The University of Kentucky's College of Public Health (CPH) has selected three students to participate in the Spring 2022 Undergraduate Research Fellowship program, which is awarded to those pursuing compelling and notable research.
Undergraduate students Amanda Crowley, George “Clay” Bryant, and Callihan “Calli” Moraska, all currently enrolled in the Bachelor of Public Health (BPH) program, are this year’s Spring 2022 undergraduate fellows for CPH. They will receive $2,400 to continue their research projects started in their CPH 395 Fall 2021 semester class.
Amanda Crowley (pictured left) is working with data about children under 5 years of age who have experienced trauma in the welfare system. Due to the rapid development of their mental, physical, and emotional states, research shows these children are extremely susceptible to trauma. The data will be used to help detect, assess, and diagnose children who have experienced trauma and find ways to properly treat them.
“I’m so happy to be a part of the College of Public Health and am grateful for this fellowship opportunity,” says Amanda.
Amanda has been trained and certified on the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (CANS) system of assessing, diagnosing, and treating childhood trauma. This research is important to Amanda’s career path, which includes both medicine and public health.
Amanda’s faculty mentor, Dr. John Lyons, Director of the Innovation for Population Health (IPH) Center and Professor in the Health Management and Policy department at the UK College of Public Health, says, “Amanda working with IPH has allowed us the time and resources to pursue a research direction that we would have otherwise not pursued. Turns out it has been an important direction that has generated a great deal of interest in the larger Transformational Collaborative Outcomes Management (TCOM) community and will result in several publications.”
Clay Bryant (pictured middle) is focusing his research on diabetes, which is a chronic and progressive disease that affects millions of lives, especially in Kentucky. Clay aims to evaluate gaps in literature and analyze Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support (DSMES) referral patterns and trends among a cohort of patients at UK Healthcare who have been diagnosed with diabetes.
“Being an undergraduate researcher fellow means having the opportunity to establish your goals and values as a successful researcher,” says Clay. “I am very thankful to the UK College of Public Health for this opportunity.”
Clay believes that the support from this fellowship will give him continued experience and guidance in areas including data analytics using SAS and preparing abstracts and manuscripts for publication. After graduation this year, Clay wants to pursue graduate school and pursue a lifelong career in public health.
Dr. Mary (Beth) Lacy, Clay’s faculty mentor and Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at the UK College of Public Health says, “Clay is an outstanding student. He is extremely motivated and has focus, dedication, and passion for public health. I am excited to support and encourage him as he gains hands-on experience in diabetes research."
Callihan “Calli” Moraska (pictured right) has been researching the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children with hearing loss. She has surveyed, and interviewed, parents and healthcare providers to understand these effects on deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) children. Furthermore, their access to healthcare, language, communication skills, and well-being. In this fellowship, Calli will take a lead role in analyzing the qualitative interviews and will co-deliver an oral presentation at the 2022 National Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference.
“This opportunity has allowed me to become a stronger student, researcher, and public health professional,” says Calli. “Most importantly, I have gained insight on the DHH community and the unique challenges that they face. I am so thankful to the UK College of Public Health and the endless opportunities that it presents to its students.”
Calli adds that this unique opportunity has allowed her to understand the DHH population and plans to take that knowledge and skills into her future career. Calli wants to now serve populations as an otolaryngologist, a medical specialty which is focused on the ears, nose, and throat (ENT).
"Calli is making exceptional contributions to our research lab as an independent study student,” says Julie Jacobs, Senior Research Project Manager at the University of Kentucky’s Department of Otolaryngology. “Calli is developing and refining an important skillset for research, and she is also gaining a deep understanding of an understudied population and integrating much of what she is learning into her future career plans.”
In addition to the semester research fellowships opportunities at the UK College of Public Health, the College also has summer and travel fellowships to support undergraduate research. For more information on undergraduate research fellowship opportunities, contact Dr. Sarah Vos, Lecturer in the Health Management and Policy department at the UK College of Public Health.
The University of Kentucky College of Public Health is undergoing a review by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) for re-accreditation. Part of this process includes the invitation to provide third-party comments. Anyone, including students, alumni, employers, community partners, etc., is allowed to share relevant information about the college directly with CEPH. If you would like to provide input to CEPH to inform their review, send your comments to submissions@ceph.org by May 4th, 2025.
