who experience literacy/language difficulties. It's a role not many can fill, but one that she's been preparing for over the past seven years.

Staff Spotlight: Megan Byers

Since Byers joined the team, she has helped OSA expand the Dementia Dialogues® program from two states and 50 instructors to six states and more than 120 certified instructors. They've also expanded access by offering the program online.

Jennifer Fillo applies relationship perspective to challenges faced by military populations and groups affected by substance use disorders

Between her K01 project on the influence processes among heavy drinking couples and working with military populations on service-related stress, Fillo aims to inform intervention leveraging the influence of close others to support health behavior change.

I Am Public Health: Ronald Willis

Master's student pursues second career in environmental health sciences to address the impacts of human behaviors on the environment.

Assistant professor Minji Kim studies health communication...and practices it

Kim studies the impact of marketing and counter-marketing messages so she can advance tobacco control and cessation. She also has interests in the promotion of healthy eating and physical activities as well as COVID-19 testing.

Children's physical activity drops sharply during transition from elementary to high school

Researchers from the Department of Exercise Science and the Children's Physical Activity Research Group have completed research examining the age-related changes in physical activity that occur as children transition from elementary to high school.

Alumna leads state, nation in efforts to combat substance use disorders

As director of the South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services, alumna Sara Goldsby (MPH in HSPM & MSW, 2015) and her team team fight the opioid epidemic in three main ways: prevention, treatment and recovery.

Center for Community Health Alignment to provide training, technical assistance to community health worker programs addressing COVID-19

Already known for their training, capacity-building and technical assistance services, the Center has recently been awarded a $2.3 million grant to offer technical assistance (e.g., database development/training) to community health worker programs nationwide.

Two Arnold School faculty members win research services awards

Communication sciences and disorders (COMD) associate professor Roozbeh Behroozmand and epidemiology professor Susan Steck have been selected to receive service awards from the Office of the Vice President for Research.

Research suggests poor oral health may predict lower cognition among older adults

Funded by an NIH grant, the findings are some of the first to be reported from the study. The researchers found that older adults (ages 60+) with poor oral health were more likely to have lower cognition than their counterparts.

Sam Noblet wins Technical Support Staff Award from Office of the Vice President for Research's inaugural staff recognition program

The Office of the Vice President for Research has selected project coordinator and two-time Arnold School alumnus Sam Noblet as one of the inaugural recipients of the Exceptional Research Service Awards.

New study helps participants lose weight through free, remote 12-month program

Just months after receiving $3.4 million from the National Institutes of Health to add cultural relevance to the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, nutrition and mHealth researcher Brie Turner-McGrievy has been awarded an additional $3.2 million from the same agency.

Staff Spotlight: Lumi Bakos

In addition to supporting faculty with pre-award (including the 350 proposals they submit each year) and post-award activities at the Arnold School, Bakos is currently serving as the senior advisor to the interim Vice President for Research.

New COMD assistant professor Abigail Hogan focuses on anxiety, autism and how they impact communication

More than five years into her tenure at Carolina, Hogan is a key member of a growing group of UofSC researchers committed to understanding neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., autism spectrum disorder).

I Am Public Health: Anja Zgodic

Doctoral candidate studies biostatistics with a focus on high-dimensional data and longitudinal data analysis so she can join a biotech startup as a scientist creating products that improve people's lives.

Study sheds light on age-related vulnerabilities faced by women who carry FMR1 premutation

Communication sciences and disorders associate professor Jessica Klusek has led a study that offers new insights into the array of age-related symptoms and disorders that may affect women who carry the premutation allele of the FMR1 gene.

Exercise science faculty awarded grant to improve Parkinson's care through physical therapy

Exercise science/physical therapy faculty Alicia Flach and Elizabeth Regan will use the Parkinson's Foundation grant to build on the education and exercise support provided to improve exercise access for the SC Parkinson's disease community.

Melissa Nolan awarded $5.4 million, health policy fellowship to continue fighting COVID-19, vector-borne diseases and the disparities they create

The team will assess community buy-in for at-home COVID-19 testing, intended use and self-reporting of results, perceptions of at-home testing for minority, rural and hard-to-reach populations, and testing performance of at-home diagnostics.

Public health student Gurujjal Roopra runs for student body president

The Daily Gamecock introduces the four student body president candidates, including third-year public health student Gurujjal Roopra, who hopes to join the ranks of two other recent Arnold School presidents: Taylor Wright and Ross Lordo.

Eric Vejerano receives NSF CAREER Award to investigate atmospheric sources of persistent free radicals

CAREER is a highly competitive program that the National Science Foundation awards to junior faculty and includes more than $600K in funding over a five-year period from the Division of Chemistry's Environmental Chemical Sciences Program.

Study assesses geographic health care access among minoritized groups

Research conducted by investigators at the Rural and Minority Health Research Center and led by its director, epidemiology associate professor Jan Eberth, has been featured in a special Health Affairs issue on Racism & Health.

