Bringing Research to the Community
Danielle M. Dick, Ph.D.
Virginia Commonwealth University
Departments of Psychology, African American Studies,
and Human & Molecular Genetics
4 cohorts incoming freshmen (2011-2015)
Surveys, fall and spring
DNA collection
~70% participation, 9890 students
Registry
Opportunity to feedback to
prevention/programming
S4S in Numbers
34 faculty from 13 departments
26 trainees
>130 undergraduate students
15 departments
4 NIH grants funded
6 additional grants in prep/under review
6 spin-off projects
2 under development
>30 outreach activities
AN INTEGRATED APPROACH TO COLLEGE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH
Basic Research
•
Identify how individual
predispositions and
environmental factors create
different pathways of risk
Culturally Sensitive Research
•
Spit for Science Spin-off Projects
Focus on the unique
risk/protective factors
associated with racially and
ethnically diverse
populations
• Registry of S4S participants
• Can be selected based on
phenotypic/genotypic information
for additional study
• Creates resource for faculty across
the university
Prevention/Intervention
•
Integrate basic research findings to
develop tailored
prevention/intervention and test
effectiveness
Academic Performance and Retention
• Ability to link research findings with
student performance and to do future
research on how implemented
prevention/intervention affects these
outcomes
University Policy and Programming
• Ability to use research findings to inform
university policies on substance use and
mental health and follow-up with research
to evaluate policy effectiveness
Behavioral and Emotional Health as the
Foundation for Student Success
When Science doesn’t feel like Science
Mass Communications
Arts
ALTlab
Dose.com
Thank you!