Research Affiliates
Jean L. Freeman
James S. Goodwin
Stephen D. Hursting
Karen Chai Kim
Kyriakos Markides
Jennifer L. Matjasko
Matthew McGlone
M. Kristen Peek
Laura Rudkin
Bugao Xu
Sarah Crissey
Statistician, U.S. Census Bureau, Education and Social Stratification Branch
Ph.D, University of Texas at Austin
2032 Belmont Rd NW #216, Washington, DC 20009
(202) 290.1080
sarahcrissey@hotmail.com
Jean L. Freeman
Professor, Departments of Preventive Medicine and Community Health, Internal Medicine, and School of Allied Health, UT-Medical Branch
Ph.D., Yale University
Jennie Sealy Hospital Room
3.132 409-772-6797
jfreeman@utmb.edu
Jean L. Freeman has designed and directed studies in health services research for over 20 years. Her recent work is focused on the use of administrative datasets (Medicare data and tumor registry data) to assess the quality of breast cancer care nationally and the factors associated with quality care. Over the past six years she has had funding from the Department of Defense (DAMD17-96-1-6215) and the National Cancer Institute (RO1CA72076) to examine the use and outcomes of mammography services in older women. Of interest is the effectiveness of screening mammography in older women, with a focus on the very old (75+) and disadvantaged populations. Also of interest is the extent to which older women are receiving appropriate care for breast cancer and how this affects health outcomes such as breast cancer mortality and survival. A major aim of this research is to investigate whether the disparities in mortality and survival observed in older minority and economically disadvantaged populations can be explained by their lower use of screening and appropriate therapy.
Dr. Freeman is also a member of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and teaches in the Preventive Medicine and Community Health Graduate Program. In the PMCH PhD Program she directs courses in the Clinical Sciences Curriculum (Methods in Health Services Research, Outcomes Research) and supervises students in their dissertation research. In the PMCH MPH program she co-directs the Health Policy and Management course with Dr. James Goodwin.
In September 2001, she was awarded a grant on "Health Services Research in Underserved Populations" by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (R24HS11618) to strengthen UTMB's capacity to conduct rigorous health services research. Through this grant she and her co-PI Gayle Weaver are building a faculty development program that includes advanced training in research methods and data analysis, short courses in scientific writing and a mentoring system to support research proposal development for NIH grant submissions.
James S. Goodwin
George and Cynthia Mitchell Distinguished Professor, Chief Medical Director, Geriatric Medicine, Internal Medicine, UT-Medical Branch
Jennie Sealy Hospital Room 3.204
409-747-1987
jsgoodwi@utmb.edu
Dr. Goodwin studies patterns of cancer care in the elderly, barriers to health care delivery in the elderly, and predictors of physical functioning and health in older populations.
Stephen D. Hursting
Professor and McKean-Love Chair, Department of Human Ecology, University of Texas at Austin, and Professor of Carcinogenesis, UT-M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
GEA 115
512-471-4287
shursting@mail.utexas.edu
Dr. Hursting earned a BA in biology from Earlham College and a Ph.D. in nutritional biochemistry and an MPH in nutritional epidemiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He also completed postdoctoral training in molecular biology and cancer prevention as a Cancer Prevention Fellow at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). From 1995 to 1999, Dr. Hursting was an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Epidemiology and Carcinogenesis at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer, where he directed a multidisciplinary research program in nutrition and cancer prevention. He continues his affiliation with his former departments at the MD Anderson Cancer Center as a Professor of Carcinogenesis and Adjunct Associate Professor of Epidemiology.
From 1999-2005, Dr. Hursting was Deputy Director of the NCI's Office of Preventive Oncology, Division of Cancer Prevention. He was responsible for all aspects of the NCI's Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program. Dr. Hursting was also an Investigator in the NCI's Center for Cancer Research, where he was Chief of the Nutrition and Molecular Carcinogenesis Section of the NCI's Laboratory of Biosystems and Cancer. His research program focuses on the nutritional modulation of the carcinogenesis process, with a particular emphasis on the molecular, cellular and hormonal changes underlying important nutrition and cancer associations, with a focus on energy balance/obesity.
Karen Chai Kim
Research Affiliate, Center for Immigration Research, University of Houston
Ph.D., Harvard University
(512) 347-8998
chai@post.harvard.edu
Kyriakos Markides
Annie and John Gnitzinger Distinguished Professor of Aging; Professor and Director, Division of Sociomedical Sciences; Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health, University of Texas Medical Branch;Editor, Journal of Aging and Health
Ph.D., Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge
1.128 Ewing Hall (K-53), UTMB, Galveston, Texas 77555-1153
(409) 772-2551
kmarkide@utmb.edu
Kyriakos S. Markides received his PhD in sociology from Louisiana State University in 1976. He is currently the Annie and John Gnitzinger Professor of Aging and Director of the Division of Sociomedical Sciences at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health. He has been conducting research on the health of older Mexican Americans since 1976. He is currently Principal Investigator of the Hispanic Established Population for the Epidemiological Study of the Elderly (EPESE) a longitudinal study of 3,050 older Mexican Americans from the Southwestern United States. Dr. Markides is the author or co-author of over 210 publications, the majority of which are on older Mexican Americans. He is also the founding and current editor of the Journal of Aging and Health. The Institute for Scientific Information has recently selected Dr. Markides to be listed among the most cited social scientists in the world.
