We are very excited to share the many recent updates accomplishments from our GREMAP staff, students, and collaborators! Please read more below:

Viktoryia Kalesnikava awarded UM aging center grant

Viktoryia Kalesnikava was recently awarded a grant from the Michigan Center for Contextual Factors in Alzheimer’s Disease (MCCFAD) Research Scientist Enrichment Program. The project is titled: “Examining the impact of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias on mental health and suicide risk of older adults and their families”. This project will also be supported by the Pepper Center, another aging center at UM, and will start July of 2024. Congratulations to Viktoryia!

Irina Bondarenko’s ceramic art featured in the University Record

Biostatistician and GREMAP collaborator Irina Bondarenko was recently featured in the University Record for her ceramic artwork that pays tribute to Ukrainian cultural heritage amidst the war with Russia. The article discusses the recent exhibition that Irina created titled “Guardian Passage: The Power of Ukrainian Cultural Memory in the Face of War,” which was hosted by the Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia. This exhibition brings together Ukrainian artwork, history, and poetry to connect viewers to Ukraine and the people affected by the war. In the interview, Irina also highlights the resilience and sense of community among Ukrainians despite the war and devastation. Please read more about the exhibition and her amazing work here.

Alana Ewen accepted to summer fellowship

PhD student Alana Ewen was recently accepted to the summer fellowship on Emotional Well-Being & Physical Health, hosted by the Social and Behavioral Sciences Department at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Research Department of Behavioral Science and Health at University College London. The program provides scholars with a “systematic and rigorous overview of the relationship between positive emotional well-being and physical health, drawing on a variety of empirical methods with careful consideration of measurement issues.” Alana was also awarded a full tuition scholarship! Congratulations, Alana!

This past week, Chuwen (Cullen) Zhong represented GREMAP at the 2024 Suicide Research Symposium (SRS), which is co-sponsored by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. This year’s SRS conference was held completely virtually and featured a variety of presentations on suicide prevention research and implementation.

Chuwen presented our work on suicide during the perinatal period, titled: “Understanding Suicide Mortality during the Perinatal Period – a Mixed Methods Study”. The presentation highlighted the project’s quantitative and qualitative findings, which underscored the need for further research and policy that addresses suicide during the perinatal period. Great job, Chuwen!

Above: Chuwen presenting at the SRS conference, held on Zoom.

We are excited to announce that GREMAP collaborator Elyse Thulin has been awarded the NIH Matilda White Riley Behavioral and Social Science Honors for paper titled “Longitudinal Effects of Electronic Dating Violence on Depressive Symptoms and Delinquent Behaviors Across Adolescence“. These honors reflect a yearly competition for peer-reviewed articles by early career investigators that highlight innovative behavioral and social sciences research. You can read more about the award here. Congratulations, Elyse!

We are excited to announce that GREMAP PhD student Alana Ewen has been accepted to the American Diabetes Association Scholars Program! The program, which will take place in Fall 2024, is a career development opportunity for early-career professionals who are involved in diabetes-related research or clinical practice. Alana’s dissertation work focuses on understanding how chronic stress (e.g., racism and perceived discrimination) impacts the onset and management of Type 2 diabetes in Black adults. More information about the program can be found here. Congratulations, Alana!

This past week, GREMAP folks attended the American Psychosomatic Society’s (APS) annual meeting, which was held in Brighton, UK. This year at APS, Dr. Mezuk co-led a workshop on DEI in Mentorship, which aimed to foster learning and dialogue to build more inclusive mentoring relationships through a variety of presentations and a panel discussion. In the workshop, Dr. Mezuk presented the ongoing, amazing work of the MIWI program while also integrating a discussion of the structural factors that shape diverse and inclusive mentorship in the academy. This presentation was followed by a productive discussion on mentorship (both from a mentor and mentee perspective) in the interdisciplinary health sciences. Overall, this workshop was a great opportunity to discuss and engage in inclusive and effective mentoring in our field.

Left: Dr. Mezuk with the other panel members at the APS workshop; Right: Dr. Mezuk giving her talk on MIWI and inclusive mentorship.

We are excited to announce that Alana Ewen has been awarded the Ann G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowship from the University of Maryland. Alana is a PhD candidate in the University of Maryland School of Public Health as well as a pre-doctoral fellow at the Curtis Center for Health Equity here at the University of Michigan. Her research focuses on the impact of chronic stressors (e.g., racism and discrimination) on the onset and management of Type 2 diabetes among Black adults. The Ann G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowship supports students with excellent qualifications who are in the latter stages of writing their dissertations. Congratulations Alana!

We are happy to share that Kallisse Dent, who is a PhD student in Clinical Psychology at UM working with GREMAP, presented her work at this year’s American Psychopathological Association (APPA) annual meeting, which was held in New York City. The focus of the 2024 APPA meeting was the social-structural and cultural contributors to psychopathology. Kallisse presented a poster on the role of interpersonal factors in the associations of new chronic disease diagnoses with depression and passive suicidal ideation among older adults. Great work, Kallisse!

On December 1st, GREMAP folks attended a symposium in honor of Dr. James S. Jackson, who was a leader and revolutionary in the field of psychology and the social sciences, remembered for this career-long dedication to understanding and advocating for the health and wellbeing of Black Americans. Notably (although it seems many things he did were notable), Dr. Jackson established the Program for Research on Black Americans (PRBA) at the UM Institute for Social Research, which aimed to study the health of Black Americans by looking at within-group differences, rather than as compared to White populations, which was the standard at the time. This approach was both innovative and impactful and transformed the research and scholarship on the mental health of Black people in the U.S.

In addition to research and scholarship, Dr. Jackson’s career was characterized by leadership and mentorship. While the sessions in the symposium ranged from everything from Dr. Jackson’s impact on the University and the Institute for Social Research, to his roles in leadership and advocacy, to his work in sports and athlete health and wellbeing, the common thread through almost all of the talks was his human impact as a mentor and friend. Among the speakers was Dr. Mezuk, who was mentored by Dr. Jackson. During her talk, Dr. Mezuk discussed the impact of Dr. Jackson’s mentorship on her career thus far and in the future. She also reflected on the integral role of Dr. Jackson in the MIWI program, of which he was the co-founder and first co-director alongside Dr. Mezuk. His mentorship and leadership in MIWI continues to shape the MIWI program today.

In her speech, Dr. Mezuk also highlighted Dr. Jackson’s goal of “intergenerational mentorship”, or, as others who spoke phrased it, how “[he] played the long game”. Throughout his career, Dr. Jackson was devoted to investing in the next generation of diverse scholars, both professionally and interpersonally, and it was evident to those who knew him that he respected, challenged, cared for, advocated for his mentees. Reflecting on the symposium, I am confident that those who were impacted by him will continue his legacy of support and mentorship.

You can read more about the life and career of James S. Jackson here.