Projects & Investigators

Our faculty investigators engage in nationally and internationally funded work related to scholarship, community programs and educational development, addressing a wide spectrum of issues including:

Mental health and suicide prevention
Health equity and disparities
Housing and homelessness
Community health and social support
Global and cross-cultural initiatives

$50 Million

More than $50 million in research funding since 2019.

Meet the Investigators

María Aranda

Focus on aging behavioral health and caregiving

Addresses sociocultural and demographic factors impacting physical functioning and psychological well-being in older and middle-age adults and their family caregivers.

Learn More About María

John Blosnich

Focus on suicide prevention

Addresses disparities in suicide risk and prevention with a specific emphasis on social determinants of health.

Learn More About John

Sarah Caliboso-Soto

Focus on mental health services

Addresses educational and community program development and implementation related to mental health and access to telebehavioral health services.

Learn More About Sarah

Carl Castro

Focus on active-duty military and veterans

Addresses the unique needs of servicemembers, veterans and their families, specifically military transitions, trauma and suicidality.

Learn More About Carl

Julie Cederbaum

Focus on impact of adversity on families

Addresses strengths and challenges of family processes and behaviors on the well-being of youth, including foster youth.

Learn More About Julie

Umeka Franklin

Focus on service delivery for integrated behavioral health

Addresses access to services for mental health and trauma-informed care across the lifespan, including the THRIVe Project for homeless veterans.

Learn More About Umeka

Laura Gale

Focus on program development and implementation

Addresses educational and community program development, including the THRIVe Project for homeless veterans.

Learn More About Laura

Daniel Hackman

Focus on disparities in health and development

Addresses social and environmental contexts that influence developmental trajectories, including family and neighborhood factors associated with cognitive and biological well-being.

Learn More About Daniel

Benjamin Henwood

Focus on housing and integrative support for homelessness

Addresses health and housing services connecting clinical interventions with social policy, including chronic and aging homelessness and guaranteed income programs.

Learn More About Benjamin

Suh Chen Hsiao

Focus on workforce development for adults and healthy aging

Addresses scholarship development for health professions students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Learn More About Suh

Yuri Jang

Focus on positive adaptation in health disparities and service utilization

Addresses social interactions, cognitive health and health literacy among immigrant populations.

Learn More About Yuri

Jungeun Olivia Lee

Focus on substance use, mental health and socioeconomic adversity

Addresses social and contextual risks that fuel or disrupt the interplay with substance use across the lifespan.

Learn More About Olivia

Omar López

Focus on educational training and workforce development programming

Addresses curriculum, stipend and scholarship opportunities to prepare students for careers in behavioral health, child welfare, public health, geriatrics and substance use recovery.

Learn More About Omar

Michàlle Mor Barak

Focus on social determinants of health

Addresses social determinants and health correlates of psychotic experiences, and adult mental health services.

Learn More About Michàlle

Hans Oh

Focus on global workforce development

Addresses social work and management, work-family balance, social support and corporate social responsibility, including the impact of organizational culture on job satisfaction, commitment and retention.

Learn More About Hans

Christina Paddock

Focus on mentorship program development

Addresses the development of internship opportunities for students in public child welfare and public behavioral health.

Learn More About Christina

John Prindle

Focus on statistics with applications for mental health

Addresses behavioral health disparities among older adults, children and families, military and veterans.

Learn More About John

Eric Rice

Focus on social network science and AI

Addresses issues of social network influence on high-risk youth behaviors and resilience, and the use of AI for social impact.

Learn More About Eric

Gabriel Robles

Focus on substance use prevention and sexual health

Addresses influence of cultural values, institutional and interpersonal support on protective factors that mitigate negative health outcomes.

Learn More About Gabriel

Ruth Ann Supranovich

Focus on community and clinical programs

Addresses the continued development of the Telebehavioral Health Clinic and Trauma Recovery Center for community access and student education.

Learn More About Ruth