Rollins Researchers Awarded Grants to Prevent Community and Firearm Violence Among Black Youths
By Karina Antenucci
Rollins researchers Briana Woods-Jaeger, PhD, and Melvin Livingston, PhD, have been awarded a three-year grant totaling $1,662,029 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Their study will focus on evaluating economic security policies as primary prevention strategies for gun-related violence and injuries among Black youth and young adults between the ages of 10-34, the population most at risk of experiencing gun violence.
“What we know is that there are racial inequities in violence and in concentrated poverty with recent studies indicating three-generation poverty is over 16 times higher among Black adults than white adults,” says Woods-Jaeger.
“What we don’t have a good sense of is how economic security policies are working for Black families,” says Livingston.
The researchers will examine the impact of minimum wage, welfare, food stamps, and Earned Income Tax Credits on preventing gun violence. To contextualize their quantitative findings, the researchers will also conduct interviews with Black young people injured by firearms and their primary caregivers to explore lived experiences of these policies on those experiencing inequities.
“Increasing financial security and access to opportunities for social mobility are promising approaches to reduce firearm violence,” says Livingston.
Woods-Jaeger also received a second three-year grant totaling $1.2 million from the CDC to evaluate the effectiveness of an arts-based youth empowerment program, Youth Empowered Advocating for Health (YEAH), in reducing community violence. In partnership with Boys & Girls Club of Metro Atlanta and the Alliance Theatre, the research team will examine if YEAH promotes youth protective factors like critical consciousness, positive racial identity, social cohesion, and hope for the future and reduces the risks for violence.
“Our commitment to the social and emotional well-being of our members is unwavering,” says Amber Barnes, director of social emotional wellness at Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. “We extend our deepest gratitude to the CDC and Emory Rollins School of Public Health for recognizing the significance of our work and entrusting us with the resources to make a meaningful impact. Together, we are poised to ignite the unlimited potential of youth across Metro Atlanta. This collaboration exemplifies the power of collective effort in fostering positive change, and we are eager to share the impactful discoveries that emerge."
This group randomized trial will follow Black youth between the ages of 12-17 at 12 Boys & Girls Clubs for 12 weeks after they enroll in the YEAH program. The study’s discoveries will support the understanding of youth empowerment strategies to reduce community violence among Black youth.
“We will be able to add to the emerging area of the role of arts in public health and violence-prevention research that takes a strengths-based approach,” says Woods-Jaeger.
