Spring 2024

Spring is springing slowly and sporadically in the High Country, as we are reminded of the regional reputation of hosting multiple seasons in any given day. To place a representative picture at the top of this newsletter would have required multiple images, none of which would be very accurate in a few hours. Yet academia powers on. Faculty may be turning on heaters one moment and fans the next, but their labs are active...whether that lab is located in a room in a building or it's out in one of the many areas where we learn, serve and collaborate with others.

This newsletter serves to let our partners throughout the High Country, North Carolina and beyond get a glimpse of some of the great scholarly work that is happening in the Beaver College of Health Sciences and the Appalachian Institute for Health and Wellness. We appreciate you taking the time to read and listen.

And you can help even more through your active participation! Many research projects conducted by faculty and their students involve human subjects/participants. I'd like to encourage you as members of our greater community to take a look at some of the exciting research projects that are active right now and need volunteers. You can review current projects and see if you qualify for them at: https://healthsciences.appstate.edu/research/volunteers.

Or scan the QR Code you see in this section. Thank you for taking a look and for supporting the advancement of new knowledge that can impact health and wellness for many.

There is a clear trail From Here to Health, and we appreciate your efforts to be a part it. Enjoy this edition of our newsletter and podcast.

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Dr. Leah Hamilton is a Professor in the Department of Social Work at Appalachian State University. She is currently working with close to 1.5 million dollars in external and internal grant funding; she has published one solo authored book with Palgrave MacMillan and co-authored a second book with NASW press; she has published 28 peer-reviewed articles in quality journals and 22 other articles in various other publications (with 5 more manuscripts under review); she has presented 47 papers and sessions nationally and internationally; she is a Faculty Affiliate of the Social Policy Institute of Washington University in St. Louis; she is a Senior Fellow of the Jain Family Institute; she is a Research Fellow of the Appalachian Institute for Health and Wellness here at App State; and her work has received media coverage in publications and broadcasts including The Atlantic, The New York Times, Marketplace, CNBC, PBS News Hour (a personal favorite of mine), National Public Radio (another favorite), the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and The Chicago Tribune. This level of publicity does not typically happen for faculty. However, Dr. Hamilton is not typical. Not only is she doing the hard work of conducting high quality research, publishing papers, presenting her work, and writing scholarly articles and books, she is doing work that has a significant and compelling impact on society. Her work focuses on how welfare policy prevents low-income families from reaching financial stability and explores alternative policies, such as universal basic income, that can alter the course of their lives. 

Some of Dr. Hamiltons recent funding was highlighted in our November 2023 issue, including: $582,855 for the evaluation of Creatives Rebuild New York and $50,000 from the Center for Science in the Public Interest for her work on In Her Hands. Please take the time to listen to her discuss her work in our podcast (link above).

Recent Grants in Health Sciences

Adam Hege was awarded $4,000 from Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) for an Innovations Partnerships Award to support the development and implementation of a conference titled, Understanding and Addressing Health Disparities in Rural Central and Southcentral Appalachia. The conference is in partnership with East Tennessee State University, Western Carolina University, UNC-Asheville, University of Tennessee, Wake Forest University, University of Kentucky, Appalachian Regional Commission, local health departments, and local health agencies.  It will take place on the campus of Appalachian State University in Leon Levine Hall of Health Sciences on May 20-21 with the goal of establishing sustainable partnerships for public health research and practice projects and the pursuit of external grant funding.

https://www.orau.org/index.html



Sydeena Isaacs and Amanda Hege have been selected and fully funded as awardees for three grant proposals to support a Watauga County Farm to Early Care Education (ECE) Collaborative. The grants include 1) Chancellor's Innovation Scholars Program 2023-2024, 2) CDC's State Physical Activity and Nutrition (SPAN) Program and 3) the Local Food Purchasing (LFP) Collaborative from the Center for Environmental Farming Solutions (CEFS). This project is in partnership with the Departments of Education and Sustainable Development, Lucy Brock Child Development Laboratory, Watauga Children's Council, High Country Food Hub, App State Farm, and Cooperative Extension. This interdisciplinary proposal aims to leverage Appalachian State University’s Lucy Brock Child Development Lab as a living laboratory to develop a sustainable and replicable, model farm-to-ECE program in Watauga County while supporting the local economy, improving farmer profitability, and creating a culture of health and wellness that extends beyond children to families, ECE teachers, childcare staff, and the High Country community. In addition, they will develop, conduct, and analyze a formative farm-to-ECE needs assessment and interest survey in Watauga, Ashe, Alleghany, and Avery counties to inform the expansion and replication of the model farm-to-ECE program beyond the funded project period. A farm-to-ECE program at Appalachian State University will be the first of its kind in Watauga County and only the second to date in western North Carolina. The intent is to develop a sustainable standard of practice model that can be replicated in other Early Care Education centers throughout the High Country and western North Carolina.

