Supporting Atlanta-area Schools COVID-19 Reopening plans

Drs. Lauren Christiansen-Lindquist and Dabney P. Evans are seeking to hire a first-year MPH or MSPH student to assist with a pilot grant aimed at enhancing, implementing and evaluating a K-8 school reopening plan in Atlanta. Given that this work involves substantial community engagement, it is well-suited for an APE. The student will work under the supervision of Drs. Christiansen-Lindquist and Evans to provide technical support to The GLOBE Academy (GLOBE) – a dual language immersion public charter school serving K-8 students in the DeKalb County School District. The school serves approximately 1,000 students across two campuses located near Briarcliff Road: Lower Campus services grades K-3 while Upper Campus serves grades 4-8. In August 2021, GLOBE opened its doors for in-person instruction for the first time in 12 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In Summer 2021, Drs. Christiansen-Lindquist and Evans worked with a current MPH student to develop school protocols and establish a school Health and Safety Playbook, utilizing guidance from CDC, the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE), and DeKalb County School District (DCSD). This playbook provides a foundation for a return to operations at The GLOBE Academy campuses under an in-person teaching model and includes information regarding both health and safety information as well as academic instruction. While the Playbook has guided much of the school’s response to COVID-19, it needs updated standard operating procedures (SOPs) to reflect the evolving pandemic landscape and to prepare for Fall 2022. In addition to enhancing GLOBE’s health and safety protocols, the candidate will maintain GLOBE’s COVID-19 Data Dashboard with constant surveillance of COVID-19 cases on campus and in the broader community. It is vital that the candidate engage with pre-established community partners to assess the need for COVID-19 testing and vaccination clinics, while supporting all other COVID-19 related needs of school administrators and nurses.

Job Responsibilities

· Review current Health and Safety Playbook and identify areas for enhancement as it relates to:

o Operationalizing protocols (quarantine/isolation/case reporting/contact tracing)

o Communication plans

· Develop GLOBE-specific communications on:

o Messaging around important dates/holidays/school events when COVID-19 exposure is likely to increase

o Answering questions submitted by community members for the weekly newsletter

o Resources for testing/vaccination in DeKalb County

o Prevention messaging o Maintain and enhance GLOBE’s COVID-19 Data Dashboard

· When school is in session, make periodic visits to GLOBE campuses to collect data on adherence to mitigation factors and meet with GLOBE stakeholders

· When school is in session, coordinate and manage weekly testing clinics and facilitate data sharing between school nurses and administrators

· Monitor an email account specifically dedicated to addressing COVID-related questions and concerns at GLOBE

· Meet with GLOBE stake holders to identify ways to best support the community and modify plans, as needed

Requirements

· 1st Year MPH/MSPH student in the Rollins School of Public Health

· Strong organizational and communication (both written and oral) skills

· Experience with health communication

· Understanding of respiratory disease transmission and case management

· Quantitative data collection and analysis experience preferred

· Students with a REAL award are preferred, but this is not required

Length of Commitment

This position will begin in late April 2022 and continue at least through December 2022. If funding is available, there may be an opportunity to extend through Spring 2023. We anticipate a time commitment of 10-15 hours per week.

To Apply Interested applicants should complete this google form, where you will be asked to attach an updated resume.

APE and Thesis Opportunities

Faculty Contact: Julie Gazmararian, PhD, MPH; jagazma [at] emory [dot] edu

If interested in any of these possibilities, please send me your resume and indicate what project you may be interested in.

