Current and Previous Community Engagement Small Project Grant Awardees
2024-2025 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigators | Community Partner(s) | Project Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adolph Delgado, PhD - UTSA College for Health, Community, and Policy | Cherise Rohr Allegrini, PhD - San Antonio AIDS Foundation Heta Javeri, MD, MPH - UT Health SA Division of Infectious Disease | -San Antonio AIDS Foundation | What R We Doing with Our Data: A Community-Academic Approach to Assessing HIV Data using RStudio |
| Doshie Piper, PhD - University of the Incarnate Word, Dept. of Criminal Justice | Chantal Fahmy, PhD - UTSA Dept. of Criminology and Criminal Justice | -True Vine Baptist Church -East Point Promise Prevention Coalition - LGM Job for You - Texas Organizing Project Education Fund | Encountering the Other, Conversations with the Least of Thee: A Reassessment of Faith-Based Reentry |
| Joyce Turner, FNP, CHW - Lela Pharmacy | Corin Reyes, RN, BSN, CHW - Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) Adelita Cantu, PhD, RN - UT Health SA School of Nursing | -YWCA -Lela Pharmacy | CHW/RN Collaboration for Skill Expansion on Geriatric Specialty Populations |
| Jason Rosenfeld, DrPH - UT Health San Antonio Cetner for Medical Humanities & Ethics | Breanne Soteros, PhD and Amandine Grenier, PhD - UTHSA Dept. of Pharmacology Yvette Benavides and Andy Benavides - Studying Mindful Arts Resources Together | -SMART -Andrew Briscoe Elementary School | Nurturing Young Minds: When Brain Health Meets Art |
| Vidya Sharma - MA, RD - UT Health SA Translational Science PhD Program and UTSA College for Health Community and Policy | Sara Masoud, PhD - Supporting Older Adults through Research Network (SOARNet) Practice Based Research Network (PBRN) | -SOARNet PBRN | Project ECHO Nutrition & Brain Health Training for Primary Care Providers: A Stakeholder-Engaged SOARNet Study |
2023-2024 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigators | Community Partner(s) | Project Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diana Cavazos, PhD, RN – UTHSA School of Nursing | Madelein Santibaez | Corazón San Antonio | Wound Care by UT Street Nursing: A Mobile, Street-Based Community Partnership to Provide Wound Care to Unsheltered Individuals on the Streets of San Antonio Texas. |
| Chinyu Wu, PhD OTR – UTHSA School of Health Professions | Anna Grey, Med | Prosumers International | Addressing Employment Needs of People with Lived Experience of Mental Illness in Bexar County of Texas |
| Emily Nicklett, PhD, MSW – UTSA College for Health, Community and Policy | Julia Crowley, Francisco Zepeda and Adelita Cantu, PhD RN | SA Lighthouse for the Blind and UTHSA SON | Barriers and Facilitators to Diabetes Management Among Adults with Blindness or Vision Impairment: an Intersectional Study |
| Nia Lane-Nelson, RN, BSN – UTHSA School of Nursing | Janna Lesser, PhD, RN and Rev. Jordan Mkwanzi (Key personnel in partnership) | UTHSA SON and Metropolitan African Methodist Church | The Perceived Life Experiences of Black African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church Members and their Influence on Health. |
| Adelita Cantu, PhD, RN – UTHSA School of Nursing | Jill Ewing and Sara Masoud, MPH | Bihl Haus Arts and UTHSA School of Nursing | Caring! Arts: An Academic-Community Partnership Using Structured Expressive Arts to Support Well-Being of Informal Caregivers |
| Alvin Estacio, MS – South Central AHEC and UTHealth School of Public Health | Melissa Valerio, PhD, MPH | UTHealth SPH and Frio County Translational Advisory Board | A CBPR, Mixed-Methods Design Study Among Older Adults in Frio County |
| Rahma Mungia – BDS, MSc UTHSA School of Dentistry and South Texas Oral Health Network PBRN | Moshtagh Farroki, DDS, MPH, Suhaib Haq, and Fozia Ali, MD | San Antonio Refugee Health Clinic, El Bari Community Health Center, and UTHSA School of Medicine | A Practitioner and Refugee and Immigrant Community Collaborative Develops a Patient-centered, Culturally Appropriate, Smokeless Tobacco Cessation Intervention Program |
| James Garcia MS 1 – UTHSA School of Medicine (SOM) | Lilian Nguyen, MD, Rafael Montoya MS2, John Hoverson MS1, Kathleen Merritt MS 1, and Shriya Veluri MS1 | UHS Ophthalmology and UTHSA SOM | Project Blink (Eye and Visual Health Community Service Learning) |