Jennifer L. Matjasko
Behavioral Scientist, Division of Violence Prevention,
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Human Ecology, UT-Austin
Ph.D., University of Chicago
(770) 488-4267
Jmatjasko@cdc.gov
Dr. Jennifer L. Matjasko is a Behavioral Scientist in Violence Prevention at the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Her research interests focus on the development of at-risk adolescents and the factors that promote their health and well-being. Her research emphasizes the use of ecological, lifecourse, and person-centered approaches in understanding the relationship between individual, family, school, and community factors and adolescent functioning in order to inform prevention and intervention efforts targeted to at-risk youth.
Matthew McGlone
Assistant Professor, Communication Studies
Ph.D., Princeton University
CMA A7.122
(512) 471-5251
matthew_mcglone@mail.utexas.edu
Matthew McGlone studies the cognitive, cultural, and social foundations of interpersonal communication. He teaches courses on topics in interpersonal communication and persuasion.
M. Kristen Peek
Associate Professor, Division of Sociomedical Sciences, Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health, University of Texas Medical Branch
Ph.D., Duke University
1.128 Ewing Hall, UTMB, Galveston, Texas 77555-1153
(409) 772-2551
mkpeek@utmb.edu
Kristen Peek is an Associate Professor in the Sociomedical Sciences division in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health and a Fellow at the Sealy Center on Aging at University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB). She received her PhD in Sociology from Duke University in 1996 and then completed an NIA post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Epidemiology at the University of Florida.
Professor Peek’s research focuses on the effects of race and ethnicity on aging and physical and mental health. Since joining UTMB in 1998, she has conducted research on sociocultural processes affecting transitions into and out of disability among older Mexican Americans. In addition, she recently completed an R01 examining dyadic data on changes in spouses’ mental and physical health over time among older Mexican Americans. Currently, she is exploring the construct and predictive validity of allostatic load as a physiological marker of stress accumulated over the life course in a sample in Texas living near a petrochemical complex. Recent publications can be found in Social Science and Medicine, Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, Journals of Gerontology, Annals of Epidemiology, and The Gerontologist.
Laura Rudkin
Associate Professor, Preventive Medicine and Community Health, UT-Medical Branch; Director, Graduate Programs, Division of Sociomedical Sciences; Fellow, Sealy Center on Aging
Ph.D., Princeton University
1.128 Ewing Hall, UTMB, Galveston, TX 77555
(409) 772-2551
lrudkin@utmb.edu
Laura Rudkin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health and a Fellow at the Sealy Center on Aging at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB). She is Program Director for UTMB’s Public Health Program and for the Graduate Programs in Preventive Medicine and Community Health. She received her PhD in Sociology and Demography from Princeton University in 1992 and then completed an NIA post-doctoral fellowship at the Carolina Population Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Dr. Rudkin’s research examines the effects of socioeconomic position and other social factors on health outcomes, with a focus on older populations. Currently, she is examining correlates and consequences of sleep problems among older Mexican Americans. She also participates in community-based research projects in the Houston-Galveston area and emphasizing practical applications of scientific program evaluation techniques in community health promotion programs.
Bugao Xu
Professor, Human Ecology
Ph.D., University of Maryland
GEA 225
(512) 471-7226
bxu@mail.utexas.edu
Bugao Xu is a professor in the Program of Textiles and Apparel Design, the Department of Human Ecology of UT Austin. He received his Ph. D. in 1992 from the University of Maryland at College Park. His investigative work has focused on development of methods characterizing textile products, instrumentation of textile testing, and new technology for apparel mass customization. His research work has been awarded by NSF, USDA, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Texas Food and Fiber Commission, and Cotton Inc. He is also affiliated with the Center for Transportation Research of UT Austin and conducts research on new imaging technology for automated pavement surface distress inspection, which has been sponsored by Texas Department of Transportation since 1999. He has published more than 50 papers in referred journals since he joined the UT faculty in 1993. He has taught Advanced Textiles, Advanced Textiles Lab, Research Methods in Merchandising, Computer Applications in Human Ecology, and 3D Technology for Apparel Mass Customization.
Dr. Xu is also a member of the Graduate Studies Committee of the Biomedical Engineering Program at UT Austin. His biomedical research interests include 3-D imaging of the human body, biometrics for personal identification, and ultrasound prosthetic imaging.
Dr. Xu was recently awarded TxDOT Innovation Award.
