Opiaah Jeffers M.P.H. ’21 hadn’t even finished her first shift as a COVID-19 contact tracer for the Prince George’s County Health Department on Friday when the complexity of safely restarting public life in the state of Maryland hit her.

Financial stresses can squash a relationship as thoroughly as stomping on a Valentine’s box of chocolate—and Emily Garcia’s* metaphorical box was looking more than a little crumpled. 

Garcia and her husband, who works in finance and handled the money in their marriage, had begun to argue when finances got tight. 

“With two completely different cultures, nationalities and backgrounds, he had his way of dealing with money, I had my way,” García said. “And it just got out of control.” 

Julia Steinberg, assistant professor of family science at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, published a commentary about a new study examining women’s feelings five years following an abortion in Social Science & Medicine.

Jocelyn R. Smith Lee, PhD ‘13, who is assistant professor of human development and family studies at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for her project “Disrupting Dehumanizing Narratives of Black Men in Poverty.” 

A team of researchers, including School of Public Health's Jennifer D. Roberts, received a National Science Foundation RAPID grant to study COVID-19 risk perceptions and behaviors.

Kinesiology Professor Jae Shim is partnering with University of Maryland engineering professor Derek Paley to study how e-scooter users adapt to urban infrastructures. 

The research is funded through a new Maryland Transportation Institute (MTI) Seed Grant designed to spur collaborative, interdisciplinary research across multiple colleges at the University.

“We’re so afraid of aging that we begin to devalue ourselves and others with each passing year,” Isabel Tom, an MPH graduate from the Department of Behavioral and Community Health, wrote. “The phrase '30 years old' incites panic. Seniors live in separate communities and barely interact with young people, while middle-aged people spend millions each year on anti-aging products.”

But what if we have it all wrong? 

Infant mortality rates in Maryland are highest for African American and rural infants, and researchers at the University of Maryland School of Public Health are helping the state determine why.

Faculty from the Department of Family Science and the Maryland Center for Health Equity are embarking on a year-long study for the Maryland Health Care Commission analyzing risk factors for infant mortality, examining the use of community health workers and pregnancy navigators and cataloging what innovative health programs already exist.

This story was first published on the Maryland Today website on Tuesday, May 19, 2020.

During the COVID-19 crisis, children can be leaders in modeling effective health behaviors for their peers—and adults.

When the U.S. Surgeon General, Luther Terry, announced that smoking was bad for our health on January 11, 1964, it was a big deal.

In an episode of the History this Week podcast, University of Maryland School of Public Health Dean and Professor Boris Lushniak sheds light on the historical, economic and social context behind the announcement and it’s ramifications.