SDOH – COVID-19 and the U.S. Veterans Population. There is clear evidence that individuals of Black and Asian race and Hispanic ethnicity are more likely to be infected with SARS-CoV-2, compared to those of White race. Suggested underlying mechanisms explaining these disparities include comorbidities, access to healthcare resources, social determinants of health (SDOH) and occupational risk. However, data regarding both SDOH and comorbidities are often not available for the general population. The Veteran population in the United States serves as a viable racially/ethnically diverse population to study with access to extensive SDOH and health related information. This study, “Contributions of Social Determinants of Health to Susceptibility and Severity ofCOVID-19 across the U.S.”, is examining data from a retrospective cohort of 4,547,853 Veterans who received primary care at the VA in 2019. Detailed information about SDOH characteristics, comorbidities and COVID testing, treatment and outcomes have been obtained to achieve the following objectives: 1) identify key SDOH constructs that influence Veterans’ health; and 2) examine SDOH factors influencing COVID testing, treatment and outcomes in the national VA population. The long term goal of this project is to create policies and practices that mitigate the adverse impact of SDOH on health outcomes among Veterans – and the US population in general.

Opportunities:

1. Summer APE: Assist with finalizing and submitting manuscripts; grant writing

2. MPH student thesis project

3. PhD student RA position

4. Fall REAL position

Evaluation of the Relationship between Physical Activity and Academic Achievement in Georgia. While the health benefits of physical activity are well-known and a public health priority, most youth in the United States do not meet the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity. Serving more than 95% of U.S. children ages 5-17, the school environment offers a valuable opportunity to engage students in physical activity through the day, but is limited by physical education programs that are often characterized by insufficient curricular, time, financial and staffing allocations. Given that academics are the clear priority for limited school time and resources, school interventions focused on increasing physical activity during the school day may be more successful if supported by evidence that increased physical activity ( PA ) improves academic achievement. The overall goal of this project is to determine the relationship between physical activity, aerobic fitness and academic achievement among elementary students in Georgia.

Opportunities:

1. Summer APE: Assist with finalizing and submitting manuscripts

2. MPH student thesis project

3. PhD student RA position

4. Fall REAL position

HealthMPowers Early Childcare Education Program. Providing evaluation and data analysis for Early Childhood Education center program to improve nutrition and physical activity of preK age children. Job duties include: working with HealthMPowers staff to manage survey data collection from child care staff and parents; assisting in preparation of annual report to HealthMPowers; managing data cleaning, coding, data checks and analysis for assessment and survey data; assisting with ongoing documentation of methodology; assisting in the development of center and overall child care reports, including creating charts. May also assist with grant writing/funding opportunities; and with conducting analyses and writing a manuscript for peer-review publication.

Opportunities:

1. Summer APE

2. Fall REAL position

Sleep and Education/Health Outcomes. Education and health disparities by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status (SES) are well documented among adolescents. Sleep, a health behavior, may be a fundamental mechanism contributing to both education and health outcomes. Teenagers are the least likely of any age group to get sufficient sleep and there are racial/ethnic and SES disparities in sleep duration, timing, and quality. Multilevel (individual, family, neighborhood) stressors are common among adolescents and may also contribute to disparities in sleep, education and health. The goals of our project, Effects of Sleep on Education and Health Outcomes Among Adolescents, are to (1) use objective measures of sleep to assess whether racial/ethnic or SES disparities in sleep duration, timing and quality among teenagers affect education and health outcomes; (2) explore the contribution of multilevel stressors to disparities in sleep and education disparities. Our prospective study of an ethnically, racially and economically diverse sample of adolescents will enable us to investigate the temporal relationships among sleep, education, and health outcomes. Results from this study have the potential for identifying and targeting sleep, a modifiable health behavior, as a mechanism of education and health disparities.

Opportunities:

1. Summer APE: Assist with finalizing and submitting manuscripts; grant writing

2. MPH student thesis project

3. PhD student RA position

4. Fall REAL position

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee Graduate Assistant Position

The Department of Epidemiology’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee (DEDEIC) seeks to hire a paid student assistant to support the committee’s ongoing work.  Please see the position details below and apply using this link by March 18^th.     