2021-2022 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigators | Community Partner(s) | Project Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emily Nicklett, PhD – University of Texas at San Antonio, College for Health, Community, and Policy | Emily Larsen – Lighthouse for the Blind, Shirley Crandall and Adelita Cantu – UT Health SA, School of Nursing | San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind and Vision Impaired | Identifying Barriers and Facilitators to Health-Promoting Behavior Among Blind and Visually Impaired Middle-Age and Older Adults in Bexar County: A Needs Assessment |
| Rahma Mungia, BDS – UT Health SA, School of Dentistry | Moshtaqh Faroki, DDS, MPH - UT Health SA, School of Dentistry and Suhaib Haq, MD – El Bari Community Health Center | South Texas Oral Health Network PBRN and El Bari Community Health Center | Exploring Dental Practitioners and the South Texas Community Members Attitudes and Behaviors Towards Smokeless Tobacco Use and its Cessation Practices |
| Shanae Rhodes, BA – UT Health SA, School of Nursing | Shirley Fennel, RNC, BSN, MSHP, PhD and Janna Lesser, PhD - UT Health SA, School of Nursing (Faculty Sponsor) | Refuge III Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ and My Sister’s Keeper Board | A CBPR, Mixed Methods Design Study among African American/Black Women Living in Texas Communities: The Pearl Project* |
| Jasmine Rodriguez, MPH – UTHealth, School of Public Health in San Antonio | Luz Neira PhD - SA Food Bank, Rebecca Wells, PhD – UTHealth, School of Public Health in San Antonio, and Robert Ferrer (Faculty Sponsor) | San Antonio Food Bank | Identifying Community-Clinical Linkage of a Primary Care Center Serving Low-Income Patients in Bexar County |
| Yan Du, PhD, MPH, RN – UT Health, SA School of Nursing | Wei Liu, PhD and Kylie Meyer, PhD – UT Health SA, School of Nursing, Christina Smith – WellMed Charitable Foundation | WellMed Charitable Foundation and Caring for the Caregiver Program | Tai Chi with Music for Health in Individuals Living with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias and their Caregivers |
| Fozia Ali, MD - UT Health SA, School of Medicine | Uzair Iqbal – Bexar County Translational Advisory Board (TAB) | Bexar County TAB and El Bari Community Health Center | Language Matters – A Project to Learn About How to Expand Social Media Health Messaging to Immigrant/Refugee Groups in Bexar County |
2020-2021 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigators | Community Partner(s) | Project Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taylor Buchanan – UT Health San Antonio – School of Health Professions | Anna Allegretti, PhD, OTR – UT Health San Antonio, OT (FACULTY SPONSOR) Janna Roberts, OTR Pediatric Therapy Specialists, LLC Elizabeth Marsh, MS, OTR – Pediatric Therapy Services | Pediatric Therapy Specialists | Implementation of Community-Based Life Skills Program for Adolescents and Young Adults with Disabilities |
| Kathleen Case, DrPH - UT Health San Antonio -Center for Research to Advance Community Health (ReACH) | Ludivina Hernandez, CHW – Bexar County Translational Advisory Board (TAB), UT Health San Antonio, ReACH | Bexar TAB | Impact of the Disease and Priorities Looking Forward Among San Antonians Who Have Recovered from COVID-19 |
| Sara Masoud, MPH - UT Health San Antonio, School of Nursing | Carole White, PhD, RN – UT Health San Antonio, SON (FACULTY SPONSOR) Belinda Flores, RN – South Coastal Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Janna Lesser, PhD, RN – UT Health San Antonio, SON (FACULTY SPONSOR) | South Coastal AHEC- Project ECHO UT Rio Grande Valley – Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center | Project ECHO: Brain Health Training for Community Health Workers |
| Ashlie Glassner, BSN, RN - UT Health San Antonio, School of Nursing | Janna Lesser, PhD, RN – UT Health San Antonio, SON (FACULTY SPONSOR) Paula Bailey – Alzheimer’s Association | Alzheimer’s Association | Co-Learning About the Stigma on Person’s Living with Dementia: A Mixed Methods Design Action Research Study |
| Monica Lawson, PhD - University of Texas at San Antonio, Department of Psychology | Maliha Imami – Child Safe Randy McGibeny, MA, LPC – Child Safe Nancy Kellogg, MD – UT Health San Antonio, Dept. of Pediatrics- Child Abuse (FACULTY SPONSOR) | Child Safe UT Health San Antonio, Dept. of Pediatrics – Child Abuse | Child Maltreatment in Bexar County |