Jenny Womack was awarded funding from the Golden Leaf Foundation of North Carolina that will provide start-up funding for the new Master of Science in Occupational Therapy Program. $200,000 was awarded to the Appalachian State University Master of Science in Occupational Therapy Program, which welcomes its first students in August of this year.

Internal Funding

The following faculty were recently funded through mechanisms internal to Appalachian State University.

George Wolford, assistant professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, was awarded a Graduate Research Associate Mentoring (GRAM). Do motor synchrony games improve self-regulation in children with and without disabilities? This award provides financial support for a graduate student to be mentored by him as they work collaboratively on this research project.

Ashley Marshall, assistant professor in The Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, was awarded a Graduate Research Associate Mentoring (GRAM) Award. Ankle Sprain Research Across the Translational Research Spectrum: A Scoping Review. This award provides financial support for a graduate student to be mentored by her as they work collaboratively on this research project.

Heather Schier, assistant professor in the Department Nutrition and Health Care Management, was awarded a Scholarship of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (SDEI) grant. Her project is titled: Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Gender-Inclusive Training on Transgender Knowledge, Attitudes, Beliefs, and Comfort of Dietetic Interns (GENDIET).

Seven faculty projects in Health Sciences received funding from our University Research Council. The following faculty were awarded internal grants from Appalachian State’s University Research Council. These grants are awarded twice per year for up to $5,000.

Martie Thompson & Margaret Brown, Department of Public Health and Exercise Science: "Sexual Violence and Gender and Sexual Minorities at AppState."

Susan Lane, Department of Nursing: Learning Care of Diverse Populations Through 360-Virtual Reality Simulation: Qualitative Research Examining Nursing Students’ Experiences in Interpersonal and Clinical Therapeutic Relationships Post Simulation Training

Kelly Williams, Department of Social Work: "Improving Access to Preventive Healthcare Among Uninsured Adults in Northwestern North Carolina: Patient Perspectives on Barriers to Preventive Healthcare Services".

Heather Schier and Laurel Wentz, Department of Nutrition and Health Care Management: “Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Gender-Inclusive Training on Transgender Knowledge, Attitudes, Beliefs, and Comfort of Dietetic Interns (GENDIET)”

Sandi Lane, Department of Health Care Management (with student Bailee Ridlon). “An Examination of Student Perspectives of Careers in Aging Services and Faculty Perspectives of Teaching Topics on Aging.”

Jennifer Kurtz, Department of Public Health & Exercise Science and Laurel Wentz, Department of Nutrition and Health Care Management: “The Combined Effects of Quercetin and Ginger on Cycling Performance and Recovery Oxidative Stress and Inflammation.”

Amber Welborn, Department of Nursing, with faculty from Lehigh University & NC Weslyan University: “’Story Completion’ Methods Pilot.”



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HERE’S TO HEALTH PUBS

Kudos to these faculty for disseminating their research to the broader community of scholars through publications in some top-tiered journals. We did a bit of altering from the traditional referencing formats to highlight the names of our faculty.

Jayne D. Greenberg, Hans van der Mars, Thomas L. McKenzie, Becki Battista, Jamie F. Chriqui, Kelly Cornett, Kim C. Graber, Ben D. Kern, Jared A. Russell, Dianne S. Ward & Wesley J. Wilson (2024) The Role of Physical Education Within the National Physical Activity Plan, Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 95:2, 7-16, DOI:10.1080/07303084.2023.2291641

Jennifer Dalton, Trent Spaulding, Berghammer, A., Bandlamudi, K., Cazier, J. (2023). The impact of future employment prospects on the graduation rates of upper-class university stop out students. Accepted to Journal of Higher Education Management, American Association of University Administrators.

