Center for the Advancement
of Youth Health (CAYH)
Director: Michael Windle, PhD
Established: 2000
Mission and Demographics
The Center for the Advancement of Youth Health (CAYH) is a multidisciplinary
institute dedicated to the health and well being of youth. Established at UAB
in the Fall of 2000 and so designated by the Alabama System Board of Trustees,
the CAYH is funded by federal grants secured via national competition. The mission
of the CAYH is to enhance the health of our nation's youth by reducing health
risk behaviors; decreasing morbidity, mortality, and disability; and fostering
positive health outcomes and educational achievement.
Center partnerships are established with a corps of over 50 Center scientists across six UAB schools, the University of Alabama, and Auburn University. Investigators from multiple schools and departments across the UAB campus and affiliate sites are involved in studies regarding the biological, behavioral, and environmental causes of youth health risk behaviors and outcomes, as well as developing, implementing, and evaluating interventions to alter adverse outcomes. Other partnerships include community agencies, school systems, the mental health system, the medical-health-care system, and the juvenile justice system. Information on youth health issues is disseminated through a range of committees, councils and the academic community, as well as through quarterly newsletters and a frequently updated Website.
Center Research
The CAYH is currently involved in two major research programs. Lives Across
Time is an ongoing, prospective (longitudinal) study of 1200 families. The
focus is on correlates and predictors of substance abuse, psychiatric dysfunction
(e.g., depression, anxiety disorders, etc.) and violence among children and
adolescents, and the consequences of these conditions for subsequent life adjustment
(e.g., family and occupational functioning) in young adulthood. This program
is now in its sixteenth year of funding by the National Institute of Alcohol
Abuse and Alcoholism. Healthy Passages, also a longitudinal study, focuses
on risk and protective factors for multiple child and adolescent health behaviors,
including tobacco use, alcohol and other drug abuse, violence, injurious behaviors,
physical activity and nutrition, and sexual behavior. Funded by the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, this program is a three-site study including
the University of California-Los Angelas/RAND (RAND is a non-partisan, private,
non-profit research institute that conducts research to improve public policy)
and the University of Texas-Houston. Annual data will be collected for ten years
from 5,250 children (1,750 from each of the three sites), starting at age ten.
Other Activities of Interest
The Center for the Advancment of Youth Health has established both a Community
Advisory Committee of 24 members from 20 different youth advocacy, health, and
social service organizations in the greater Birmingham area and a Youth Advisory
Committee consisting of area high school students who are committed to the mission
of youth violence prevention. These advisory committees serve to facilitate
collaborations between the CYVC and other organizations, foster communication
between the Center and the Birmingham community on youth violence-related issues,
and disseminate information to the public.
The Colloquium Series brings prominent scientists to UAB to present their research findings on youth health and youth violence topics for both the UAB and the Birmingham communities. Presentations during the past year included: Dr. Al Farrell (Identifying Essential Skills for Violence Prevention in Urban Adolescents), Dr. Deborah Gorman-Smith (Neighborhood Ecology of Family Influence on Delinquency and Violence), Dr. Robert Zucker (Identifying Risk for Addictive Disorders Early in Life), and Dr. Vangie Foshee (Assessing the Effects of the Dating Violence Prevention Program "Safe Dates" Over Time).
For additional information:
Administrator: Janice Gilliland,
PhD
Email: mjgill@uab.edu
Phone: 205-934-8785
Grants Manager: Lori Renkl,
MEd
Email: lrenkl@uab.edu
Phone: 205-934-5674
Director: Michael Windle,
PhD
Email: windle@uab.edu
Approved by: Michael Windle,
PhD, Director
Date: April 26, 2005 (Update requested)
Click here to return to the
SOM Research Web Site's home page.