| Jason Rosenfeld, DrPH – UT Health San Antonio, Center for Medical Humanities & Ethics | Esmeralda Ibarra, BS, CHW – Lower Rio Grande Valley Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Garrett Kneese, BS – UT Health San Antonio, CMHE | Lower Rio Grande Valley AHEC Community Health Workers in Cameron and Hidalgo Counties | COVID-19 Rivers of Life: 2021 Participatory Storytelling to Improve Mental Wellness and Coping Amongst Latinx Women |
| Sofía López, BS – UTHealth School of Public Health, San Antonio Regional Campus, Dept. of Epidemiology, Human Genetics, and Environmental Sciences | David Douphrate, PhD – UTHealth School of Public Health, San Antonio Regional Campus, Dept. of Epidemiology, Human Genetics, and Environmental Sciences (FACULTY SPONSOR) Anabel Rodriguez, PhD, MPH – UTHealth School of Public Health, San Antonio Regional Campus, Dept. of Epidemiology, Human Genetics, and Environmental Sciences (FACULTY SPONSOR) | Joeris General Contractors Guido Construction Company Workers Defense Project | Health Needs Assessment Among Construction Workers in South Texas |
2019-2020 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigative Partners | Project Title |
|---|---|---|
| Rahma Mungia, BDS, MSC, DDPHRCS – UT Health San Antonio, Dept. of Periodontics | Maria Atique, DDS – South Texas Oral Health Network Kathleen Case, MPH – UT Health SA, Research to Advance Community Health (ReACH) Betsy Jones, MPA- San Antonio Council on Alcohol and Drug Awareness | Testing an Innovative E-Cigarette Cessation Program in a Real-World Dental Practice-Based Setting |
| Phillip Yang BS, MA – UT Health San Antonio, School of Medicine | Kristen Plastino, MD – UT Health of San Antonio , School of Medicine Jake Neill – Youth Leadership Council Jen Osborne, PhD – St. Philip’s College Jennifer Todd, JD | Student-led Approach to Understanding and Investigating Challenges in Youth Mental Health |
| M. Candace Christensen, PhD – UTSA Dept of Social Work | David Laidacker - Fiesta Youth Jay Jeon - UT Health San Antonio School of Medicine | A Program Evaluation of Fiesta Youth, a Non-Profit Organization that Provides Social Support of LGBTQ+ Youth |
| Carole White, PhD, RN – UT Health San Antonio, School of Nursing | Kylie Meyer, PhD – UT Health San Antonio, School of Nursing Ginny Funk, MS – Alzheimer’s Association San Antonio Sara Masoud, MPH – UT Health San Antonio, Caring for the Caregiver | Community Academic Partnership to Support Families Living with Dementia |
| Zenong Yin, PhD – UTSA, Dept. of Kinesiology, Health, & Nutrition | Fernando Martinez, PhD – West Side Training and Education Center | Salud al Pasito: Small Steps towards Health |
2018-2019 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigative Partners | Project Title | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barbara Taylor, MD, MS - UT Health SA, School of Medicine | Hugo Sapien – End Stigma End HIV Alliance Sean Greene - San Antonio Metropolitan Health District | Peer Mentor 210: Development and Evaluation of a Volunteer Peer Mentorship Program for People Living with HIV in San Antonio | |
| Pamela Recto, RN, PhD - UT Health San Antonio, School of Nursing | Ramon Vasquez – American Indians of Texas at the Spanish Colonial Missions – San Antonio Fatherhood Campaign | Adolescent Fathers’ Perception and Experiences of Fatherhood: A Qualitative Community Based Participatory Research Study | |
| Melanie Taverna, MS, RDH – UT Health San Antonio, School of Dentistry | Cheryl Davis, DMD – South Texas Oral Health Network Rahma Mungia, BDS, DDPHRCS – School of Dentistry | Engaging the Community to Enhance Awareness of Probiotic use for Oral Health | |
| Kathleen Stevens, RN, EdD, – UT Health San Antonio, School of Nursing | Mary Henkel Judson – Port Aransas South Jetty Newspaper Wendy Lee, DNP – UT Health San Antonio, School of Nursing | Social Determinants of Health in a Rural Gulf Coast Community after a Natural Disaster: Mediating Disruption of Health Promoting Factors Following Hurricane Harvey | |
| Howaida Werfelli, MPH, CHES – Striving to Achieve Literacy via Education Research and Engagement | Fozia Ali, MD – UT Health San Antonio, School of Medicine | Advancing Health Literacy among Refugees Residing in San Antonio, Texas | |
