The University of Texas School of Public Health

CHPPR Faculty

Bartholomew, L. Kay, EdD
Associate Professor & Associate Dean for Educational Programs

Research interests: Self-management of pediatric chronic disease; health education/promotion intervention

Campus: Houston — Office: RAS W238
Email: leona.k.bartholomew@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of L. Kay Bartholomew
Phone: (713) 500-9630

Baumler, Elizabeth G., PhD
Assistant Professor of Biostatistics

Research interests: Multilevel modeling; youth risk behavior; population health

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2632
Email: elizabeth.r.baumler@uth.tmc.edu


Phone: (713) 500-9684

Byrd, Theresa L., DrPH
Associate Professor

Research interests: Health promotion and behavior change; maternal and child health; community organization and development; border health; cancer prevention/early detection

Campus: El Paso — Office: 097 110I
Email: theresa.l.byrd@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Theresa L. Byrd
Phone: (915) 747-8504

Chen, Chin-Hsing, PhD
Visiting Assistant Professor

Research interests: Evaluation of health promotion/education programs; etiology of obesity, smoking, and other health behaviors and its associated risk/protective factors; longitudinal methods; multi-level analysis and hierarchical linear modeling; growth curve/growth mixture modeling; Bayesian methods, intervention time series analysis; spatial statistical analysis

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2514
Email: chin-hsing.chen@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Chin-Hsing Chen
Phone: (713) 500-9766

Diamond, Pamela M., PhD
Assistant Professor

Research interests: Interface between criminal justice and mental health policy, psychiatric epidemiology, community reintegration for female offenders, and the use of latent variable models in public health research

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2614
Email: pamela.m.diamond@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Pamela M. Diamond
Phone: (713) 500-9979

Escobar-Chaves, Soledad Liliana, DrPH
Assistant Professor of Hlth Promotion & Behavioral Sciences

Research interests: Development, implementation/evaluation of school-based/family/community- based health promotion related to media; violence; sexual risk behavior; obesity

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2657
Email: soledad.l.escobar-chaves@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Soledad Liliana Escobar-Chaves
Phone: (713) 500-9637

Fernandez, Maria E., PhD
Assistant Professor & Director of Diversity Programs

Research interests: Cancer control, Hispanic populations, informed decision-making health promotion planning and evaluation, health informatics, health communications

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2558
Email: maria.e.fernandez@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Maria E. Fernandez
Phone: (713) 500-9626

Fernandez-Esquer, Maria E., PhD
Associate Professor

Research interests: AIDS and cancer prevention; perception of risk; ethnic differences in health beliefs and behaviors

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2518
Email: maria.e.fernandez-esquer@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Maria E. Fernandez-Esquer
Phone: (713) 500-9657

Franzini, Luisa , PhD
Associate Professor

Research interests: Health economics and econometrics; economic and social determinants of health; racial/ethnic health disparities and minority health; income inequality; cost effectiveness and cost-utility analysis; cost of medical education

Campus: Houston — Office: RAS E923
Email: luisa.franzini@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Luisa  Franzini
Phone: (713) 500-9487

Markham, Christine , PhD
Assistant Professor

Research interests: Adolescent and child health, including HIV, STD and pregnancy prevention, substance use prevention, chronic disease management, influence of parental factors, qualitative research, outcome and process evaluation

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2616
Email: christine.markham@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Christine  Markham
Phone: (713) 500-9646

McAlister, Alfred L., PhD
Professor

Research interests: Tobacco policy, violence prevention, peace and conflict, health disparities, advocacy and mass communication, international health

Campus: Austin — Office: TCB 206
Email: alfred.l.mcalister@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Alfred L. McAlister
Phone: (512) 482-6163

McCurdy, Sheryl A., PhD
Assistant Professor

Research interests: STDs; HIV/AIDS; substance abuse, women’s health, violence, underserved populations, health disparities, qualitative research, global health studies

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2520
Email: sheryl.a.mccurdy@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Sheryl A. McCurdy
Phone: (713) 500-9633