Brook Harmon, Nelson, J., West, N.T., Webb, B., Webster, K., Webster, T., Case, T., Leach, C. (2024). Establishing the Reliability and Validity of the Caring Factor Survey-Caring for Self among Protestant Clergy. Pastoral Psychology. doi.org/10.1007/s11089-023-01121-8

Adam Hege (2024). Adverse childhood experiences and cardiovascular disease implications: Implications for North Carolina and the need for an upstream approach. North Carolina Medical Journal, 85(1):37-41.

https://ncmedicaljournal.com/article/91428-adverse-childhood-experiences-and-cardiovascular-disease-risks-implications-for-north-carolina-and-the-need-for-an-upstream-approach

Sandi Lane, J., Liu, D., Rados, R. (2023) Post-Acute and Long-term Care Leaders' Perspectives on Leading During COVID-19. Journal of Applied Gerontology.42(11), p.2179-2188. doi.org/10.1177/07334648231188282

Sandi Lane, Maggie Sugg, Trent, Spaulding, T., Iyer, L., & Hege, A. (2022) Self-Reported Resilience of North Carolina Long-Term Care Organizations and Public Health Agencies in the midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction.82(9980):10337. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdrr.2022.103371.

Lane, S.J., Sugg, M., Spaulding, T.J., Hege, A., & Lackshmi Iyer. (2022) Southeastern United States Predictors of COVID-19 in Nursing Homes. Journal of Applied Geronotology. 41(7) p 1641-1650. https://doi.org/10.1177/07334648221082022

Ballew H, Markoulakis R, Paul Moore. (2023) Documentation of weights by clinical care staff in a rural, regional medical center. Topics in Clinical Nutrition 2023; 38(1):59-65.

Kyung-Min Kim, Joo-Sung Kim, Alan R. Needle. Soleus arthrogenic muscle inhibition following acute lateral ankle sprain correlates with symptoms and ankle disability but not with postural control, Journal of Sport and Health Science,2024,ISSN 2095-2546, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jshs.2024.02.005.

(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S209525462400022X)

Heather Schier, Chetty K, Garrity K, Westrick M, Copeland K, Miller A, Gunther C. (2023) A Narrative Review of Clinic-Community Food Provision Interventions Aimed at Improving Diabetes Outcomes Among Food-Insecure Adults: Examining the Role of Nutrition Education. Nutrition Reviews. https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuad125

Gunther C, Richards R, Jones B, Reicks M, Monroe-Lord L, Banna J, Hopkins L, Topham G, Ballejos M, Anderson A, Heather Schier, Lora K. (2023) Adolescent independent eating occasions, dietary intake, and parenting practices during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of parents and adolescents from low-income households. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. 55(9):634-643. doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2023.05.001

Hopkins L, Heather Schier, May L, Westrick M, O'Piela D, Melnyk BM, Smith L, Gunther C. Patterns of participation in summer programming among United States’ elementary children from low-income urban households: Results from the project SWEAT study. Preventive Medicine Reports. 2023;36:102475.

Lee BD, Bagatell N, Ridlehoover MK, Jenny Womack. Practitioner Perspectives on Occupation-Based Practice Across Varied Settings. OTJR: Occupational Therapy Journal of Research. 2024;0(0). doi:10.1177/15394492241226876

Lee BD, Bagatell N, Ridlehoover MK, Jenny Womack. Practitioner Perspectives on Occupation-Based Practice Across Varied Settings. OTJR: Occupational Therapy Journal of Research. 2024;0(0). doi:10.1177/15394492241226876

Rudman, D.L., Perkinson, M.A., Kantartzis, S., McGrath, C. Jenny Womack. & Barney, K.F. (in press). Building Age-Inclusive Communities. In Barney, K.F. & Perkinson, M. (Eds). Occupational therapy with aging adults. 2nd Edition: Elsevier

Tynecca Lynch & Clark, A. (2024). Exploring the perception of spirituality and sense of life satisfaction in adult men and women in rural Southern U.S. Applied Research in Quality of Life. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-024-10282-4

Brooke Towner, Robert Broce, Becki Battista, & Rich Christiana (2024). A forced shift: Effects and outcomes of online higher education physical activity courses. International Journal of Kinesiology in Higher Education, 8(1), 24-36. https://doi.org/10.1080/24711616.2023.2182731

Shenghui Wu, Liu Y, Williams M, Aguilar C, Mesa R, Ramirez A, Tomlinson G. (2023) Childhood Cancer Survival in the Highly Vulnerable Population of South Texas, PLOSOne. 18 (4): e0278354.

Shenghui Wu, Chalela P, Ramirez A. Changes in Knowledge and Awareness for a Community-based Cancer Screening Educational Program. (2023) Arch Public Health. Jul 12;81(1):130. doi: 10.1186/s13690-023-01144-w.

Shenghui Wu, Liu Y, Williams M, Aguilar C, Mesa R, Ramirez A, Tomlinson G. (2023) Childhood Cancer Survival in the Highly Vulnerable Population of South Texas, PLOSOne. 18 (4): e0278354.