| Amy Stone, PhD – Trinity University | Robert Salcido – Pride Center of San Antonio Philip Schnarrs, PhD – UT Austin Dell Medical School | Rural LGBTQ+ Adults and Youth in South Texas: Health Disparities, Healthcare Access, and Resilience Strategies |
2017-2018 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigative Partners | Project Title |
|---|---|---|
| Waridibo Allison - UT Health SA Dept. of Med./Infectious Disease | Rosa Martínez - Southwest Border Area Health Education Center Rebecca Ríos - Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas Community Health Center | Research Activity and Community Engagement to Screen, Treat & Organize Prevention for Hepatitis C |
| Rahma Mungia - UT Health SA Dept. of Periodontics | Martha Castilla – The Madonna Neighborhood Center Melanie Taverna – South Texas Oral Health Network | Novel Use of a Mobile Web Application to Increase Awareness of Dry Mouth in the Community |
| John Roache - UT Health SA Dept. of Psychiatry | John Tierney and Stephen Gelfond - South Texas Psychiatry Practice Based Research Network | Prescriber and Patient Perspectives of Benefits and Problems due to Multiple Psychotropic Medication |
| Laura McKieran - UT SPH/Community Information Now (CI: NOW) | Caroline Bergeron – The Health Collaborative | Improving Access to Social Determinant Data |
2016-2017 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigative Partners | Project Title |
|---|---|---|
| Bryan Bayles, PhD, MPH – The Witte Museum | San Antonio Metropolitan Health District and UTHSCSA School of Medicine, Family and Community Medicine | Enhancing Empathy and Communication Skills among Future Healthcare Professions Students through Partnership with a Community Museum |
| Maureen Simmonds, PhD, PT – UTHSCSA School of Health Professions, Physical Therapy | Frio County Translational Advisory Board (TAB) | Living Better Beyond Pain |
| Autumn Clegg, MSOT, OTR – UTHSCSA School of Health Professions, Occupational Therapy | ALS Association Texas Chapter and UTHSCSA School of Medicine, Neurology | A Multidisciplinary Education and Practice Outreach for an Underserved ALS Community |
| Johanna Becho, BA – UTHSCSA School of Medicine, Family and Community Medicine | Comal County TAB | SPARROW: Strengthening Preventive Alliances & Resource Recommendations for Oppressed Women |
| Adelita Cantu, PhD, RN – UTHSCSA School of Nursing, Family and Community Health Systems | Ella Austin Community Center | Enhancing Seniors' Lives in the Community through University and Community Partnerships |
| Carole White, PhD, RN – UTHSCSA School of Nursing, Nursing Restoration and Care Systems Management | Frio Regional Hospital and Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church | CARES: A Rural Community Partnership to Address the Health of Family Caregivers |
2015-2016 Awardees
| Principal Investigator | Co-Investigative Partners | Project Title |
|---|---|---|
| Fozia Ali, MD - UTHSCSA School of Medicine, Family and Community Medicine | Bexar County Translational Advisory Board and UT School of Public Health - San Antonio Regional Campus | Assessing GIS to Address Pediatric Obesity in Family Health Center |
| Socorrro Escandon, PhD, RN and Martha Martinez, MSN, RN UTHSCSA School of Nursing, Family and Community Health Systems | Martinez Street Women's Center | The Power of Seed: a CBPR Project |
| Cervando Martinez, MD- UTHSCSA School of Medicine, Psychiatry | South Texas Psychiatry Practice-Based Research Network | Pilot Study to Develop and Evaluate a Tablet-Based Clinical Assistant Application to Enhance Psychiatric Follow-Up Visits |
| Bridgett Piernik-Yoder, PhD, OTR - UTHSCSA School of Health Professions Occupational Therapy | Christian Senior Services - Meals on Wheels | Home Evaluation Intervention for Community-Dwelling Homebound Seniors |
| Jacqueline Riley-Baker, MSN, RN and Laura Siske, RN, MSN UTHSCSA School of Nursing, Family and Community Health Systems | Children's Bereavement Center | Empathetic Perinatal Education and Communication |
| Rebekah Salt, PhD, RN - UTHSCSA School of Nursing, Family and Community Health | Center for Refugee Services | Promoting Mental Health in the Refugee Community: A Pilot Project |