In The News

Dr. Dana Litt Creates Tool to Decode Online Drug Market

Dr. Dana Litt, associate professor in the University of North Texas Health Science Center’s School of Public Health, has developed a new guide to help parents influence their children’s decisions about substance use and decode the complex hieroglyphics used by drug dealers online.

Dr. Melissa Lewis Sheds Light On ‘hooking up’ as significant risk factor in campus sexual assaults

More than 90% of campus-based sexual assaults involve alcohol consumption by one or both parties, according to recent data. In response to this alarming discovery, Dr. Melissa Lewis of The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth came together with national colleagues to challenge prevailing myths and seek solutions at a recent webinar, “The Role & Overlap of Alcohol Prevention in Sexual Violence Prevention.”

Allison Cross receives first place prize at UNT Health Science Center’s Research Appreciation Day

Allison Cross, Ph.D. student in Public Health Sciences and STARR Lab graduate student, wins first place prize for her poster presented at the UNT Health Science Center’s Research Appreciation Day.

Professors Transform Final Exam into an Innovative Escape Room Experience at the School of Public Health

Two esteemed professors at the School of Public Health, Dr. Melissa Lewis, Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Advancement, and Dr. Dana Litt, Associate Professor, have partnered with Billie Paschal and Jacob Miller at the University of North Texas Health Science Center Regional Simulation Center to create an unforgettable escape room experience as the final examination for their students in the Grantwriting and Grantsmanship and Health Behavior Research Methods I courses.

UNT Health Science Center’s Dr. Melissa Lewis joins Helping Restore Ability’s Board of Directors

Helping Restore Ability (HRA), a leading nonprofit organization focused on providing in-home non-medical care and home health care services to individuals with disabilities and chronic illnesses, has announced that Dr. Melissa Lewis, an accomplished public health expert, and researcher, has joined the board of directors.

Timing is Everything: New Study Ties Timing of Texts to Youth Alcohol Consumption

Dana Litt and Project PATH research team, using data from a R01 grant funded by NIAAA and led by Dr. Melissa Lewis, have found that adolescents and young adults are more willing to share alcohol-related content via text messages than on social media and that certain patterns of text-messaging behavior are more associated with drinking than others.

School of Public Health Students Participate in the University of North Texas Health Science Center’s Inaugural Three Minute Thesis Competition

UNTHSC hosted its first annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition organized by Allison Cross, a Ph.D. student in Public Health Sciences, and judged by judged by Dean Shafik Dharamsi, Dr. Dana Litt, and Dr. Rajesh Nandy. Five School of Public Health students – Emma Nolan, Kaeli Johnson, Edna Mendoza, Rohit Baal Balasundaram, and Sarpong Boateng – distinguished themselves, each presenting insightful research on pressing public health issues.

Dr. Dana Litt Shares Insights on Social Media and Substance Use during Washington State Health Care Authority Webinar 

In an engaging and informative webinar organized by the Washington State Health Care Authority, Dr. Dana Litt, Associate Professor in the School of Public Health, captivated an audience of over 100 substance use disorder treatment clinicians who serve youth.

Award-Winning Academic and Community Partnership Earns Statewide Recognition

As part of her ongoing collaboration with Challenge of Tarrant County, an organization dedicated to addressing substance use and misuse the local community, Dr. Dana Litt, an Associate Professor in the School of Public Health, and the team were honored with the Community Partnership of the Year Award from the Health and Human Services Commission for their exceptional efforts during the 2022 Red Ribbon Week.

School of Public Health Faculty Member Bridges Public Health and Animal Welfare

Associate professor Dr. Dana Litt merges her passions for both human and animal health by co-founding Cowtown Friends of Fort Worth Animal Care & Control in 2020 to provide support to the local municipal animal shelter through fundraising, community engagement and outreach.

Dr. Melissa Lewis invited to join NIAAA College Working Group

Melissa Lewis has been invited to join the new College Working Group of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Lewis, an associate dean for research and professor in the School of Public Health at The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth, adds her expertise to NIAAA’s focus on higher education environments and alcohol misuse prevention.

HSC creates Addiction Interest Group to tackle complex health issues

To tackle complex health issues, The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth is taking an innovative step forward. Faculty, students and staff from the School of Biomedical Sciences and the School of Public Health have come together to establish the Addiction Interest Group. This new entity aims to drive multidisciplinary collaborations, targeting research initiatives focused on addiction, mental health and alcohol and substance use disorders.

HSC researchers receive new NIH grant to study, impact young adults’ risks from alcohol, marijuana

A new study led by researchers at the University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth (HSC) looks to uncover the perceptions that young adults have toward alcohol and marijuana and the personal safety, or protective, strategies they employ when using one or both substances together, to help reduce their risks for harm and negative consequences.

Research shows increase in alcohol consumption during pandemic

Researchers say alcohol consumption has increased during the pandemic because of psychological overload.

How Social Media Can Amplify Underage Drinking

Dana Litt, professor of Health Behavior and Health Systems at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, is one of the leaders of the team researching this new approach. She joined KERA’s Justin Martin to talk about their work.

North Texas: Researchers to Help Parents, Kids Talk About Social Media and Drinking

Parents can be one of the best deterrents to underage drinking by having knowledge of and talking to their kids about alcohol content presented on social networking sites, say two University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNTHSC) public health researchers who are leading a new National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) study focused on teen and young adult alcohol interventions.

Why is Spring the most important time to talk with your teens?

National survey data shows that among high school students during the past 30 days, 30% reported drinking alcohol, 14% reported engaging in a heavy-episodic drinking (i.e. 4/5 drinks or more for women/men, respectively), 6% drove after drinking alcohol, and 17% rode with a driver who had been drinking alcohol. Although alcohol use in general is problematic in this age group, specific events such as spring break, prom, and graduation have been associated with excessive alcohol use among teens.

SPH students, alum recognized at 2019 Research Appreciation Day

UNTHSC School of Public Health (SPH) students Cassidy Loparco, Roslin Jose and Sarah Matthes, along with SPH alum and current TCOM student Brandon Hoff, were all honored for their winning poster presentations at this year’s UNTHSC Research Appreciation Day (RAD), held March 29.

Twitter posts offer insight into young adult drinking

Young adults’ social media chatter may reveal a lot about drinking behavior and intentions, say two UNTHSC public health researchers.

North Texas NIH study: First Semester of College Represents ‘Red Zone’ for Student Drinking

What happens in the first semester of college can profoundly impact students’ alcohol use and future drinking behaviors, especially during the first six weeks, says University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNTHSC) School of Public Health associate professor Dr. Dana M. Litt, who is leading a new study on ways to reach freshmen when they are most impressionable.

North Texas Researchers to Study Thoughts, Social Influences Impacting Teen, Young Adult Drinking

Two University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNTHSC) School of Public Health researchers plan to get inside the minds of teens and young adults to learn what influences them to drink, and when they are most apt to use alcohol, through a new $2.6 million, five-year grant funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism through the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Three nationally-known alcohol and substance abuse researchers — Dr. Melissa A. Lewis, Dr. Dana M. Litt and Dr. Eun-Young Mun — have been appointed to the School of Public Health faculty at the University of North Texas Health Science Center(UNTHSC), underlining the school’s intent to become a national center of excellence in substance abuse education and research.