Title: DEI Graduate Assistant 

Responsibilities: Provide support to the committee for work conducted on DEDEIC objectives and reporting.  Integrate information from multiple sources in order to create reports for the committee and relevant stakeholders.  Assist with communications to increase and maintain the visibility of DEDEIC.  Attend monthly committee meetings.  Review and preliminary analysis of relevant data (admissions, student feedback, faculty hiring processes).  Provide information to and assists the committee in research of relevant policies and trainings.  Research relevant best practices in diversity, equity, and inclusion.   

Qualifications 

·       Priority given to EPI PhD students and EPI/GLEPI first-year MPH/MSPH students 

·       Enthusiasm for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion work 

·       Must be comfortable working on multiple projects simultaneously 

·       Skilled at managing projects and interpreting data 

·       Ability to work both autonomously and with a team 

·       Excellent written and verbal communication skills 

More Details 

·       This is a paid position (can be REAL and non-REAL is okay too!) 

·       10 hour per week minimum with potential for 10-15 hours per week 

·       Starts immediately and continues through summer, with the option to continue next academic year 

·       Can work remotely during the summer if you will not be in Atlanta 

·       Apply here by March 18^th

GRA Position, Emory School of Medicine

Part time position  (Spring-Summer-Fall)

Emory Department of Family and Preventive Medicine seeks a Masters or Doctoral trainee candidate who will assist in recruitment for pilot clinical trials and data analyses for larger longitudinal databases. The research questions are focused on interventions for patients with heart disease and dementia. The research efforts are vital to improving patient care, public health, and reduce health disparities. The position will last one year and can be extended based on performance.

Work Schedule, Hours, FTE, Salary Range

·         FTE: Hourly

·         Location: Rollins School of Public Health (Remote work is acceptable)

·         Job Type: Data Analytical Research, Study coordination, Calling study participants. 

·         atleast 8-10 hours per week (more hours during winter and summer break, if requested)

QUALIFICATIONS

·         Bachelor’s degree, preferably in biological sciences, health sciences, or life sciences or equivalent combination of education and experience required;

·         Prior experience in data analyses is preferred.

·         Experience in scientific manuscript writing will be important to participate in publications. 

·         Understands and adheres to Emory School of Medicine and Emory Clinic’s compliance standards as they appear in the Compliance Policy, Code of Conduct and Conflict of Interest Policy.

If interested please contact Ambar Kulshreshtha at akulshr [at] emory [dot] edu. 

A full time position is also available. Details can be accessed here.

About Emory University School of Medicine

The Emory University School of Medicine is a leading institution with the highest standards in education, biomedical research, and patient care. Emory University School of Medicine has 560 students and trains 1,209 residents and fellows in 98 accredited programs. The school has 88 MD/PhD students in one of 40 NIH-sponsored Medical Scientist Training Programs. Some of these students are in a joint program with Georgia Institute of Technology, with which the medical school shares a biomedical engineering department ranked second in the country by U.S. News & World Report. The medical school also offers a joint MD/MSCR (master’s in clinical research) degree, an MD/MPH degree with public health, and an MD/MA in bioethics with Emory’s Laney Graduate School. Dual programs with law (juris master) and business (MBA) also are available. Some 258 medical faculty also train predoctoral bioscience researchers in one or more of nine programs in the Graduate Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences in the graduate school.

HealthPREP TA Position

Program Overview
The Health Professions Readiness Education Program (HealthPREP) at Emory is an 8-week summer program (May 30 – July 22, 2022) facilitated by Emory School of Medicine (SOM) in partnership with the Rollins School of Public Health (RSPH). HealthPREP provides resources to undergraduate and graduate scholars from underrepresented backgrounds who are interested in training to enhance skills for competitive admissions in health-related graduate programs.

Job Summary
HealthPREP is looking to hire five (5) RSPH graduate students from different departments to serve as teaching assistants (TAs) and mentors who will deliver a public health curriculum to HealthPREP learners. The teaching assistants’ primary responsibilities involve instructional engagement and mentorship. HealthPREP TAs are expected to foster a supportive learning environment in which students are encouraged to increase their knowledge and learn to exhibit behaviors of future healthcare professionals and leaders. HealthPREP TAs will receive a stipend award to cover approximately 10-15 hours per week beginning in mid March through the end of July 2022.