Mullen, Patricia Dolan, DrPH
Professor

Research interests: Health promotion for disadvantaged or incarcerated women; transtheoretical model of behavior change; contraception and STD/HIV risk reduction; informed decision making for cancer and other screening tests; patient education; evaluation methods; systematic review and meta-analysis

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2522
Email: patricia.d.mullen@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Patricia Dolan Mullen
Phone: (713) 500-9658

Pallonen, Unto E., PhD
Associate Professor of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences

Research interests: School, clinic, and community-based smoking prevention and cessation; cancer prevention in adolescents; behavior change models, computer applications in health promotion; health communication

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2532
Email: unto.e.pallonen@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Unto E. Pallonen
Phone: (713) 500-9660

Parcel, Guy S., PhD
Dean & John P. McGovern Professor in Health Promotion & M. David Low Chair in Public Health

Research interests: School health promotion; child and adolescent health; health behaviors

Campus: Houston — Office: RAS W114A
Email: guy.s.parcel@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Guy S. Parcel
Phone: (713) 500-9052

Peskin, Melissa Fleschler, PhD
Assistant Professor of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences

Research interests: Child and adolescent health, specifically in HIV, STD, and pregnancy prevention, violence, bullying, cyberbullying; intervention development and program evaluation

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2658
Email: melissa.f.peskin@uth.tmc.edu


Phone: (713) 500-9759

Peters, Ronald J., DrPH
Assistant Professor of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences

Research interests: Sexual risk-taking behavior; design and analysis of drug use studies among youth and incarcerated populations; and cultural and economic aspects of health behaviors in underserved communities

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2618
Email: ronald.j.peters@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Ronald J. Peters
Phone: (713) 500-9642

Reininger, Belinda M., DrPH
Assistant Professor

Research interests: Evaluation research; community based health promotion; health disparities

Campus: Brownsville — Office: RAC N1.202E
Email: belinda.m.reininger@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Belinda M. Reininger
Phone: (956) 882-5161

Ross, Michael W., PhD
Professor

Research interests: STDs; HIV/AIDS; drug abuse; community level and correctional STD/HIV prevention cross-cultural aspects of public health; internet sexuality

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2622
Email: michael.w.ross@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Michael W. Ross
Phone: (713) 500-9652

Shegog, Ross , PhD
Assistant Professor of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences

Research interests: Application of instructional and/or decision-support technology in health promotion and disease prevention including pediatric asthma management; prevention and cessation of adolescent and young adult tobacco use; prevention of HIV, STD, and pregnancy in middle school children

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2668
Email: ross.shegog@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Ross  Shegog
Phone: (713) 500-9677

Taylor, Wendell , PhD
Associate Professor

Research interests: Health promotion; CVD risk factors in children; Physical activity in children; Cancer prevention in underserved populations

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2670
Email: wendell.c.taylor@uth.tmc.edu


Phone: (713) 500-9635

Tortolero, Susan R., PhD
Associate Professor & Director CHPPR

Research interests: Adolescence; children; sexual risk taking, STDs, pregnancy, substance use, violence mental health; depression; Hispanics; prevention research

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2080
Email: susan.tortolero@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Susan R. Tortolero
Phone: (713) 500-9634

Vernon, Sally W., PhD
Blair Justice, PhD Professorship in Mind-Body Medicine & Pub Hlth & Dir, Div of Hlth Promo & Beh Sci

Research interests: Cancer prevention and control for breast, cervical and colorectal cancers; informed decision making for prostate cancer testing; psychosocial issues in cancer genetic testing; measurement of psychosocial constructs; reliability and validity of self-report cancer screening behaviors

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2560
Email: sally.w.vernon@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Sally W. Vernon
Phone: (713) 500-9760

Williams, Mark L., PhD
Professor

Research interests: HIV/AIDS prevention; STD prevention; antiretroviral medication compliance; drug abuse; minority health

Campus: Houston — Office: UCT 2516
Email: mark.l.williams@uth.tmc.edu

Photo of Mark L. Williams
Phone: (713) 500-9674