Exercise science students win scholarship awards from National Strength and Conditioning Association Foundation

Alexa Chandler (Ph.D. in Exercise Science) won the Women's Scholarship, Blaine Lints (Ph.D. in Exercise Science) won the Minority Scholarship and Caroline Vincenty (M.S. in Exercise Science) won the Challenge Scholarship.

UofSC bolsters relationship with National Academies by fostering faculty connections

Donald Mattison has joined the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, but his primary role has a university-wide focus. He was recruited to lend his expertise in working with leading authorities in health/medicine, sciences and engineering.

Alan Decho named Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science

Fellowship in the American Association for the Advancement of Science is a lifetime honor that dates back to 1874 and includes fellows such as W.E.B. Dubois, Ellen Ochoa, Maria Mitchell and Thomas Edison.

Staff Spotlight: Melissa Bair

In 2010, her position began with managing sponsored awards for three highly funded faculty members in the Department of Exercise Science. Over the past 12 years, Bair's responsibilities have grown to include all research funds as well as department funds.

2021-2022 SPARC Graduate Research Grants awarded to 9 Arnold School graduate students

Graduate students from across the Arnold School have earned 2021-2022 SPARC Graduate Research Grants from the UofSC Office of the Vice President for Research to fund individual scholarship initiatives.

Researchers study effectiveness of new nutrition labeling practices

Jim Thrasher, professor of health promotion, education, and behavior (HPEB), and Rachel Davis, associate professor of HPEB, have won a four-year $2.4 million grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

I Am Public Health: Blaine Lints

Endurance/strength athlete and former Navy SEAL pursues Ph.D. from No. 1 program in the nation to improve human performance for tactical populations.

UofSC sport science programs continually rank No. 1

The ranking recognizes the combined excellence of the Arnold School of Public Health's exercise science and athletic training programs and the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management’s sport and entertainment management program.

4 UofSC researchers chosen as AAAS fellows

UofSC highlights the microbiology contributions of environmental health sciences professor and associate dean of research Alan Decho, who is one of four UofSC researchers to be elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Four Arnold School doctoral students win 2022 Breakthrough Graduate Scholar awards

Dipro Bose, Kyndall Dye-Braumuller, Allison Lewis and Tianyue Mi claimed four of these prestigious honors, which are given to students based on their classroom excellence, research/scholarship contributions and potential for future success.

Arnold School alumnus Graham Adams awarded Order of the Palmetto

Graham Adams, a 2000 graduate of the MPH and Ph.D. in Health Services Policy and Management programs and CEO for the South Carolina Office of Rural Health, has been recognized with the state's highest civilian honor.

Christine Pellegrini named Breakthrough Star by Office of the Vice President for Research

Exercise science assistant professor Christine Pellegrini is one of just 13 early-career faculty members across the university to receive the 2022 Breakthrough Star Award from the UofSC Office of the Vice President for Research.

Three Arnold School researchers win 2022 Breakthrough Leadership in Research Awards

Arnold School professors Michael Beets (Exercise Science), Sara Wilcox (Exercise Science) and Jiajia Zhang (Epidemiology and Biostatistics) have claimed three of just five spots awarded by the Office of the Vice President for Research to the most elite researchers across the university.

NIH funds new study on using resilience approaches to combat HIV stigma

Researchers at the South Carolina SmartState Center for Healthcare Quality will use a $3 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to determine whether a resilience-based approach can mitigate the negative effects of HIV-related stigma.

Staff Spotlight: Sandy Besley

Besley has been a helper throughout her entire 26-year career - all of which has taken place within the UofSC system. She began her tenure at the Aiken campus, where she had earned a degree in interdisciplinary studies, as a fiscal technician.

2022 Breakthrough Award honorees represent the best in UofSC research

Arnold School faculty and students have been honored with eight of the 2022 Breakthrough Research Awards! Bestowed by the UofSC Office of the Vice President for Research, these awards are designed to celebrate excellent researchers at every career level.

Recent alumnus kicks off five-year plan as Rotary Global Scholar followed by return to UofSC to study medicine

Dawson graduated in May of 2021 with the UofSC Outstanding Senior Award in hand and a $50,000 Rotary Ambassadorial Global Grant to earn a Master of Public Health at the University of Cape Town in South Africa.

Arnold School paper included in top 10 list of 2021 COVID-19 research

NEJM Journal Watch has included a paper led by Xueying Yang and Xiaoming Li in their top 10 list of 2021 COVID-19 research stories. The researchers found that certain groups of people living with HIV have worse COVID-19 outcomes.

Arnold School further bolsters childhood obesity prevention efforts by welcoming Elizabeth Adams

Elizabeth Adams has joined the Arnold School as an assistant professor in the Department of Exercise Science and a faculty affiliate with the Research Center for Child Well-Being.

I Am Public Health: Katie Lynn

Epidemiology doctoral student gains expertise in neglected tropical illnesses, particularly Chagas disease and arbovirus, and pitches in on COVID-19 response/prevention efforts as an infectious disease researcher.

Arnold School of Public Health