The Southern Partnership for Health Equity Research
The Southern Partnership for Health Equity Research (SPHERE) is an effort to establish collaborative relationships with other research groups in the Southern U.S. focused on the elimination of health inequities.
Bettina M Beech
Population Health Sciences, Pediatrics and Family Medicine Professor
Dean of the Bower School of Population Health
University of Mississippi
Bettina M. Beech, DrPH, MPH, is Dean of the Bower School of Population Health and Professor, Population Health Sciences, Pediatrics and Family Medicine at the University of Mississippi. Her research focuses on the role of nutritional factors in the prevention of obesity and type 2 diabetes, with emphasis on child health disparities. Her research integrates concepts in public health, health disparities, diabetes, obesity prevention and treatment, cancer prevention and control, and pediatric/adolescent health issues. She has been a member of the Advisory Board for the Primary Care Network for the Treatment of Adolescent Obesity, the Disparities Subcommittee of the National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Expert Panel to advise the Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH) on their future initiatives, and a 2010 Institute of Medicine (IOM) Panel on Early Childhood Obesity Policies.
Gene H. Brody
Child and Family Development Professor, Rollins School of Public Health, Research Professor
Director of the Center for Family Research,University of Georgia
University of Georgia, Emory University
Gene H. Brody, Ph.D., is Regents’ Professor of Child and Family Development, Director of the Center for Family Research at the University of Georgia, and Research Professor at Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health. His research centers on the study of family, community, and genetic contributions to child and adolescent development. This research has supported the development and evaluation of family-centered prevention programs among rural African American families. He has identified family and community processes that forecast academic, emotional, and behavioral competence in children and adolescents living in stressful environments. He received the Reuben Hill Award from the National Council on Family Relations, and was invited to participate in the White House Conference on Helping America’s Youth. Dr. Brody was inducted into the University of Georgia Family and Consumer Sciences Honor Hall of Recognition.
Giselle Corbie-Smith
Social Medicine Professor
Director of the Center for Health Equity Research
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Giselle Corbie-Smith, MD, MSc, is the Kenan Distinguished Professor of Social Medicine, Director of the Center for Health Equity Research, Deputy Director for Engagement Programs for the North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute (NC TraCS Institute), and Co-Director of the Program on Health Disparities through the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Her empirical work has focused on the methodological, ethical, and practical issues faced by mandated inclusion of minorities in research and the need for this research to address disparities in health. Her recent work has focused on developing methods and interventions to engage minority and underserved communities in research. She has focused on interventions to increase minority participation in clinical research and the use of engaged research methods to address the issues of most concern.
Chanita Hughes-Halbert
Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Professor
Hollings Cancer Center Cancer Control Program Leader
Medical University of South Carolina
Chanita Hughes-Halbert, Ph.D., holds the AT&T Distinguished Endowed Chair in Cancer Equity, and is Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Hollings Cancer Center Cancer Control Program Leader at the Medical University of South Carolina. She is a nationally recognized expert in cancer prevention and control among diverse populations. Her research program is aimed at identifying sociocultural, psychological, and environmental determinants of cancer prevention and control, translating this information into interventions and disseminating strategies into clinical trials and community settings. Currently, she is examining community-based strategies for increasing access to, and enhancing the quality of, precision medicine strategies among medically underserved populations, with a particular focus on minority men. She is also a member of the Board of Scientific Advisors at the National Cancer Institute.