General Position Responsibilities
• Refine, instruct, and lead specialized educational and research activities with HealthPREP learners
• Provide coaching, mentoring, and leadership to HealthPREP learners
• Ensure curriculum activities are effectively implemented
• Demonstrate professionalism through preparedness, dress, and communication
• Interact with HealthPREP learners to facilitate a collaborative, positive, and engaging environment

Specific Duties/ Responsibilities
• Required work hours: Program preparation will occur from March – May. Curriculum implementation will occur from June 1 – July 20, 2022, on Mondays and Wednesdays, from 8 am- 12 pm.
• Record HealthPREP learner attendance during each session
• Before the program begins, from March 23 to April 7, HealthPREP TAs will have the opportunity to work alongside the HealthPREP Program Manager at the School of Medicine to interview applicants and select the 25 HealthPREP learners.
• Additional responsibilities and work hours as assigned

Qualifications
• Prior experience working with historically underrepresented and/or minoritized populations or organizations (through research, work experience, or other internships). Qualified students from historically underrepresented and/or minoritized groups in health-related graduate and professional schools are highly encouraged to apply.
• Track record of teaching, training, curriculum development, and other classroom activities is preferred
• Ability to commit to work through end of July 2022
• Demonstrated academic success
• Exceptional leadership skills and ability to work effectively in a team
• Self-discipline, high professional and ethical standards
• Strong organizational skills
• Proficiency in communication and interpersonal skills

To Apply
If you are interested, please submit the following:
• Resume with Cover Letter
• Evidence of teaching, training or curriculum development is welcome

• Unofficial RSPH Transcript (can be requested and downloaded for free via OPUS)
• Letter of support from Dean’s Office, faculty member, academic advisor, or an individual who can attest to the candidate’s academic achievement. Letter of support may be submitted with application on 12Twenty, or sent directly to Dr. Veronica Gilliard (veronica [dot] gilliard [at] emory [dot] edu). Please use the email subject line: LOS for HealthPREP TA Applicant: YOUR NAME

Servant Leader Summer Internship, Apply by February 28

Students interested in learning about ethical leadership and community service are invited to apply to the Servant Leader Summer Internship program through Emory’s Center for Ethics.

The program provides students with an intensive and structured internship/service learning program; it requires a minimum of 270 hours of service and includes weekly class sessions focused on essential leadership and ethical skills.

Through their work and the classroom component, students learn about and reflect on ethical leadership and develop the practices necessary become such a leader. The internship program integrates the practical, intellectual and spiritual components of work while deepening students’ understandings of responsibility, service and vocation.

Participating students are placed in Atlanta-area nonprofit organizations, government agencies, and socially responsible businesses. Internship opportunities for summer 2022 include work with:

• Alliance Theatre
• Atlanta Harm Reduction Coalition
• Captain Planet Foundation
• Design Your Own Internship
• Emory Office of Sustainability Initiatives
• Emory Urban Health Initiative
• Georgia Innocence Project
• Global Growers Network
• Midtown Alliance
• New American Pathways Advancement Intern
• New American Pathways Economic Empowerment Intern
• Philanthropy Southeast
• Second Helpings Atlanta
• West Atlanta Watershed Alliance
• Wholesome Wave Georgia

The summer internship begins May 16 and continues through July 31. Participating interns receive a stipend.

All current, full-time Emory undergraduate, graduate and professional students are invited to apply (including Oxford College students and students graduating in May 2022). Applications for summer 2022 are due by Monday, Feb. 28. Apply here.

For more information, email Kristina Johnson (krjohn9 [at] emory [dot] edu) or visit the Servant Leader Summer Internship website.