2016 PHSA Officers: Leah Reish (President), Meghan Meadows (Vice President), Stephanie Modert (Secretary), Victoria Liddle (Treasurer), Obrenka Thompson (Social Action Chair), and Ashlyn Cahill (Advocacy Committee Chair)

Harvard Professors will Discuss Health and the Global Environment: The School of Public Health hosted the seminar presentation "The Harvard Center for Health and the Global Environment as an Agent for Change" by Drs. John (Jack) Spengler and Gary Adamkiewicz. This visit was sponsored by the JPB-Harvard Environmental Health Fellowship Program granted by the JPB Foundation and managed by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Chunrong Jia, Associate Professor of Environmental Health in School of Public Health, University of Memphis, is currently a fellow in this program.

Tiger Blue Goes Green 2016: Spearheaded by the School of Public Health in concert with the Herff College of Engineering and the Fogelman College of Business and Economics, was the University of Memphis' annual event to promote eco-responsibility and environmental sustainability. The event took place on Tuesday, September 27 in the Student Plaza from 10 am - 2 pm. 2016's theme was "Sustainable Moves," highlighting our new partnership with Tiger Sports and Athletics. This event featured a Memphis Healthy U activity, with the Pom Squad leading us in dance moves! There was over 40 exhibits from the community and the U of M! For more information, please contact Dr. Marian Levy.

September: Childhood Obesity Awareness Month: Dr. Brook Harmon does her part to bring awareness to childhood obesity by partnering with The Memphis Conference of the United Methodist Church. Her program, the Living Healthy Summer Camp, consists of a weeklong camp focusing on empowering children to become healthier through engaging them in cooking healthy meals as well as physical activity. In addition to camp, families are encouraged to maintain healthy eating habits and healthy lifestyles by completing weekly take home challenges and attending family sessions focused on culinary skills, physical activity, and health education. Dr. Gerhild Ullmann works as the Project Director alongside Principal Investigator, Dr. Ward, with the FitKids program. Memphis FitKids is a web-based tool, designed to address the epidemic of childhood obesity in the mid-south. This initiative encourages healthy eating and promotes physical activity. Everyone can access FitKids through their personal computer or iPad, or at FitKids kiosks in the community (at the Memphis Public Libraries, the Pink Palace Family Museum, the YMCA, etc.). Using FitKids is easy - parents can take a free brief survey that provides a report with personalized recommendations on how to make lifestyle changes to reduce risk and support healthy behaviors. The program also includes an interactive map of healthy resources in the greater Memphis community. You can like the Memphis FitKids Facebook page or visit the FitKids website for more information about these wonderful programs.

SPH and Nursing Welcome Dr. Alisa Haushaulter to UofM: Deans Lisa Klesges and Lin Zhan are hosted a reception with the new Shelby County Health Department Director on Friday, March 18 at the Community Health Building, Room 1610. Dr. Haushalter was appointed by Shelby County Mayor Mark H. Luttrell, Jr. and Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner Dr. John Dreyzehner, and began serving as director on January 16.

2016 Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Award: A $250,000 grant from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) has been awarded to the Methodist Healthcare Foundation, the University of Memphis and the West Canter Center to engage patients, researchers and healthcare providers in reducing breast cancer disparities in the Mid-South. Dr. Paige Powell, assistant professor in the division of Health Systems, Management and Policy, and Cynthia Tankersley, director of care support services, will lead the project. Please click here to learn more about this project.

Fulbright Scholarship awarded to Dr. Ken Ward: Dr. Ken Ward, professor and director of the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences, has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship for the 2016 Spring semester. He will be a visiting scholar at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, where he will collaborate on research and training activities related to smoking cessation in patients with chronic medical conditions.

Dr. Brook Harmon receives award from American Heart Association: The Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Council of the American Heart Association has selected Dr. Harmon's paper "Associations of key diet-quality indexes with mortality in the Multiethnic Cohort: the Dietary Patterns Methods Project" as one of the most impactful publications in 2015 in support of their mission. The publication will be highlighted throughout the EPI/Lifestyle 2016 Scientific Sessions in Phoenix, AZ March 1-4. Dr. Brook Harmon is an assistant professor in the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences in the School of Public Health.

NIH/NIAid R01 AAFA Investigator Grants Awarded to Hongmei Zhang and Her Research Team: Dr. Hongmei Zhang, associate professor in the Division of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Environmental Health and coordinator of the Biostatistics Program at the University of Memphis School of Public Health, has been awarded an R01 grant by the National Institute of Allergy and Infections Diseases (NIAID), with a preliminary study funded by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) for the study of epigenetic methylation and the gender-switch in adolescent asthma.

Doctoral Student Receives Travel Scholarship: Adam Alexander, a doctoral student in Social and Behavioral Sciences, was recently awarded the 2016 Health Disparities Network Travel Scholarship from the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco to attend their national conference in in Chicago, Illinois. This award supports researchers who are conducting tobacco research with minority and underserved populations. Adam presented his poster titled, "Diet and physical activity differences between waterpipe smokers and non-smokers in Aleppo, Syria" at the conference.

MPH student to present at 2016 meeting of AAAAI: Orpita Nilormee's abstract "Maternal DNA Methylation of TH17 Cytokine Genes in Second Half of Pregnancy Changes with Parity" has been accepted for oral presentation at the 2016 annual meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI). Ms. Nilormee will present her research at this national conference in March 2016 in Los Angeles. MPH student named to Memphis 20<30: MPH student Eddie Wiley was recently featured in the Memphis Flyer as one of the 20 people under 30 making a difference in the Memphis area.

SPH is now a member of the AIA Design and Health Research Consortium: The School of Public Health, in partnership with the UofM Department of Architecture, has been named by the Architects Foundation, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) as a member of the AIA Design & Health Research Consortium. The consortium helps translate research on design's influence on public health into architectural practice for the public, policy makers, and design and public health professionals.