Community Spotlights
Health Equity Research Spotlight
Health literacy continues to emerge as a key to both improving health and reducing health inequities. The Health Literacy Council of Delaware (HLCD), formed in 2022, leads the charge in Delaware to address health literacy. The HLCD and its partners created a report that outlines the status of health literacy in Delaware, underscoring the need for more attention, more research, and more partners. Read the full report (or the 4-page summary) and reach out to the CED Core to discuss ideas to begin your health literacy research.
Community Partner Spotlight
“First State Does Great.”
The First State Community Action Agency (FSCAA) makes positive and effective connections by placing an emphasis on being present in the community. FSCAA uses a multi-step approach to serving the community through the use of available existing data, data collected by the agency, and community feedback from surveys, their community council, and town hall style open discussions.
The agency obtains feedback through interviews with partners, funders, and community members, and also provides programs that build the capacity of community members to become more self-sufficient, helping to fortify the community overall.
FSCAA utilizes a “meet them where they are” philosophy. They partner with other community organizations and food programs to bring services to communities in a way that does not put an increased burden on community members.
Click here to learn more about FSCAA at their website.
DSU Researcher Spotlight
Dr. Janeese A. Brownlow is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Delaware State University (DSU) and Director of the Sleep Stress and Behavioral Neuroscience (SSBN) Program. She is also a Research Faculty member at the IHER Center and the Biomedical Behavioral and Allied Health Center (BBAHC) at DSU. Dr. Brownlow earned her Ph.D. at Howard University in Neuropsychology. She also completed a National Research Service Award Postdoctoral Fellowship in Behavioral Sleep Medicine at the Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Brownlow’s expertise is in clinical neuropsychology with a direct research focus on sleep physiology, psychopathology, neurocognition, and social determinants of health. She has experience in translational research from a variety of perspectives ranging from biopsychosocial through to clinical trials. Dr. Brownlow has investigated mechanisms of sleep problems in a range of clinical and non-clinical populations. Additionally, she has authored and co-authored several scholarly publications collectively focused on sleep, mental health, and cognition.
Dr. Brownlow has an extensive background in engaging the community in research. Currently, she has three community research projects. The first project is focused on the identification of specific psychological and socio-environmental risk factors for neurocognitive outcomes related to habitual sleep. The second project aims to elucidate the role of traumatic stress and sleep deficiencies on health outcomes among individuals living with sickle cell disease and sickle cell trait. Dr. Brownlow’s newest project investigates the critical role of sleep deficiencies at the interplay of upstream social determinants of health and downstream mental and physical health outcomes. She is actively recruiting and enrolling participants for all studies. Community service is also a high priority in Dr. Brownlow’s work. She has partnered with local organizations to provide sleep health trainings and workshops, and she hopes to build new partnerships throughout the State and Region.
