What is your background?

I have an M.S. in Human Services from East Tennessee State University, where a lot of my graduate work focused on community outreach; by means of building community partnerships, identifying needs based off data collection, raising awareness surrounding protective and risk factors related to overall health and well-being. I continued this work through the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture as a Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Agent. This is where I spent the past thirteen years developing, implementing, and evaluating educational programs based off annual needs assessment, regional and state resources and partnership opportunities. I am currently bringing all this knowledge and expertise to the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences and the HUB@Cherokee Mills.

What is your role in OCEP?

My role is to facilitate community-based projects between UT faculty, community partners and health providers with River Valley Health (formerly Cherokee Health Systems).

What is your community outreach interest?

My community outreach interest is to build trusted relationships with community partners and Knox County/ Knoxville community members. I want to be seen as the bridge to carry information between UT faculty, the community and River Valley Health (formerly Cherokee Health Systems); to have all these systems working collaboratively and cohesively.

What is your why?

Seeing families’ lives impacted in a positive way by the work, not only I achieve, but our department and university systems accomplish. Hearing, and being a part of people’s success stories is a privilege, one I do not take lightly, and continuing the community engagement work is crucial to seeing transformative impact in the lives of Tennesseans.