Shenghui Wu, Chalela P, Ramirez A. (2023) Changes in Knowledge and Awareness for a Community-based Cancer Screening Educational Program. Arch Public Health. Jul 12;81(1):130. doi: 10.1186/s13690-023-01144-w.

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ON THE ROAD IN THE AIR

From Boone to Tampa, Los Angeles, Portland, Washington D.C., New Zealand and China, faculty in health sciences research have been on the go. Here are some of their recent presentations.

Caroline Smith. Presentation at the FIERO PPE conference in March, 2024. Presentation title: Dermal Toxicant Exposure and Absorption in Firefighters, Greenville, SC.

Jennifer Dalton, Pierce, N., & Lawson, J. (2024, January) Preliminary Qualitative Findings: Institutional Responses to Student Success. In-person presentation for the President and cabinet of the UNC System, UNC System Office, Raleigh, NC.

West, N.T & Brook Harmon (2024, March).Clergy self-care: How do we measure it? How does it relate to overall health? Common Table Collaborative. https://commontable.network/upcoming-gatherings

Adam Hege, Rich Christiana, Shenghui Wu, Jennifer Tyson, Margaret Brown & Martie Thompson. Public Health faculty presented at the recent American Public Health Association meeting in November 2023. Session and presentation were picked up by the media for APHA and published in the monthly "The Nation's Health" newspaper for APHA members. https://www.thenationshealth.org/content/53/10/15.2

Joy James. Stewardship + Wellness = Park Rx: Initiatives, Research & Partnerships. Presented at the World Leisure Congress in New Zealand December 2023

Cybulski, S., Joy James & Brooke Towner. "Exploring Physical Activity (PA) levels throughout the school day" Stella Cybulski, Towner's GRAM and Joy James presented at the World Leisure Congress in New Zealand in December 2023

Jill Juris & Zvonkovic, A. (2023, November 8-12). How grandparent couples engage in family leisure with grandchildren. Presented in the symposium ‘A Historical-Contextual Perspective on Grandparents’ Activities with Grandchildren’. The Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting, Tampa, FL.

Jill Juris, Scrivano, R., Leedahl, S., & Jarrott, S. (2023, November 8-12). Implementation Frameworks in Action: A Qualitative Study of Intergenerational Technology in Higher Education. Presented in the symposium ‘Building Bridges Across Generations: Research on Diverse Approaches for Intergenerational Connections’. The Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting, Tampa, FL.

Heather Schier. “I’m a Growing Boy, I Need My Food”: Characterizing the Nutrition-Related Behaviors and Concerns of Transgender and Gender Diverse Youth and Young Adults. Oral Presentation, Herbalife Awardee Program. Los Angeles, CA. November 2023.

Invited speaker and research excellence award recipient. Presented at Herbalife Headquarters in Los Angeles, CA.

Martie Thompson, Matt Hudson-Flege, & Hancock, K. (in press). Long-term impacts of civic engagement during emerging adulthood: A nationally-representative study. American Journal of Health Promotion.

Mark Trahan, Banman, A., & Fagan, J. (2024, January). Paternal self-efficacy for Nonresident Fathers: Scale Development and Validation. Paper presented at the Society for Social Work and Research Conference. Washington, D.C.

Mark Trahan, Harty, J. & Lemmons, B. (2024, January). Challenging stereotypes and broadening perspectives: A thematic analysis of fatherhood representation in human behavior in the social environment textbooks. Paper presented at the Society for Social Work and Research Conference. Washington, D.C.

Susan Weidmann (2023) American Horror Story: Exploring environmental storytelling in design of US haunted attractions. At 17th World Leisure Congress. University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. December 11-15, 2023.

Shenghui Wu, Liu Y, Martie Thompson, Adam Hege. Food environment index and gastric cancer in the United States. Poster Presentation at the Society for Cancer Research Meeting, Portland, Oregon, June 2023.

Shenghui Wu, Martie Thompson, Adam Hege, Rich Christiana, Jennifer Tyson. Physical activity is inversely associated with Overall Cancer Risk among College Students in the United States: Results from the National College Health Assessment. Oral presentation at the 2nd International Forum on Health Promotion and Development-China Health Policy China Health Policy and Management Society Annual Meeting, July 2023, Guangzhou, China.

Shenghui Wu, Chalela P, Ramirez A. Changes in Knowledge and Awareness for a Community-based Cancer Screening Educational Program, Society for Epidemiology Research Annual Meeting, Portland, Oregon, June 11, 2023.

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