News from the School of Public Health

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased risk factors for child maltreatment. A group of researchers, including Assistant Professor Elizabeth Aparicio in the University of Maryland School of Public Health, drafted a policy brief to urge policymakers to adapt existing child and family services and policies to ensure the safety, resilience, and overall well-being of vulnerable children and families in the face of increased stressors.

The Center for Health Literacy is asking African American and Hispanic adults to test a smartphone health app for personalized health information.

The app can help find information to prevent or manage common health conditions.

Here's how to participate:

• OWN an ANDROID phone
• Willing to download the app
• Use the app at least 15 minutes a week
• Attend 1 virtual orientation session

Participants will get:

Two experts in LGBTQ and young adult mental health, Dr. Jessica Fish (UMD SPH) and Dr. Stephen T. Russel (UT, Austin) describe the serious harms that LGBTQ youth experience from so-called “conversion therapy” efforts in a new editorial published in the American Journal of Public Health.

The School of Public Health is pleased to announce the members of the 2020-2021 Alumni Network Board.

With members spanning the spectrum of young professionals early their careers to experienced industry leaders, the board is comprised of greater Washington area alumni who are seeking to uphold the network’s mission to promote and support the school, encourage academic and professional excellence and facilitate career development for both current students and graduates while fostering and strengthening a lasting relationship between the school and its alumni.

Clara Richards wants young professionals to know that it’s okay to not have it all figured out. She’s experienced that herself and says it has made her stronger. She has dedicated herself to helping fellow millennials, who define themselves as creators and builders, to find community and create “expansive impact” through her social entrepreneurship project called The Community Cooperative. She feels this mission is even more important in the context of the coronavirus pandemic.

Mia Smith Bynum, an associate professor in the Department of Family Science, and her son Malcolm have been dreaming of adding a dog to their family but the timing never seemed quite right between teaching schedules and after-school activities. When the COVID-19 pandemic led to shelter-in-place and remote work and school plans, it offered Mia and Malcolm the quality time needed to welcome and acclimate a new dog into their home and establish a routine and care network that can evolve as in-person work and school resume.